Why Marcus Smart should start at SG

[lon3lytoaster]

Right now Marcus should be the 4th string PG behind Rondo, Turner and Pressey. Rondo and Pressey may not be lights out shooters but at least they are a threat to drive to the basket. They actually need to be defended. Marcus absolutely cannot play meaningful minutes at SG except as a defensive stopper.

He obviously is a player and has an NBA ready body and is dominant defensively. But you just cannot start a guy at shooting guard who is a bricklayer from outside and has shown zero ability to get to the rim against bottom of the barrel NBA competition.

And let's not overblow the team USA hype. He didn't play on that team. He was a practice dummy whose defense was extremely useful to Coach K in getting the real team into shape. No way in hell a guy who can't shoot or make baskets actually gets selected on that team.

I really don't understand why the team is hyping and marketing him so much but they obviously believe in him. Maybe those who work closely with him see the qualities to be a solid shooter. But until he gets that reliable jump shot he is just another in the long parade of guys who could be special if they can develop an outside shot. He is too talented to be in NBDL but maybe he should spend a month there so he can launch a high volume of shots and learn to take it to the rim.

I mean James Young is a kid and is not nearly NBA ready and even when he is out of position or has shaky footwork, the ball finds it way into the net.

Bradley is a brick layer who can't get to the rim and doesn't have a 10th of the passing and handling intangibles as Smart. So..

Lets stick to the facts. Rondo was a brick layer in 2007 at age 20. But he shot 49% overall. Marcus is a bricklayer and he has shot 20% in SL and 0% against the lowly 76ers.

Bradley being a brick layer and a chucker with no conscience is a fact.

[GuyClinch]

Smart is going to be good I think.. But he wasn't good in the first preseason game and certainly not good enough to play SG over Bradley, Thorton and Turner. SHOOTING - its in the very NAME of the position..

Marcus is a PG - he has surprising passing ability and is a natural leader. OTOH he lacks he offensive game NBA shooting guards have. Shooting guards are 'offensive specialists' at the guard spot. Marcus hasn't shown that yet.

Like I said if you think Marcus is going to see major minutes at the SG spot - you are in for a very long year. If the C's want to develop Marcus - they need to trade Rondo. I think that's why they drafted Smart - cheap Rondo replacement. Rondo wants max and now Danny can say no to that...

Thinking Smart should play SG is just like thinking Rondo would play SG if we acquired CP3. It's just not realistic..

[StojkoVrankovic]

If we trade Rondo and Smart is our PG we will be the worst team in the league for the foreseeable future

Sounds like a great plan

[NL41]

Smart is going to be good I think.. But he wasn't good in the first preseason game and certainly not good enough to play SG over Bradley, Thorton and Turner. SHOOTING - its in the very NAME of the position..

Marcus is a PG - he has surprising passing ability and is a natural leader. OTOH he lacks he offensive game NBA shooting guards have. Shooting guards are 'offensive specialists' at the guard spot. Marcus hasn't shown that yet.

Like I said if you think Marcus is going to see major minutes at the SG spot - you are in for a very long year. If the C's want to develop Marcus - they need to trade Rondo. I think that's why they drafted Smart - cheap Rondo replacement. Rondo wants max and now Danny can say no to that...

Thinking Smart should play SG is just like thinking Rondo would play SG if we acquired CP3. It's just not realistic..

Guy, you write as if you know what you are talking about, and smugly, and yet you don't know what you're talking about. Which would be a good reason to avoid being smug, if only you knew better.

Stevens has said from draft night that Smart will play PG, SG, and even some SF. Yes, SF. At the start of training camp Stevens reiterated this:

Jared Weiss @CLNS_JaredWeiss
Stevens: Marcus is going to get plenty of opportunities off the ball and he’s is mentally prepared for that. #Celtics
11:24 AM - 29 Sep 2014

Unlike you, Stevens knows that Smart grew up as a shooting guard, and played shooting guard a good amount at OSU, as well as with the Gold Medal winning U19 team, as well as in summer league next to Pressey.

Unlike you, Stevens knows that Smart is excellent at attacking the rim, scoring, and drawing fouls. Unlike you, Stevens knows that Smarts Effective Field Goal Percentages have always been good, despite his sub-30% 3 point shooting.

