If I had a chance to trade Smart For Elfrid Peyton I would do it in a heartbeat

[CeltsAcumen]

No way I would do that deal.  Smart is a tough defensive player on both PGS and SGs, and a few select SFs.  He rebounds, hustles and his shot is getting better.

Peyton is not the same player as Smart and does not have anywhere near the upside as Smart.

No I will stick with what we have, sometimes the grass looks greener, but really is just an illusion of green.

Smart is already in green, I say we keep him and try and work on his jumper.  Much easier than teaching a guy how to play defense.

[PickNRoll]

wow! I watched the 1st half last night and I have a completely different view of smart.

he just does things on the defensive end that 10 yr. vets don't do. I really can't believe how good he is defensively.

I doubt he'll be an all-star but I don't know, no one does. but I will say if he gets some guys around that can play a lil bit of some D and some good team D. this team will be scary to play against.

just watch smart when his guy doesn't have the ball, and what he does on screens.

Been saying this since day 1.  He's a prodigy on defense.  You can't teach some of the stuff he does.

[manl_lui]

wow! I watched the 1st half last night and I have a completely different view of smart.

he just does things on the defensive end that 10 yr. vets don't do. I really can't believe how good he is defensively.

I doubt he'll be an all-star but I don't know, no one does. but I will say if he gets some guys around that can play a lil bit of some D and some good team D. this team will be scary to play against.

just watch smart when his guy doesn't have the ball, and what he does on screens.

Been saying this since day 1.  He's a prodigy on defense.  You can't teach some of the stuff he does.

can you imagine if he had KG as a mentor

[shrinkage36]

Anyone who not just watches the game, but actually pays attention to strategy would know that Stevens does not run offensive plays for Smart.

Seems like his role is to run the offense, be available for the 3 if things break down, facilitate when applicable, and harass offenders. If Stevens decides to actually allow Smart to do things for the offense other than set it up for other guys, you would see a high, 18 to 19 points a game PG.

[saltlover]

wow! I watched the 1st half last night and I have a completely different view of smart.

he just does things on the defensive end that 10 yr. vets don't do. I really can't believe how good he is defensively.

I doubt he'll be an all-star but I don't know, no one does. but I will say if he gets some guys around that can play a lil bit of some D and some good team D. this team will be scary to play against.

just watch smart when his guy doesn't have the ball, and what he does on screens.

Been saying this since day 1.  He's a prodigy on defense.  You can't teach some of the stuff he does.

Yeah, Smart is a defensive savant.  It's not just that he plays aggressively -- he's always in the right place and has great technique.  I hope Smart does make an All-Star game at some point -- I doubt he can turn off his defense, and it'd be funny to watch him hounding people and fighting through screens in that shooting and dunking exhibition.

[acieEarl]

Smart's defensive abilities are already top NBA caliber. Offense is a work in progress. The kid just need to play and he'll figure it out. The best thing about Smart is you can play him and he not a liability as most rookies are. He does a lot of little thing well that don't show up on the stat sheets, similar to what Garnett always brought.

Let see where he's at by year 3.

[celtics2030]

This is why you can never take Celticsblog seriously , EVER.

This is what I have seen so far

potential is 10 times better than Tony Allen...yea ten times 

He has the Fire , Passion, Competitive spirit..........in other words he cant play but he has effort.

Marcus Smart Shoots 10 million times better..........Yea,........10 million times better


Every one tells themselves what they want, then they post it on Celticsblog.

[celtics2030]

There is no way in hell I'd trade Smart for Payton right now.  It's way too early, and there is a reason Smart was regarded as a much better prospect for then past two+ years.

Defense > edge Smart
Shooting > edge Smart - believe it or not. Payton is shooting 44% from the line.
Creator > edge Payton, for now.  I think Smart's ankle is just now getting healthy.  I expect him to drive and dish more in the coming weeks.
Scorer > push
Rebounder > push - and Smart physicality with big guys is something Payton will never be able to match.
efficiency > Smart - believe it or not
Ball security > Smart by a mile

We won't know for a while who is better between these two, but for the OP to make such a conclusory statement is absurd.

