nickhx2 wrote:can't really agree with that assessment. svg tried to fit a square peg into a circle in regards to smith. he wanted to start all three of greg monroe, andre drummond, and josh smith at the same time. it clearly didn't work and if svg was smart he would have had one of the three coming off the bench all year and never trying to play all three at once.
i do like svg a lot actually, but his lineup management was very poor with smith. i don't think anyone can excuse smith for taking those long twos that he's famous for taking, but you also can't put him in a starting SF role that is typically reserved for floor spacers.
smith's issues are not mutually exclusive. there's a specific anecdote i remember where i believe then-coach (lenny wilkens?) yelled at mike bibby for passing smith the ball since smith fired up a horrible 3. bibby's response was something to the effect of "THEN DON'T PUT HIM IN THAT F****** SPOT"
smith is definitely a flawed player. but just like with jamal crawford, his flaws can either be minimized or maximized with the right coach. i blame smith for taking dumb shots, but i also blame his coaches for not putting him in better spots where he won't pull that kind of crap. the blame is not mutually exclusive.
Fair enough. I agree that playing all three of Drummond, Monroe, and Smith ended up badly, but SVG just inherited the team and wanted to see what he had. Upon discovery of Smith's reluctance to fit into his scheme or discipline his game, he dumped him after trying to trade him to unwilling takers. It has since been a wakeup call for Smith, who was more willing to come off the bench for Houston and play more effectively as a role player, but still couldn't shake his tendency for chucking and risky passes. I generally agree with what you're saying about dual culpability in coach and player, particularly with respect to Doc and Jamal, but I feel that Josh was more responsible for things not working out with his relationship with Van Gundy because of the mindset he had.