Stevens has also heard of guys like Tony Allen, guys who are decidedly NOT "shooting specialists" and yet they still play and excel at the - gasp - SHOOTING guard position. You see guy, "shooting guard" is just the name of a position, and if you had ever heard of Tony Allen, you'd know that not all shooting guards specialize in shooting.

Maybe the next time you opine about something you know little to nothing about, you can avoid being so damn sure of yourself, and so condescending. Otherwise you might be in for a long year, embarrassing yourself.

[NL41]

Watch Smart play off the ball during summer league. He has been practicing coming off of curls, catching, and shooting his whole life. This isn't some Rajon Rondo type who only ever played with the ball in his hands.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pa8XeARVSQ[/youtube]

Word to the wise: Shooting guard doesn't necessarily mean shooting specialist, and combo guards don't always look like this:



Jump to 2 minutes in to hear Stevens talk about Smart playing on and off the ball, and with and without Rondo. He's mentioned it to pretty much everybody but Guy Clinch.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2QCMD6oE-s[/youtube]

[SuperDeluxe]

One poster, single-handedly ruining a whole board.

In my 11 years here I can remember only one moment in which this board had reached levels as sad as today's: the Puba/Aguila days.

EDIT: Sorry to have interrupted your show, NL41. Don't mind me, please continue.

[NL41]

One poster, single-handedly ruining a whole board.

In my 11 years here I can remember only one moment in which this board had reached levels as sad as today's: the Puba/Aguila days.

EDIT: Sorry to have interrupted your show, NL41. Don't mind me, please continue.

Sometimes it seems like some people around here want it to be a long season. A long, lousy tankfest of a season so you can sit around and talk about how much the team sucks. Without any distractions.

[NL41]

If Smart doesn't suck then the team might not suck, and since you're already so damn sure about how much the team sucks, you don't even want to hear any other possibilities.

Sometimes "troll" means, "he might be right and make me look bad".

[sam_I_am]

Am I the only one who remembers that Smart was playing with a strained groin?

Am I the only one who realizes that Smart's focus as starting point guard in his first pro game was to get his teammates involved, which he did very well with 6 assists and only 2 turnovers in his first game?

Does anybody else remember that Smart played his first summer league game just as conservatively, and then in later games got much more aggressive attacking the hoop?

The condescension around here gets a bit much sometimes. Most people have no problem seeing the glass 3/4 empty when the glass is actually 3/4 full.

The bad mouthing of our players gets so bad that some people not only convince themselves that Smart is incapable of attacking the rim regularly, which is absurd, but a few even convince themselves that Smart only succeeded on the defensive side of the ball, and was worthless offensively.

Smart has 3/4 of a complete game in his very first game, and some try to tell us he only played well defensively. As if 6 assists and 2 turnovers while playing with composure in his very first game doesn't count as offense.

Maybe we should start calling passing and ball handling part of defensive play, so we can keep telling ourselves that Smart only showed he can play defense so far.

Groin didn't look strained on the defensive end of floor.

Seriously, the idea of anointing a guy as future of team over a proven playoff warrior who has shown a complete inability to score at professional level so far is crazy. He is a rookie. He has a ton to prove and clearly is nowhere near the player he needs to be to be a sixth man, let alone starter or franchise player. Rondo showed a ton more as a rookie and still rode the pine.

Expectations for this guy are thru the roof and if you are honest you have to be disappointed so far. The guy is a complete zero as a scorer so far. Now you can accuse me of being harsh given small sample of games - but I am being reactionary to the hype on this kid that just isn't justified. He has played great in all other facets of game but he is absolutely the worst scorer drafted by Ainge in the first round other than Fab Melo so far.

Personally, I think it would be better if team treated him the way Belechek does - ignore him because he is a rookie and treat him as an equal to the undrafted guys. It's too much pressure to put on a guy with a huge black hole in his game.

[soxfan2003]

I doubt the Celtics sought out a PG in the draft with their #6 pick to replace Rondo. They just didn't veer off when they recognized the best player available was a PG who was and still is a bad fit for playing with Rondo.