Hes shooting 49% from the line , and Marcus is only shooting 69%

You left out that Elfrid is a way better and will be a way better point guard. No comparison in that.

[BigAlTheFuture]

Only players in this rookie class I would take over Smart is Wiggins, Parker, and Embiid. I'm liking what I see out of Smart even if the stats say otherwise. Kid is the real deal.

[wiley]

There is no way in hell I'd trade Smart for Payton right now.  It's way too early, and there is a reason Smart was regarded as a much better prospect for then past two+ years.

Defense > edge Smart
Shooting > edge Smart - believe it or not. Payton is shooting 44% from the line.
Creator > edge Payton, for now.  I think Smart's ankle is just now getting healthy.  I expect him to drive and dish more in the coming weeks.
Scorer > push
Rebounder > push - and Smart physicality with big guys is something Payton will never be able to match.
efficiency > Smart - believe it or not
Ball security > Smart by a mile

We won't know for a while who is better between these two, but for the OP to make such a conclusory statement is absurd.

Hes shooting 49% from the line , and Marcus is only shooting 69%

You left out that Elfrid is a way better and will be a way better point guard. No comparison in that.

Payton is also a way better PG than the first 5 years of Chauncy Billups.  Calm down until Smart is like 23 or 24 or so....

[TheTruthFot18]

Real point guard, good size, good defender, great penetration, good raw skill, amazing floor leader. He is going to be really good.

He's getting more playing time there with no real competition at the point. he's the same height as Smart but 30-40 lbs lighter. That's a huge problem considering he can't shoot from outside. All set

[Chris22]

In 16 appearances since Dec. 8, the night Smart had his best performance as a pro while sparking a monster Boston rally in a double-overtime loss to Washington, Smart has shot 45.2 percent from the floor overall and 42.3 percent beyond the 3-point arc. He's averaging 7.1 points, 3.4 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 1.1 steals over 23.3 minutes per game in that same span.

But the thing about Smart is....he creates turnovers for the other team.

There is no stat kept on that.

[RJ87]

in addition,  "heart" and "toughness" are frequently just euphemisms for talentless.

Lol, TP.

Smart does have talent and I'll think he'll be a starting caliber guard down the line, but I don't see star with him as so many other do. I think longterm he can be a better defensive version of Tyreke Evans.

[PickNRoll]

in addition,  "heart" and "toughness" are frequently just euphemisms for talentless.

Lol, TP.

Smart does have talent and I'll think he'll be a starting caliber guard down the line, but I don't see star with him as so many other do. I think longterm he can be a better defensive version of Tyreke Evans.

Tyreke Evans with better defense IS a star.  Tyreke averaged 20-5-5 as a rookie.

[littleteapot]

Anyone who not just watches the game, but actually pays attention to strategy would know that Stevens does not run offensive plays for Smart.

Seems like his role is to run the offense, be available for the 3 if things break down, facilitate when applicable, and harass offenders. If Stevens decides to actually allow Smart to do things for the offense other than set it up for other guys, you would see a high, 18 to 19 points a game PG.

I'm a huge Smart fan and want to see him with more minutes and getting the ball more, but if I was coaching the C's (god help us) I would not run plays for him very often.

Right now the things he does well on offense are passing and dirty work. So I would give him the ball at the start of the play, but I'd want him hitting cutters and bigs who should still be the focal points of the offense, and then space the floor and do the dirty work (screen, cut, get to loose balls). He should have the freedom to score or distribute in transition, make a play when stuff breaks down, and take advantage of smaller defenders in the halfcourt, but that'd be about it for me. That's just what his skillset is.

The only thing I would try a bit more is him as a pick and roll ball handler. Not sure if it would work, but they don't seem to even try which is odd.