Marcus, stop shooting threes!

[jpotter33]

**** at people thinking smart going to become a better shooter by launching them in the game.  That's not where improvement happens.  Frankly, I think smart is one step above rondo in terms of shooting.  He has a long way to go and I have my doubts that he'll ever be a serviceable shooter.

And yes, just because they are open doesn't mean he should take them.  You can get a three pretty much anytime.  That isn't necessarily a good shot regardless of how open you are.  But the really disconcerting thing is why smart takes so many threes.  He does so because that's the best shot he can get regularly.  He is not capable of getting to the rim or finishing when he does get there at a high level.  That's why he shoots those shots.  Because that is all he can get for the most part.

You can keep trying to spread you narrative all you want, but unless you've been living under a rock the last two to three weeks, then you can't seriously believe this. In the last seven or so games he's had at least a half dozen or so strong drives and penetration plays into the paint every game. He's shown many times that he can get into the paint and score or dish it to an open teammate. The reason you have hardly ever seen him penetrate before now is he has hardly ever been the primary ball-handler and really afforded the opportunity to do it regularly.

[Chief]

**** at people thinking smart going to become a better shooter by launching them in the game.  That's not where improvement happens.  Frankly, I think smart is one step above rondo in terms of shooting.  He has a long way to go and I have my doubts that he'll ever be a serviceable shooter.

And yes, just because they are open doesn't mean he should take them.  You can get a three pretty much anytime.  That isn't necessarily a good shot regardless of how open you are.  But the really disconcerting thing is why smart takes so many threes.  He does so because that's the best shot he can get regularly.  He is not capable of getting to the rim or finishing when he does get there at a high level.  That's why he shoots those shots.  Because that is all he can get for the most part.

You can keep trying to spread you narrative all you want, but unless you've been living under a rock the last two to three weeks, then you can't seriously believe this. In the last seven or so games he's had at least a half dozen or so strong drives and penetration plays into the paint every game. He's shown many times that he can get into the paint and score or dish it to an open teammate. The reason you have hardly ever seen him penetrate before now is he has hardly ever been the primary ball-handler and really afforded the opportunity to do it regularly.

Tp Colonel Potter!

Preach on!

[Celtics4ever]

at people thinking smart going to become a better shooter by launching them in the game.  That's not where improvement happens.

Same yahoos seemed to think Sully would be helped by shooting them and yet he is shooting them at .27% worse than last year.

A big part of shooting well, comes from your shot selection.   A good player takes shots that they know can make.   This scores a likely bucket, maximizes your strengths and builds confidence in team mates and yourself.  Taking a shot your bad at, is a costly gamble that does not of things unless you luck out.

[Kuberski33]

In today's game someone who plays Smart's position is a liability if he can't make the 3 consistently.  And this team struggles big time on offense when the 3 isn't falling.  So if he can't get better, that's going to be a problem - despite all he brings to the table defensively.

We're talking the difference between a starter on a good team and a bench/rotation player long term.  Too soon to make a decision either way but he needs to improve his shooting.

[Celtics4ever]

So take 500 threes a day in the off season?

[MJohnnyboy]

Here's an article for any optimists who believe in Smart (including me).

http://basketball.realgm.com/analysis/240531/Marcus-Smart-And-Bostons-Playoff-Chances-This-Season

I believe in Smart as a playmaker. He has shown me that he can facilitate an offense but his shooting is clearly an issue. This article points out that Kawhi Leonard was not a good shooter either coming out of college but he worked tirelessly at it to improve and look where he is now. He's the evolutionary Scottie Pippen. Smart, no matter what issues you may have with him, has the drive to improve his game, and I atleast believe he can.

[KeepRondo]

Here's an article for any optimists who believe in Smart (including me).

http://basketball.realgm.com/analysis/240531/Marcus-Smart-And-Bostons-Playoff-Chances-This-Season

I believe in Smart as a playmaker. He has shown me that he can facilitate an offense but his shooting is clearly an issue. This article points out that Kawhi Leonard was not a good shooter either coming out of college but he worked tirelessly at it to improve and look where he is now. He's the evolutionary Scottie Pippen. Smart, no matter what issues you may have with him, has the drive to improve his game, and I atleast believe he can.