There is not necessarily that much of a problem playing Smart at SG if the PG is a very good perimeter shooter. When the Celtics had Rondo at his best from 2009-2012, he was paired with 3 very good to great shooters for their respective positions in Ray Allen, PP and KG. Ideally both starting guards can really shoot the ball from the perimeter since even one bad shooter at guard can hurt the offense but if only one can that is often good enough if there is enough shooting in the front court.

Despite good play from Tony Allen and having a center in Gasol who can shoot from midrange, one of the main reasons Memphis, despite their great defense, hasn't gone further over the years is mediocre shooting from the guard position. I'm a fan of Tony Allen and despite his great defense on KD, his lack of shooting has sometimes hurt Memphis.

Smart has a long way go to be a good perimeter shooter at PG but he is such a bad perimeter shooter right now for a SG that it is laughable right now to think that he would be good at that position on offense when paired with a weak perimeter shooter at PG

If Smart is the SG, the PG has to be a pretty deadly shooter since it's pretty safe to assume that Smart will be a below average shooter at SG....this assumes the Celtics are trying to get at least a good offense.

Smart needs to play even if his shooting is painful. But the Celtics really need to work with him on his 3 point shooting.

[sam_I_am]

I doubt the Celtics sought out a PG in the draft with their #6 pick to replace Rondo. They just didn't veer off when they recognized the best player available was a PG who was and still is a bad fit for playing with Rondo.

There is not necessarily that much of a problem playing Smart at SG if the PG is a very good perimeter shooter. When the Celtics had Rondo at his best from 2009-2012, he was paired with 3 very good to great shooters for their respective positions in Ray Allen, PP and KG. Ideally both starting guards can really shoot the ball from the perimeter since even one bad shooter at guard can hurt the offense but if only one can that is often good enough if there is enough shooting in the front court.

Despite good play from Tony Allen and having a center in Gasol who can shoot from midrange, one of the main reasons Memphis, despite their great defense, hasn't gone further over the years is mediocre shooting from the guard position. I'm a fan of Tony Allen and despite his great defense on KD, his lack of shooting has sometimes hurt Memphis.

Smart has a long way go to be a good perimeter shooter at PG but he is such a bad perimeter shooter right now for a SG that it is laughable right now to think that he would be good at that position on offense when paired with a weak perimeter shooter at PG

If Smart is the SG, the PG has to be a pretty deadly shooter since it's pretty safe to assume that Smart will be a below average shooter at SG....this assumes the Celtics are trying to get at least a good offense.

Smart needs to play even if his shooting is painful. But the Celtics really need to work with him on his 3 point shooting.

I like Smart Bradley combo because they are so deadly defensively and it allows Bradley to defend point while playing SG on offense. Perfect second team unit. In 15 minute per game could live with 4 on 5 on offense and would really force other teams to expend energy.

I'd prefer to see Rondo play with Thornton and eventually Young - especially Young because his release is so freaking quick and he is fearless too. Rondo/Bradley is a proven combination though.

[NL41]

Have you guys even bothered checking out Smart's stats in college?

I seriously doubt it.

You heard we drafted a point guard to replace Rondo, so you imagine Smart must have averaged 9-10 assists in college and maybe 9-10 points per game.

So damn lazy. To declare that Smart is a pure point guard with no offense is to reveal yourself as having relied entirely on a few talking heads for all of your "wisdom" about Smart and his skill set.

And since Smart didn't attack the rim in his First game, you assume that you've been well informed about his lack of scoring ability all along.

So damn lazy.

[NL41]

Smart is capable of being an absolutely dominant scorer when he gets hot, and when he's not hot, he still can get to the free throw line 8-10 times and get his 15-20 points. How the F do you guys think he averaged 18 ppg in the toughest conference in college bball? Oh yeah, you never bothered learning that he scored 18 ppg and was a POY candidate 2 years in a row.

See if you notice any shooting guard skills in this game:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxXictCDDqA[/youtube]

[NL41]

Compare Smart's college production to James Harden's
http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Mar ... 284/stats/
http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Jam ... 241/stats/
http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Dwy ... 726/stats/

James Harden is just about the best guard in the league at getting to the FT line.

