Sick of people saying Smart can't shoot.

[ddb]

I think Danny did really well in the 2014 draft.  Marcus Smart is going to be a heck of a player.  He is already showing signs of this.  Defensively he's a beast that can guard 3 positions.  So that's huge.  Beyond that he's hitting the 3 at a decent clip which was a major knock on him coming out of college.  So that's encouraging.  Now all he needs is to continue to work on his PG skills, and when to attack and get to the rim. 
Last night he had a beautiful drive and finish at the rim...It's coming. 

As far as James Young goes.  The kid can shoot and score.  It's a natural skill for him..  He needs to get some more reps in...those reps are coming.  He also needs to get stronger and work on the defensive side of the ball.  That stuff will come with experience.  He's 19!!! 

2 great picks IMO

[86MaxwellSmart]

I think Danny did really well in the 2014 draft.  Marcus Smart is going to be a heck of a player.  He is already showing signs of this.  Defensively he's a beast that can guard 3 positions.  So that's huge.  Beyond that he's hitting the 3 at a decent clip which was a major knock on him coming out of college.  So that's encouraging.  Now all he needs is to continue to work on his PG skills, and when to attack and get to the rim. 
Last night he had a beautiful drive and finish at the rim...It's coming. 

As far as James Young goes.  The kid can shoot and score.  It's a natural skill for him..  He needs to get some more reps in...those reps are coming.  He also needs to get stronger and work on the defensive side of the ball.  That stuff will come with experience.  He's 19!!! 

2 great picks IMO

Couldn't agree more--and this comes from a guy who was throwing things at his TV on Draft Night....I'm very excited about the future of this team--I know we traded the 2 guys who had the most Talent--but also the 2 guys with the most questionable effort, night in and out.

[Dog_Lover106]

I know some of you are knowledgeable fans, but some of you are simply not. Smart has been shooting over 40% from 3 the last 13 games, not even including tonight's good shooting night. Yes, he should be driving more, but that is not his strength RIGHT NOW. I simply do not like fans who make assumptions based on the common belief of most people, or "circle-jerk."

Wall, Rose, Parker could all not shoot when they entered the league, AT ALL. This kid has shown ALREADY serious improvement. And stop with the "he's not a point guard" crap. Positions barely matter in the league anymore, he is simply a great BASKETBALL player.

Give the kid some time to develop PLEASE. He's a WINNER.

"Give the kid some time to develop PLEASE." "He's a WINNER."

Ok on giving Smart time to develop, as the pick has already been made,  but what choice do I have but giving him time to develop? Clearly, he is not going to last long in the NBA ....if he does not develop?

But to use your phasing in telling me how to react as a "KNOWLEDGABLE fan", how about you stop with "he's a winner crap". No evidence of that yet is there? Yeah, because OSU got so deep in the tournament the past two years?

Last year OSU was a top 5 pre-season pick and after his suspension, kicking chairs, getting out played etc. OSU ended up barely making the round of 64. 

Are we going back to high school on the "He's a WINNER" statement? If so, maybe we can get Phil Forte too?

Guess you are as sick of the Marcus Smart questions, as I am sick of the Marcus Smart hype.

Hope I am wrong, as I am far from a casual fan and have not missed many games in the last 40 years.

[Chris22]

Turner should start at the point, Smart should start at the two.

[loco_91]

Shooting is not Smart's strength. I believe he can be a passable shooter-- good enough to keep defenses honest-- but he's probably never going to be a guy who will knock down threes in your face. In college, he took lots of 3's but never made them at a high rate. His bread and butter was getting to the rim for layups and FT's.

I will be very unhappy if Smart turns into a 3&D player. I want him to be a versatile 2-way PG who shoots more FT's than 3 pointers.

[Eja117]

This isn't a matter of opinion. On the year he is sub 40% from the field and sub 70% from the line. Until those numbers get better I don't even have to consider him an ok or average shooter.

At the present time KO, Avery, and Evan T are all significantly better shooters.

I'm also used to pgs that rebound and pass and so far he's not doing that. I see why people like him. He's very athletic and intense, but as of now this isn't what I signed up for. He's not doing half of what Victor O did last year, in a supposedly weak draft class.

[ViolentGhandi]

its allways ppl eighter hyping something or asking for players to be traded away without good reason

I don't like it eighter - at some point I will not even bother to waste time paying attention to it - just like when your girl is getting on your nerves, she talks and talks - you look into her face and all you hear are birds singing or waterfalls.

