Marcus Smart

Dannyboy36 · Post #301 » by **Dannyboy36** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 1:34 am

Geech wrote:We once had a guy like Smart is close to being. His name was Chauncey Billups and GM/Coach Rick Pitino gave up on him way too fast.

The best comparison I can think of is a poor man's Ron Artest. Unreliable, shot, choppy offense and really good defense, Artest was amazing on d. I'm not sure Smart reaches THAT level but he should be elite on d, especially if he sheds some fat.

Gomes3PC · Post #302 » by **Gomes3PC** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 1:42 am

Artest could attack the rim at will in his prime. He had a hop and a first step that Smart lacks. Still, not a bad comp.

Fidel Sarcasmo · Post #303 » by **Fidel Sarcasmo** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 1:56 am

At one point There was a brief time when Aron Artest was as tough as Paul pierce. His Defense was at the top of the league n his shot fell. He had a quick prime.

Dannyboy36 · Post #304 » by **Dannyboy36** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 2:45 am

Gomes3PC wrote:Artest could attack the rim at will in his prime. He had a hop and a first step that Smart lacks. Still, not a bad comp.

I agree. Artest in his prime was waaaay better on offense. Smart can't play the level of d as Ron Artest but a poor man's level which will probably get him on a defensive 2nd team one of these years and be in consideration a lot for all 2nd team.

Geech · Post #305 » by **Geech** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 4:03 am

Billups didn't get his FG% over 40% until his 4th year in Minny. Smart obviously has a big jump to make with the 3, but both are clutch at end of games, are leaders and tough minded.

Im just saying don't give up on him and let him keep growing to become Billups-like (Esp the 3ptrs). Sorry to be wearing a darker shade of green glasses for him than most.

Tiny ball · Post #306 » by **Tiny ball** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 4:28 am

Geech wrote:Billups didn't get his FG% over 40% until his 4th year in Minny. Smart obviously has a big jump to make with the 3, but both are clutch at end of games, are leaders and tough minded.

Im just saying don't give up on him and let him keep growing to become Billups-like (Esp the 3ptrs). Sorry to be wearing a darker shade of green glasses for him than most.

Smart is an amazing bb player. Billups was never as tuff as Smart but Smart is a ways from Billups in his prime. I am very pro Smart.

Captain_Caveman · Post #307 » by **Captain_Caveman** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 4:29 am

Green89 wrote:
Geech wrote:We once had a guy like Smart is close to being. His name was Chauncey Billups and GM/Coach Rick Pitino gave up on him way too fast.

Oh, my. Chauncey was one of the smartest offensive players in the game, with clutch shooting and a high free throw percentage. Smart is so far from Billups' offensive skill set it's not even funny.

I think they have very similar skill sets and that Marcus is further along at the same age.

Fencer reregistered · Post #308 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 4:55 am

What did Payton have that Smart so far doesn't?

Obviously, his scoring numbers were a lot better -- this is a serious question rather than a rhetorical one -- but I watched Payton very rarely, so I don't know where those numbers came from.

ConstableGeneva · Post #309 » by **ConstableGeneva** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 5:43 am

(open in new tab to enlarge; stats from nba.com)

Smart's numbers are trending in the right direction -- taking less shots (esp. from 3), more playmaking, taking and making more FTs, overall shooting % still **** but has increased, net rating even better than Al Horford's and IT's for December.

Pardon me, but his winning plays / value on the defensive end and humongous cojones couldn't fit in the excel sheet.

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Edug27 · Post #310 » by **Edug27** » Wed Dec 28, 2016 3:33 pm

Geech wrote:Billups didn't get his FG% over 40% until his 4th year in Minny. Smart obviously has a big jump to make with the 3, but both are clutch at end of games, are leaders and tough minded.

Im just saying don't give up on him and let him keep growing to become Billups-like (Esp the 3ptrs). Sorry to be wearing a darker shade of green glasses for him than most.

Saying that Smart will not develop into a Billups type of player is not "giving up on him". You may need to watch some old Billups tape. They are just 2 completely different players. I definitely do think Smart will grow and develop as a shooter over time though.

Personally, watching Smart play, I see Marcus as a 6'4 version of Draymond Green. Strong and not overly athletic. Long arms. He will get the tough defensive assignments and make his opponent work. Does all the little things that help win games. Streaky 3 point shooter. Tough around the basket. Great energy level and passion on the floor. Plus he's a really solid passer. Given the minutes, I can see Marcus being a 12, 8 and 7 player just like Dray is. Put 3 inches on Smart and you pretty much have the same exact player.

KumaJG · Post #311 » by **KumaJG** » Sat Dec 31, 2016 12:40 am

Andre Miller is what i see from Smart. See him as a nice back up guard

ddb · Post #312 » by **ddb** » Mon Jan 2, 2017 4:28 am

jfs1000d wrote:
Edug27 wrote:
jfs1000d wrote:The only problem is Crowder and Bradley are better than Jabari and Monroe.

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Parker will be a better player than both Crowder and Avery, if he isn't already. Don't want Monroe though.

So Giannis is awesome. Parker is great. And they have some good bigs in Monroe, who is playing better of late.

Why do they still suck? They are 14-15.

I am sick of our fans salivating over players on teams that are worse than ours. If Giannis, Parker, Middleton and Monroe are so much more talented, why the heck are we consistently better than them?

Youth is only an excuse for so long. We want studs from Sac-Town, Indiana, Milwaukee etc. and none of them are from winning teams. If they are so good, why won't they win games?

