On Marcus Smart and Player Evaluation

[TheFlex]

I just read a really interesting thread on here from the other day (TP rutzan) about the ceiling and floor of Marcus Smart (and James Young): http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=71932.0#msg1692160

Briefly, I noticed a few things about our evaluation of players as fans. I think fans a lot of times concentrate too heavily on skill set and don't take into consideration the character of a prospect. Some of this is because a lot of the information not at our disposal come draft time is character-oriented. We know how high Marcus Smart can jump and how fast he completed ballhandling drills at the combine. We don't know a lot about what his coach had to say about him privately to Celtics scouts and execs. We know how good a shooter Smart is coming out of college. We don't know just how hard he'll work to become a better one.

It's my belief that a lot of what separates the great players and the good ones has to do with character. It might be what separates Dwyane Wade from Tyreke Evans, Kobe Bryant from O.J. Mayo, Chauncey Billups from Devin Harris, Paul George from Luol Deng, Dirk Nowitzki from Andrea Bargnani, etc.

Another aspect of player evaluation that I think fans gloss over is feel for the game/feel for the moment. We are familiar with a couple legends from around these parts (Bird and Pierce) that didn't have the leaping ability of Dominique or the deltoids of LeBron, but were born to be basketball players (possessing things like lightning-quick first steps despite otherwise having average speed, clutchness and uncanny body coordination/control). Marcus Smart absolutely has great feel for the game as well as that unique feel for the moment that made so many Cs fans fall in love with Pierce. (Quickly: Anyone who watched Pierce for just one season at any point in his career has heard Mike Gorman say something along the lines of "He's shooting 3-15 and he's only got 9 points, but he's dominating the game as a floor leader, rebounder and defender. He can assess what this team needs and give it to them, even if he's having a poor scoring night." I see a lot of that in Smart). From today's Mark Murphy piece in the Herald (http://bostonherald.com/sports/celtics_nba/boston_celtics/2014/06/celtics_marcus_smart_matured_by_life_lessons):

Due to Marcus? unsinkable nature, few on the outside saw how deeply the suspension ? and what he viewed as a horrible mistake ? hurt.

Ford put him on the scout team during practice, and watched Smart vengefully attack the starting unit behind closed gym doors.

?It was just dominance,? said Ford. ?His leadership (on the scout team) was phenomenal.?

Which leads me to my point: A noticeable camp of posters in the aforementioned thread mentioned guys like Tyreke Evans and Baron Davis as realistic comparisons to Smart. They picked apart Smart largely based on his basketball skillset. However they also thought it was important enough to mention that Smart may be one of those Bryant/Garnett types in terms of character and feel for the game/moment. Don't you think if Tyreke Evans had Smart's work ethic he'd be a superstar? Or if Davis had Smart's heightened sense of the moment and more determined alpha dog mentality (I think Davis was a competitor though not on the level of Bryant or Garnett), he would've been a superstar (instead of just a really good player)?

Marcus Smart's very good skill set combined with his strong character and elite feel for the game will make him a star in this league and maybe even a superstar. He is "that one guy you can build around," as I believe Mannix put it the other day. I do see a lot of Davis/Evans in his skillset, as well as Wade. I see a little bit of Derrick Rose in that he clearly has an affinity for the rim/contact. As for his intangibles, I see a lot of Chauncey Billups in him (remember when the Nuggets swapped Iverson for Billups and they inexplicably were way better? I think Smart has that same "it" factor Chauncey does). I think he's a warrior that we could build a contender around for years to come.

[NorthernLightning]

It's going to be great to have a good passer at the SG position instead of Bradley.

Green, Sully, KO, Bass, and Fav can all shoot jump shots and stretch the floor, so even though Rondo and Smart are not great outside shooters, at least they can both pass to each other and the spot up shooters around them.

I expect a lot of two on two battles inside the paint with Smart and Rondo in there, surrounded by shooters.
 

[Neurotic Guy]

Excellent post.  Thanks.  I'm looking forwrd to seeing Marcus in green.

[Sketch5]

This is what I like about Smart over most of the draft. Thats what I like about him over Wiggins. Parker may have it, and has the size which is what people like, but Smart attitude of I want to earn what I get is what will make him great if he reach's that level.

It's why I also think he could become a good outside shooter. And if he doesn't, it's not because he didn't try or work for it.

The fact that he was dominate against the starters during his suspension is encouraging. And that his actions hurt him and regretted it speaks volumes of character. People make mistakes, loose their cool in the heat of the moment. But to take the mistake and use it as a learning experience, is what separates the winners and the mediocre.

I'm really pulling for this kid.