Welcome Zhaire Smith

[CoreyGallagher]

So tired of people using Zhaire's age as a positive. Improvement isn't linear, there is no guarantee he will ever get better. Bridges showed improvement every year in college there is no reason he should not continue to improve if we use previous evidence.

Really down on this trade.

Well, I mean, Zhaire is at a better starting point than Mikal was when he was a year older. It does matter.

[Aussiepiston1]

So tired of people using Zhaire's age as a positive. Improvement isn't linear, there is no guarantee he will ever get better. Bridges showed improvement every year in college there is no reason he should not continue to improve if we use previous evidence.

Really down on this trade.

Well, I mean, Zhaire is at a better starting point than Mikal was when he was a year older. It does matter.

Didn't He start the year coming off the bench and improved immensely through the season, became a starter and led them to the elite 8? that alone for an 18 year old should show promise.

[Bum Adebayo]

Mikal Bridges is not that great of a prospect, but then again, seeing how our fans seem to love a mediocre player like Covington, it is no surprise that a better version of Covington is gonna get some love.

[76ciology]

Personally, biggest edge of Zhaire Smith on Mikal is his upside to create with the ball. Probably just need to spend like 2-3 offseasons with Drew Hanlen. He’d be 22yo by then.

While with regards to shooting and defense, both should be around equal.

[LloydFree]

Read on Twitter

I been trying to come up with a player that that had similar size and played the kind of role Zhaire Smith played in college. The guy that comes closest to me seems to be Justise Winslow. Zhaire is a slightly better shooter across the board, and Winlsow is an inch and a half taller, but they are similar across-the-board in all other numbers.

[Kobblehead]

Winslow's ball skills were far superior. He was on the ball ALOT and created the majority of his own offense. Strength is also a big part of his game, he had like 30 pounds on Zhaire.

[LloydFree]

Winslow's ball skills were far superior. He was on the ball ALOT and created the majority of his own offense. Strength is also a big part of his game, he had like 30 pounds on Zhaire.

The strength doesn't mean much to me. I look at early strength as almost a negative. Freshman that have early 'man strength' always perform above their real talent.

Winslow may have had slightly better ball skills, but he wasn't any great ballhandler either. He got more credit than he deserved, because people thought he was a PF, and didn't realize he was the size of a Guard. I aslo have to wonder how a bigger, stronger player with better ball skills managed to have a much poorer shooting percentage than Zhaire, while playing the same role.

[Kobblehead]

Winslow just doesn't have the ability to make shots.

Some guys have nice ball skills and can create their own looks but are hopeless in converting buckets because they have no natural feel or touch.

Former Kentucky G Isaiah Briscoe falls into this category as well.

[Kobblehead]

I don't think Winslow played a similar role to Zhaire. Justise was very much in Duke's creation core. Zhaire was spoonfed everything.

[rzzzzz]

He start the year coming off the bench and improved immensely through the season, became a starter and led them to the elite 8? that alone for an 18 year old should show promise.

then the combine and workouts. and Brett brought him back the 2nd time. now we're hearing his shot ain't nothing like the project that had been suggested. my guess is that after SL no one is going to be talking GL.

[yoyoboy]

His lack of ability to create off the dribble is worrying, hope he's in the kawhi package.

I watched a decent amount of him in college. Zhaire isn't a creator and almost certainly never will be. At 8.25 inches wide, Zhaire registered the fourth smallest hands at the combine. Ball handling ability really does seem to have a decent correlation with hand size for guards. If you look at all the top guards since they started measuring hand size in 2010, Kyrie, Lillard, Oladipo, McCollum, Kemba, Bledsoe, Mitchell etc all have hands that are between 9.0-9.75 inches wide. If you look at the past 8 years of the combine you can't find an exception. That split second of extra control you get from the better grip and ability to almost "palm" the ball coming off of a pick or hesitating and being able to survey the floor is so helpful for creation ability.

Sexton also registered small hands at 8.5 inches wide and it's one of he reasons why he seemed to pound the ball in college instead of being able to direct it like it's on a string as you see the top PGs do. I'm not high on Sexton at all for the record. He's a poor shooter, poor passer, and he doesn't have good touch or elevation in traffic which is why he relied on getting to the line. So the fact that he's shorter with a skinny frame and small hands isn't promising when combined with his current skill set.