[TBreezy]

I thought looking at Smart college videos, that he had a slow load.  WHen he had time he hit at a decent clip, but under pressure he couldn't get his form sorted.  It has looked better getting into the shot over the last 6 weeks, so I suspect his shot will come around.   He will never be confused Eddie House redux, but I think there will be a little DJ with a better jump shot (once he settles into the league).

The drives last night were encouraging.

[Csfan1984]

This isn't a matter of opinion. On the year he is sub 40% from the field and sub 70% from the line. Until those numbers get better I don't even have to consider him an ok or average shooter.

At the present time KO, Avery, and Evan T are all significantly better shooters.

I'm also used to pgs that rebound and pass and so far he's not doing that. I see why people like him. He's very athletic and intense, but as of now this isn't what I signed up for. He's not doing half of what Victor O did last year, in a supposedly weak draft class.

V.O. played out of control a lot last year. I'm glad Smart isn't playing his rookie year the same way.

[Celtics4ever]

I do think this draft has underperformed thus far this year for one that was loaded.   But so many guys got hurt.  I am pretty happy with Smart, and I think Young might be a steal.    Time will tell, folks it is early.

Smart plays hard, I hope he practices half as hard as he plays and this will all sort itself out.

[kraidstar]

lebron shot .417/.290 his first year.
smart will get a lot better, he's already looking smoother on his shots. and he's already shown he can be an impact player, many of the c's near-comebacks were sparked by his energy and will. the skills should continue to evolve over the next few years.

[Snakehead]

Those criticizing Smart's offense have valid points (though personally I am pretty encouraged) but are taking for granted over how good he is on defense.  He is very impressive.  I can't remember seeing a rookie play help defense and move his feet like Smart does. 

 I think he is good enough to be better than some other guards who just get by gambling for steals more because he's sound with his movements and uses his feet very well.  He does get steals but gets them at the best times and avoids fouls when doing it.  And he is big enough to guard multiple positions.

He's already playing defense at that level as a rookie and you have to imagine he gets better.  His effort carries over to loose balls where he is the first guy to hit the floor.

I hope he starts driving a lot more because I think he can, but to his credit his three point shot is starting to look pretty good.  He stopped taking bad ones and he is getting open and hitting them lately.  Once he is driving as well you can see how his offensive game could fill out.

So far I'm very happy.  I am not sure he becomes the best play maker as he goes on but he has a lot of potential and hopefully we have multiple players that can make a play off the dribble and handle the ball to carry some of that load for him.  I think he should be able to drive and he's a guy who can draw a lot of fouls.

[dwoumn]

Smart's upside is going to be a poor man's D. Wade. Watching him in college, Smart had a balance offensive game but since arriving in the NBA it has been all outside shots for the most part. If he can find a balance of the outside shot, develop a mid-range game, and attacking the rim he is going to be a decent player. The next few years, he will have time to develop and hopefully he does.

[DarkAzcura]

This isn't a matter of opinion. On the year he is sub 40% from the field and sub 70% from the line. Until those numbers get better I don't even have to consider him an ok or average shooter.

At the present time KO, Avery, and Evan T are all significantly better shooters.

I'm also used to pgs that rebound and pass and so far he's not doing that. I see why people like him. He's very athletic and intense, but as of now this isn't what I signed up for. He's not doing half of what Victor O did last year, in a supposedly weak draft class.

VO entered the league one year later and played completely out of control as someone else mentioned. Maybe that's how Orlando coached him up, but I'd prefer Smart not to average close to 4 turnovers per 36MPG and developing bad habits in turn. VO has shown improvement in his shot selection and ball handling this year so force feeding him into the throat of defenses seems to have worked for him, but it's not a developmental style I'd bank on working for every player.

[Beat LA]

This isn't a matter of opinion. On the year he is sub 40% from the field and sub 70% from the line. Until those numbers get better I don't even have to consider him an ok or average shooter.

At the present time KO, Avery, and Evan T are all significantly better shooters.

I'm also used to pgs that rebound and pass and so far he's not doing that. I see why people like him. He's very athletic and intense, but as of now this isn't what I signed up for. He's not doing half of what Victor O did last year, in a supposedly weak draft class.

I'm honestly more concerned with his free throw shooting, but his form on his jumper looks fine, to me, and he has certainly been knocking down shots with more consistency lately.  My only complaint is that, aside from not driving to the hoop more, he takes too many threes, and if you're not a good shooter, why are you routinely chucking it from that distance?  A corner three is fine, but stick to the midrange game for now.