NormanDale wrote:sully00 wrote:NormanDale wrote:
Dennis Johnson made 5 All-Star teams, 8 All-Defense teams (5 1st aned 3 2nd), 2 All-NBA teams (1 1st and 1 2nd), and won a Finals MVP. Do you think Marcus Smart will do that?
I agree he's a great energy guy and a guy you want to have on your team coming off the bench. I just don't see him ever becoming more than that, unless he seriously improves his jump shot.
Dennis Johnson had some pretty tremendous shooting struggles of his own. He also came to the NBA at 22 years old and while having a good rookie year shooting the ball, as he tried to emerge as more of a scorer he shot 41%, 43%, 43% from 2pt land over his first 3 years. His jump shot or lack of it was always a problem. At that point in the NBA most players could knock down 50% of open 15-18 ft jumpers and DJ was terrible so opponents would leave him open from 15-18 ft and dare him to shoot.
When you factor in the up and down of DJ's career before he came to Boston yeah I think Smart could be and even is a very similar player. Smart is 22 is more of a playmaker than DJ and DJ more of a scorer. Both terrible FG%s both game changing defenders, both good rebounders for guards. It is impossible to control for accolades but I think if Smart is on a good team the accolades will follow.
Yea, I guess you see Smart's ceiling as being a lot higher than I do. I don't expect accolades like 1st team All NBA or Finals MVP to be coming his way at any stage.
Dennis Johnson may have had "tremendous shooting struggles," he never shot 37%, which is the best shooting percentage of Smart's career so far. Even Iverson never shot that badly, at his nadir.
I also don't think Smart is at DJ's level defensively at this point, but I realize I'm in the minority on this board in thinking that.
The original point was they had similarities in that both were very physical defenders who could guard not only guys smaller, but much bigger players as well.
They both are not natural shooters, but both like to make things happen in the 4th quarter. So yes they are similar in some ways, especially in their third year.
Smart's lower overall shooting percentage at this stage is mainly because of shooting 3's. Their third year TS% is almost identical. Their rebounding% is almost identical. Their assist% is fairly close with Marcus ahead.
No one thought DJ was headed for the hall of fame in his third year. By his 4th he was considered a malcontent. By his 7th he was traded for Rick Robey. Would anyone trade Smart for Robey?
This is not to say that Smart is on the same career trajectory, just that Smart is reminiscent of DJ in some ways, particularly in shooting struggles, and even moreso in defensive style.