Who is to say they aren't putting up empty stats on bad team. I would take Parker, don't get me wrong, but at the end of the day he is due a big extension and he isn't a good enough player to get us past Toronto if we subtract a Crowder and Bradley from the rotation.

You guys underrate our players.

I couldn't agree more.

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ddb · Post #313 » by **ddb** » Mon Jan 2, 2017 4:30 am

Edug27 wrote:
jfs1000d wrote:
Edug27 wrote:
Parker will be a better player than both Crowder and Avery, if he isn't already. Don't want Monroe though.

So Giannis is awesome. Parker is great. And they have some good bigs in Monroe, who is playing better of late.

Why do they still suck? They are 14-15.

I am sick of our fans salivating over players on teams that are worse than ours. If Giannis, Parker, Middleton and Monroe are so much more talented, why the heck are we consistently better than them?

Youth is only an excuse for so long. We want studs from Sac-Town, Indiana, Milwaukee etc. and none of them are from winning teams. If they are so good, why won't they win games?

Who is to say they aren't putting up empty stats on bad team. I would take Parker, don't get me wrong, but at the end of the day he is due a big extension and he isn't a good enough player to get us past Toronto if we subtract a Crowder and Bradley from the rotation.

You guys underrate our players.

You make absolutely no sense here man. You sound kind of foolish. You're completely factoring out coaching, systems, a surrounding cast and players growing and learning how to win in this league. Pierce was a 30 win player during his first 3-4 years in the league. Doesn't mean people couldn't see how special of a player he was. IT did nothing on Sac and Phoenix, comes to Boston and starts winning games. Steph Curry, a 2 time MVP, was a 20 win player til he was what.. 25?

You think Avery would lead teams like Milwaukee to the playoffs? Smh comments like these get me in bad moods.

This is the other side of the coin and also well said.

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Andrew McCeltic · Post #314 » by **Andrew McCeltic** » Mon Jan 2, 2017 4:50 am

Fencer reregistered wrote:What did Payton have that Smart so far doesn't?

Obviously, his scoring numbers were a lot better -- this is a serious question rather than a rhetorical one -- but I watched Payton very rarely, so I don't know where those numbers came from.

Payton was a great defender in a different era- think you could still handcheck - lock-down man to man defense. Smart's coming up in a period with more complex help defense, and his instincts for making plays are incredible. Payton - "The Glove" defended more like Avery Bradley, hounding his assignment.

And I was just remembering that Payton had a really abysmal rookie season, and it took a few years for his offense to tick up to star level. I would love to have Smart imitate his post moves - his strength gives him potential there.

Andrew McCeltic · Post #315 » by **Andrew McCeltic** » Mon Jan 2, 2017 4:54 am

Artest, Billups, MKG, maybe Dumars, Dre Miller.. There are probably better comparisons to non-star guards in some aspects, too.

Andre Miller could rack up assists from day 1. Billups had a very unusual trajectory.. Kidd-Gilchrist is an elite defender who's underperformed his hype, and needed a few years to fix his shot.

Smart did a lot of work on his mechanics over the summer but it's hard to transform something so automatic..

jrob23 · Post #316 » by **jrob23** » Mon Jan 2, 2017 5:12 am

Smart doesn't have much hope of ever being anything but a bricklayer. That will prevent him from being the PG we hoped he'd be. Now, we could still make him our PG of the future and he could be very successful assuming we have scorers around him. But when is that going to happen? We have IT now and he certainly isn't starting over him for the next couple of years. If we drafted one of the top 4 PG in the draft with BK17 he won't start over them. Maybe he's content to wait out IT's situation, hope we go with a different position with BK17, then hit the ground running in 2018. He doesn't really have much choice because he's locked up isn't he? He's a good backup with potential for more. Do you trade him to a team ready to make him a starter? Is there such a team? If so, where are the offers?

ddb · Post #317 » by **ddb** » Mon Jan 2, 2017 5:27 am

Only comp I can think of is Tony Allen with better handle.

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soxfan2003 · Post #318 » by **soxfan2003** » Mon Jan 2, 2017 7:06 am

With his size/strength, instincts and savvy, Smart is more talented than Billups on defense. But Billups heading into the NBA had a very significant advantage as a shooter so it wasn't a surprise at all to me that he developed into a great shooter. 85.7% from the line in college and he hit 3's at a good clip his last year in college as well.

I never thought Smart would be a great shooter but I still supported the Celtics drafting him at #6 as long as the Celtics weren't making a trade. What I was hoping for is he developed into a good to very good shooter perhaps about halfway between what he is now and peak Billups.

ConstableGeneva · Post #319 » by **ConstableGeneva** » Sat Jan 7, 2017 7:03 am

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NormanDale · Post #320 » by **NormanDale** » Sat Jan 7, 2017 3:14 pm

I really wish I were as high on Marcus Smart as everyone else on this board seems to be. I see no evidence that he will be as good as any of the players mentioned on this thread: Ron Artest, Chauncey Billups, Draymond Green, Gary Freaking Payton?? Even Tony Allen was a better athlete and a better defender than Smart.

I'm sorry, but I just don't see it. I see a guy who can't shoot, is an average ballhandler and passer, and is nothing particularly special athletically (by NBA standards, of course), and has not improved substantially since his rookie season. It seems like he reads the game well, works hard, and his teammates and coaches like him. That is enough for a serviceable, productive NBA career, but I don't see him becoming an All-Star, or anything better than a bench player (or a fifth starter at best) on a good team.