Dang I thought maybe Leonard shot the ball poorly his first two seasons after reading your post. But that's just not true. He shot close to 50 percent his rookie and second years. Smh

[Celtics4ever]

Here's an article for any optimists who believe in Smart (including me).

http://basketball.realgm.com/analysis/240531/Marcus-Smart-And-Bostons-Playoff-Chances-This-Season

 I love his defense, I know he plays hard.   But that article does not raise my confidence that he will ever become an offensive juggernaut.  I read a lot of slips from last season in the body of it.  did you truly read what you posted?  Work ethic can help towards improvement but we have all seen guys try hard and fail, or fall short.

That being said, it is really early to say so on Smart.  Elite defender and a game changer in his own way but forgive me if I don't drink the feel good kool-aid.

[hwangjini_1]

Marcus was a pick drafted from a team that had already2 starters at the guards position....... parker payton wiggins noel  have more chancws than hom to develop because they hAve more plaing time and getting more responsibilities than smart

No. Smart has had plenty of opportunities and responsibilities. He has been in the rotation since day 1, he played 27 mpg his rookie year.

There's a huge difference between Smart's role on this team versus some like Wiggins, Payton, Parker, and Noel. First off, our team is much better than any of their teams, and Smart's offensive role is smaller due to our system and roster. Hell, he's just now starting to get ball-handling responsibilities from Stevens, because he's always had Turner do it before.

No, his offensive role is smaller because he sucks at offense. If anything, he should be able to have a bigger role on offense because our team desperately needs more offense.

and do you have any proof aside from an pre-existing preference or a gut feeling? (and if the latter, please tell us all what you had for lunch.)

just for reference, last year, his rookie year, smart shot 3 pters at 33.5%. the league average that year was 35%. his shooting was not above average, but it was certainly above the level of "sucks."

[ManUp]

Smart's shooting percentage would go way up if he stopped taking them. He needs to work from the rim out not the other way around. My only real beef with Stevens as a coach is that he enables bad shooters to keep shooting threes. He needs to start cracking down on shot selection. With certain players a long two is better then a 3 point attempt Smart, Johnson and Sullinger are those guys.

[Celtics18]

Obviously it would be silly to call Marcus a shooter, but despite his ugly overall shooting numbers for this season, I wouldn't call him a non-shooter.

He shot a respectable percentage from deep in his first season and, without checking any numbers, he looks competent with the mid range pull up. 

Most importantly, though, his jumper is not significantly broken looking.  It looks pretty smooth.

I'm convinced he'll settle in as an at least 33% three point shooter in the NBA.  He won't be an offensive super star, but his defensive play coupled with solid offensive play could make him a borderline star and leader on a very good team.

[rollie mass]

smart hits the gym working on his shot and bang his follow through was nice looking-its not stop shooting its shot selection and puttin it in the hoop-thatta boy marcus silence them critics-
progress in paint ,postups,pullups, and form-

[Hemingway]

Smart took the extra day off because of the snow o hit the gym and only practiced 3s. He looked pretty confident shooting them againts the sixers, At the end of the day, he is just to much of a competitor to not improve. Motivation is a big thing. Drive. Smart has it. I'm not worried.

[CelticPride2016]

We will not know whether or not Smart can run an offense until his babysitter Evan Turner is benched, traded, or becomes a free agent.

[guava_wrench]

Marcus was a pick drafted from a team that had already2 starters at the guards position....... parker payton wiggins noel  have more chancws than hom to develop because they hAve more plaing time and getting more responsibilities than smart

No. Smart has had plenty of opportunities and responsibilities. He has been in the rotation since day 1, he played 27 mpg his rookie year.

There's a huge difference between Smart's role on this team versus some like Wiggins, Payton, Parker, and Noel. First off, our team is much better than any of their teams, and Smart's offensive role is smaller due to our system and roster. Hell, he's just now starting to get ball-handling responsibilities from Stevens, because he's always had Turner do it before.

No, his offensive role is smaller because he sucks at offense. If anything, he should be able to have a bigger role on offense because our team desperately needs more offense.

and do you have any proof aside from an pre-existing preference or a gut feeling? (and if the latter, please tell us all what you had for lunch.)

just for reference, last year, his rookie year, smart shot 3 pters at 33.5%. the league average that year was 35%. his shooting was not above average, but it was certainly above the level of "sucks."

Great job comparing to league average.

Smart was around 1 PPS on 3's last season, but his career numbers are .304. .304 is bad. If he is a career .304, "sucks" would be appropriate. He clearly is shooting less 3s this season so if that first season was an outlier, it will skew his numbers upwards for a while.

I am far more offended when Turner takes a 3. Turner is already established as a horrible 3pt shooter. At least with Smart we can wonder how much his feeling out the league is impacting his shooting. Turner is clearly comfortable on the court and is just a horrible shooter.