FTA/40 pace adjusted
James Harden freshman 8.5, soph 9.5
Marcus Smart freshman 7.5, soph 9.2
Dwyane Wade freshman 6.9, soph 9.2

Not saying Smart will be the next James Harden, but he can play the SG position better than prime Tony Allen, while Rondo is here.

[NL41]

But don't expect Smart to attack the rim a whole lot and rack up a bunch of points until Rondo gets back. Right now he's focusing on learning the PG position at the NBA level, and learning how to be the offensive leader and not just the defensive leader. He's going to keep looking to get other guys their shots, and to gain their trust and respect as a point guard.

Stevens has already suggested that when Rondo comes back, Smart will focus more on learning the SG position, while being able to play PG when needed.

Jared Weiss @CLNS_JaredWeiss
Follow

Stevens: Marcus is going to get plenty of opportunities off the ball and he’s is mentally prepared for that. #Celtics
2:24 PM - 29 Sep 2014

Jared Weiss @CLNS_JaredWeiss
Follow

Ainge says Turner and Pressey will help Smart fill in as lead point guard. Smart will play both backcourt positions. #Celtics
2:08 PM - 29 Sep 2014

Jared Weiss @CLNS_JaredWeiss
Follow

Stevens: Smart is as good physically and mentally as it gets at his age. #Celtics
2:25 PM - 29 Sep 2014

http://clnsradio.com/boston-celtics-new ... at-his-age


[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SfKXK5Sj5g[/youtube]

[greenroom31]

Have you guys even bothered checking out Smart's stats in college?

I seriously doubt it.

You heard we drafted a point guard to replace Rondo, so you imagine Smart must have averaged 9-10 assists in college and maybe 9-10 points per game.

So damn lazy. To declare that Smart is a pure point guard with no offense is to reveal yourself as having relied entirely on a few talking heads for all of your "wisdom" about Smart and his skill set.

And since Smart didn't attack the rim in his First game, you assume that you've been well informed about his lack of scoring ability all along.

So damn lazy.

Are you serious? Do you think this forum is for you to berate people and behave like a sociopath?

Mods please explain how is this acceptable posting. Broadly and condescendingly insulting other posters for no reason is certainly not part of having a discussion. NL41, you are being added to my ignore list. Learn to conduct yourself in a more appropriate manner -- it will serve you well once you reach adulthood.

[LarryBirdsFingr]

Greenroom doesn't post a lot, but he's been here forever. When he does post, everyone listens. Its like when the wise quiet man speaks, the whole room pays attention.

Remember that.

[bucknersrevenge]

I agree with some of what you're saying, but question: why so many posts in a row. why not 1 post with all the information? people have made long posts here before. it just reads weird to me on a message board when it looks like you're having a conversation with yourself. in the grand scheme of things doesn't really matter either way, just thought I would share.

[sam_I_am]

Have you guys even bothered checking out Smart's stats in college?

I seriously doubt it.

You heard we drafted a point guard to replace Rondo, so you imagine Smart must have averaged 9-10 assists in college and maybe 9-10 points per game.

So damn lazy. To declare that Smart is a pure point guard with no offense is to reveal yourself as having relied entirely on a few talking heads for all of your "wisdom" about Smart and his skill set.

And since Smart didn't attack the rim in his First game, you assume that you've been well informed about his lack of scoring ability all along.

So damn lazy.

FU and your condescending posts. I don't give a flying F what Smart did in college. In the NBA he isn't pushing guys out of the way to get layups. This is the big boys league and Smart needs to show up with something better than he has so far.

[NL41]

For the Celtics to get back to the playoffs and eventually into contention, they're probably going to have to think outside the box, unless the next Tim Duncan somehow falls into their lap.

Instead of sitting around waiting for Duncan Jr, I'm trying to figure out unconventional ways the Celtics might blow expectations away in the short and long term.

It's entirely possible that in one year's time, half the league will be looking for the next Kelly Olynyk stretch center, and it's entirely possible they'll be looking for the next Marcus Smart, star caliber defensive combo guard.

Lucky for us, God only makes stretch centers like Olynyk and 230 lb combo guards like Smart once in a great while. So rarely in fact, that conventional wisdom rejects the possibility of a stretch center and dominant inside guard being a recipe for major success. It's called inverted basketball.

But I know I should be more polite in some of my opinions or educational efforts.