Smart letting the league know

[LilRip]

Smart was dominant in the 4th qtr. That was amazing to watch.

[elcotte]

Korver was tossing bricks tonight, thankfully.

Marcus was nuts. Really didnt look that small on milsap. He is a load. Bull. What a game! 

a large part of that was because he wasnt getting into his favorite spots and positions. smart just denied him the ball and position. then his last shots he had to run and was moving sideways quite a bit when he shot. hard for even him to make those.

credit the defense tonight.

A large part because Millsap is really... not that big. Hate to rain on everyone's parade, but Millsap is 6'7, which is smaller than many SFs these days.

He still has 5 inches on Smart.  And a lot of taller players can't guard him.

Um no, he doesn't. Smart is 6'4.

Marcus Smart was measured at 6'2 without shoes at the combine
Milsapp measured 6'6.25.

Last time I checked, they played with shoes. Draftexpress has Marcus Smart at 6'4 with shoes, and he was also listed at 6'4 in the media guide last time I was at a Celtics game. Millsap is 6'7.25 with shoes.

Bottom line is that Millsap is not as big as you may think he is. Certainly comparable in length to some of the SFs Smart has already guarded this season.

Wow. You're focused on height with or without shoes as opposed to the fact that Smart came in the game and played great defense on a guy who ultimately scored 45 points. Just wow.

[fairweatherfan]

Korver was tossing bricks tonight, thankfully.

Marcus was nuts. Really didnt look that small on milsap. He is a load. Bull. What a game! 

a large part of that was because he wasnt getting into his favorite spots and positions. smart just denied him the ball and position. then his last shots he had to run and was moving sideways quite a bit when he shot. hard for even him to make those.

credit the defense tonight.

A large part because Millsap is really... not that big. Hate to rain on everyone's parade, but Millsap is 6'7, which is smaller than many SFs these days.

He still has 5 inches on Smart.  And a lot of taller players can't guard him.

Um no, he doesn't. Smart is 6'4.

Marcus Smart was measured at 6'2 without shoes at the combine
Milsapp measured 6'6.25.

Last time I checked, they played with shoes. Draftexpress has Marcus Smart at 6'4 with shoes, and he was also listed at 6'4 in the media guide last time I was at a Celtics game. Millsap is 6'7.25 with shoes.

Bottom line is that Millsap is not as big as you may think he is. Certainly comparable in length to some of the SFs Smart has already guarded this season.

Wow. You're focused on height with or without shoes as opposed to the fact that Smart came in the game and played great defense on a guy who ultimately scored 45 points. Just wow.

You're both burying the lede here - why are Paul Millsap's shoes an inch thinner than Smart's?  I'm saying league conspiracy but I'm open to more unlikely answers too.

[Dino Pitino]

Lets put it simply.

Marcus Smart as a general rule is highly inconsistent. There is a very, very large disparity between Marcus Smart at his best, and Marcus Smart at his worst. 

Unfortunately we tend to see "Marcus Smart at his worst" far more often then we see the other version.  I would go so far as to say the ratio is something like 8:1.

HOWEVER fair is fair, and just like any other guy, Smart deserves credit when he has earned it.  In the Playoffs so far he has been pretty darn good, and has without a doubt been one of our top 4 or 5 most consistent players over this series.  Today in particular he was spectacular - Smart, Jerebko, Amir and Thomas were the clear MVP's of this game, and you could make a legitimate argument that Smart played the best of them all.  Turner was pretty good too, but he made a lot of mistakes. 

I am never afraid to call out a player when they play badly.  It's only fair I give credit to a guy when he plays well too.  Today Smart played one hell of a game, and he has earned some credit/respect from me throughout this series.

Lets also take not of the fact that Smart is still only 21 years old - he is a year younger than Buddy Hield. 

I don't believe in jumping on the "youth" bandwagon the way a lot of people do, but when you have a guy who is giving you strong production in critical Playoff games at the age of 21, that's very promising to see.

The biggest thing with Smart today was IMHO the mental side.  He didn't force so many bad shots, he drive to the basket with aggression and with the intention of scoring (rather than the hope of drawing a foul), and he maintained his composure emotionally better then he usually does - despite it being a pretty physical game.

Of course the fact that his shots were falling helped (as it always does) but learning to play with more discipline (as he did tonight) is the first big step towards Smart maturing as a playing and becoming a more consistent contributor.  Credit to him for taking that step, if it's just for one game.

"Lets put it simply", lol, right. Followed by negging and bet-hedging and backhanded-compliment-giving meant to downplay the very, very simple fact that Smart is proving you very wrong. If you ever decide to eat crow, then eat it. Don't just sniff the crow and let the crow roll around in your mouth and then spit it into your napkin and say you'll save it for later. "You could make a legitimate argument that Smart played the best of them all", hahahahahaha, no. To those in Celtic fandom who never invested themselves in a massive, permanent misjudgment of Smart, he was indisputably the best Celtic last night and there is zero legitimate argument otherwise and it's cause for celebration not awkward backtracking.

Smart was great but lets not get carried away. He wasn't better than IT or more important then him. Smart played a fantastic game as a role player. IT is the lead dog. The game doesn't go anywhere without IT scoring at the rim and then getting the defense to cave for other shooters.

Smart is still primarily a spot up shooter and at times a creator but with a short leash. Don't get it twisted. Smart was unbelievable last night but to me IT being his usual self is still more important than Smart going off and playing lock down defense.

I'm not getting carried away. Last night, Smart was the best Celtic. The offensive and defensive MVP of the game. Easily. Isaiah being a better player in general or being the key to other Celtics seeing open shots is irrelevant to the question of who was last night's best Celtic, which was inarguably Smart.

[Evantime34]

Lets put it simply.

Marcus Smart as a general rule is highly inconsistent. There is a very, very large disparity between Marcus Smart at his best, and Marcus Smart at his worst. 

Unfortunately we tend to see "Marcus Smart at his worst" far more often then we see the other version.  I would go so far as to say the ratio is something like 8:1.

HOWEVER fair is fair, and just like any other guy, Smart deserves credit when he has earned it.  In the Playoffs so far he has been pretty darn good, and has without a doubt been one of our top 4 or 5 most consistent players over this series.  Today in particular he was spectacular - Smart, Jerebko, Amir and Thomas were the clear MVP's of this game, and you could make a legitimate argument that Smart played the best of them all.  Turner was pretty good too, but he made a lot of mistakes. 

I am never afraid to call out a player when they play badly.  It's only fair I give credit to a guy when he plays well too.  Today Smart played one hell of a game, and he has earned some credit/respect from me throughout this series.

Lets also take not of the fact that Smart is still only 21 years old - he is a year younger than Buddy Hield. 

I don't believe in jumping on the "youth" bandwagon the way a lot of people do, but when you have a guy who is giving you strong production in critical Playoff games at the age of 21, that's very promising to see.

The biggest thing with Smart today was IMHO the mental side.  He didn't force so many bad shots, he drive to the basket with aggression and with the intention of scoring (rather than the hope of drawing a foul), and he maintained his composure emotionally better then he usually does - despite it being a pretty physical game.

Of course the fact that his shots were falling helped (as it always does) but learning to play with more discipline (as he did tonight) is the first big step towards Smart maturing as a playing and becoming a more consistent contributor.  Credit to him for taking that step, if it's just for one game.

"Lets put it simply", lol, right. Followed by negging and bet-hedging and backhanded-compliment-giving meant to downplay the very, very simple fact that Smart is proving you very wrong. If you ever decide to eat crow, then eat it. Don't just sniff the crow and let the crow roll around in your mouth and then spit it into your napkin and say you'll save it for later. "You could make a legitimate argument that Smart played the best of them all", hahahahahaha, no. To those in Celtic fandom who never invested themselves in a massive, permanent misjudgment of Smart, he was indisputably the best Celtic last night and there is zero legitimate argument otherwise and it's cause for celebration not awkward backtracking.

Smart was great but lets not get carried away. He wasn't better than IT or more important then him. Smart played a fantastic game as a role player. IT is the lead dog. The game doesn't go anywhere without IT scoring at the rim and then getting the defense to cave for other shooters.

Smart is still primarily a spot up shooter and at times a creator but with a short leash. Don't get it twisted. Smart was unbelievable last night but to me IT being his usual self is still more important than Smart going off and playing lock down defense.

I'm not getting carried away. Last night, Smart was the best Celtic. The offensive and defensive MVP of the game. Easily. Isaiah being a better player in general or being the key to other Celtics seeing open shots is irrelevant to the question of who was last night's best Celtic, which was inarguably Smart.

Completely agree.

Smart choked off the scoring from the only guy who could get Atlanta buckets and came up with some of the biggest hoops in the game.Without Smart Millsap goes for 50+ and we lose.

IT was the one guarding Teague when he hit the two 3's at the end of regulation that allowed the Hawks to send it to OT.

Oh btw Smart's ability to hit the 3 set up the driving lane for Thomas on the final bucket for the C's in regulation. Smart set the screen then popped to the 3 point line, Korver went with him and Thomas had a clear lane to the hoop.

The only two ways I can conceive of someone thinking Thomas had a better game was if 1. You only looked at the box score 2. You only focus on the ball when watching the game 3. You already had a bias against Smart and you're unwilling to admit he played well.

[Evantime34]

double post my bad.

[spikelovetheCelts]

Korver was tossing bricks tonight, thankfully.

Marcus was nuts. Really didnt look that small on milsap. He is a load. Bull. What a game! 

He was in Korver face on a few. Helped to throw Korver of his game.
I told everyone on here he was winner and when it mattered he would deliver. And he did. DA nailed it.

[kozlodoev]

Wow. You're focused on height with or without shoes as opposed to the fact that Smart came in the game and played great defense on a guy who ultimately scored 45 points. Just wow.

Yeah, I know. Let's concentrate on a more reasonable topic -- like how he's going to be the DPOY next year.

[Smart457]

Lets put it simply.

Marcus Smart as a general rule is highly inconsistent. There is a very, very large disparity between Marcus Smart at his best, and Marcus Smart at his worst. 

Unfortunately we tend to see "Marcus Smart at his worst" far more often then we see the other version.  I would go so far as to say the ratio is something like 8:1.

HOWEVER fair is fair, and just like any other guy, Smart deserves credit when he has earned it.  In the Playoffs so far he has been pretty darn good, and has without a doubt been one of our top 4 or 5 most consistent players over this series.  Today in particular he was spectacular - Smart, Jerebko, Amir and Thomas were the clear MVP's of this game, and you could make a legitimate argument that Smart played the best of them all.  Turner was pretty good too, but he made a lot of mistakes. 

I am never afraid to call out a player when they play badly.  It's only fair I give credit to a guy when he plays well too.  Today Smart played one hell of a game, and he has earned some credit/respect from me throughout this series.

Lets also take not of the fact that Smart is still only 21 years old - he is a year younger than Buddy Hield. 

I don't believe in jumping on the "youth" bandwagon the way a lot of people do, but when you have a guy who is giving you strong production in critical Playoff games at the age of 21, that's very promising to see.

The biggest thing with Smart today was IMHO the mental side.  He didn't force so many bad shots, he drive to the basket with aggression and with the intention of scoring (rather than the hope of drawing a foul), and he maintained his composure emotionally better then he usually does - despite it being a pretty physical game.

Of course the fact that his shots were falling helped (as it always does) but learning to play with more discipline (as he did tonight) is the first big step towards Smart maturing as a playing and becoming a more consistent contributor.  Credit to him for taking that step, if it's just for one game.

"Lets put it simply", lol, right. Followed by negging and bet-hedging and backhanded-compliment-giving meant to downplay the very, very simple fact that Smart is proving you very wrong. If you ever decide to eat crow, then eat it. Don't just sniff the crow and let the crow roll around in your mouth and then spit it into your napkin and say you'll save it for later. "You could make a legitimate argument that Smart played the best of them all", hahahahahaha, no. To those in Celtic fandom who never invested themselves in a massive, permanent misjudgment of Smart, he was indisputably the best Celtic last night and there is zero legitimate argument otherwise and it's cause for celebration not awkward backtracking.

Smart was great but lets not get carried away. He wasn't better than IT or more important then him. Smart played a fantastic game as a role player. IT is the lead dog. The game doesn't go anywhere without IT scoring at the rim and then getting the defense to cave for other shooters.

Smart is still primarily a spot up shooter and at times a creator but with a short leash. Don't get it twisted. Smart was unbelievable last night but to me IT being his usual self is still more important than Smart going off and playing lock down defense.

I'm not getting carried away. Last night, Smart was the best Celtic. The offensive and defensive MVP of the game. Easily. Isaiah being a better player in general or being the key to other Celtics seeing open shots is irrelevant to the question of who was last night's best Celtic, which was inarguably Smart.

I love Smart but he was not more important than IT. The only reason you probably feel this way is because you see IT perform to this level consistently and Smart had a standout game for himself. Look back at the game and see how many big shots IT hit off drives. Also look how the defense caves and IT passes out to get other players open threes. Some of them were hockey assists as the ball had to swing twice but it was created from IT's drive.

When you say the point is not arguable, that just shows the bias you have for Smart. IT scored 28 while hitting huge shots at the rim and a game tying one to send to OT. He also held Schroeder and Teague in check at times.

IT's accomplishments sometimes go unnoticed because he's so dang consistent.

He also hit a three while falling out of bounce at the baseline to put the game away. That was a crazy shot and a shot most of us probably were saying I bet it's going in.