However the good thing with Zhaire is he doesn't need to be a creator. He's a little undersized at 6'4 in shoes but he's an athletic freak with a 6'10 wingspan who plays a lot bigger than his size. I think he'll be able to defend positions 1-3 and give you energy and rebounding. He's currently far away from being an offensive threat at the NBA level, but he's young and if you give him a few years I think he can be a guy who will hit threes at a decent enough clip, make good playmaking decisions, and be a great straight line and cutting threat which is key to a motion offense like the Sixers have. And so once you add in potentially elite defense both on ball and off the ball, you've got a fantastic role player to add to a team with ball dominant guys like Simmons, Embiid, and Fultz.

[FlyingArrow]

Mikal Bridges is not that great of a prospect, but then again, seeing how our fans seem to love a mediocre player like Covington, it is no surprise that a better version of Covington is gonna get some love.

How does first team all-defense, 37% on 3s, and top ten in RPM/RAPM stats equate to mediocre?

[FlyingArrow]

At 8.25 inches wide, Zhaire registered the fourth smallest hands at the combine.

Wow - I just measured my own hand and got 8.75 inches. I can't come close to palming a basketball. I'd just assume every NBA player would have pretty large hands. (Assuming hand span here.)

[nrok10307]

When selecting at #10, Smith checks a lot of boxes for me:
- Extremely young
- Highly productive for his age
- High floor since lock down D always has a place in the NBA
- Solid shooting fundamentals/form
- Super athletic
- Gym rat / drive to get better
- Consistent history of progressing on a high development curve
- Willing passer / above average BBIQ

No prospect is perfect when selecting at #10... IMO i'm looking for someone who will likely outplay their contract in Y1 or Y2 with a decent chance to be a star given the right development. Smith fits the mold for me, plus we get a future unprotected first. Hell of a draft haul.

[LloydFree]

Mikal Bridges is not that great of a prospect, but then again, seeing how our fans seem to love a mediocre player like Covington, it is no surprise that a better version of Covington is gonna get some love.

How does first team all-defense, 37% on 3s, and top ten in RPM/RAPM stats equate to mediocre?

It doesn't equate mediocre. The notion that he's mediocre is nonsense.

[phillynative]

His lack of ability to create off the dribble is worrying, hope he's in the kawhi package.

I watched a decent amount of him in college. Zhaire isn't a creator and almost certainly never will be. At 8.25 inches wide, Zhaire registered the fourth smallest hands at the combine. Ball handling ability really does seem to have a decent correlation with hand size for guards. If you look at all the top guards since they started measuring hand size in 2010, Kyrie, Lillard, Oladipo, McCollum, Kemba, Bledsoe, Mitchell etc all have hands that are between 9.0-9.75 inches wide. If you look at the past 8 years of the combine you can't find an exception. That split second of extra control you get from the better grip and ability to almost "palm" the ball coming off of a pick or hesitating and being able to survey the floor is so helpful for creation ability.

Sexton also registered small hands at 8.5 inches wide and it's one of he reasons why he seemed to pound the ball in college instead of being able to direct it like it's on a string as you see the top PGs do. I'm not high on Sexton at all for the record. He's a poor shooter, poor passer, and he doesn't have good touch or elevation in traffic which is why he relied on getting to the line. So the fact that he's shorter with a skinny frame and small hands isn't promising when combined with his current skill set.

However the good thing with Zhaire is he doesn't need to be a creator. He's a little undersized at 6'4 in shoes but he's an athletic freak with a 6'10 wingspan who plays a lot bigger than his size. I think he'll be able to defend positions 1-3 and give you energy and rebounding. He's currently far away from being an offensive threat at the NBA level, but he's young and if you give him a few years I think he can be a guy who will hit threes at a decent enough clip, make good playmaking decisions, and be a great straight line and cutting threat which is key to a motion offense like the Sixers have. And so once you add in potentially elite defense both on ball and off the ball, you've got a fantastic role player to add to a team with ball dominant guys like Simmons, Embiid, and Fultz.

This is agreeable to some extent. When I saw his hand size it made me scratch my head. He's not going to be a wiz with the ball but if he can tighten up his handles , and learn how to use his athleticism to get to his spots, he might surprise everyone. There was also a guy named steve francis who was rumored to have small hands who was one of the best ball handlers in his prime....

[LloydFree]

When selecting at #10, Smith checks a lot of boxes for me:
- Extremely young
- Highly productive for his age
- High floor since lock down D always has a place in the NBA
- Solid shooting fundamentals/form
- Super athletic
- Gym rat / drive to get better
- Consistent history of progressing on a high development curve
- Willing passer / above average BBIQ

No prospect is perfect when selecting at #10... IMO i'm looking for someone who will likely outplay their contract in Y1 or Y2 with a decent chance to be a star given the right development. Smith fits the mold for me, plus we get a future unprotected first. Hell of a draft haul.

He wasn't picked at #10.

[youngcrev]

Correlation between hand width and ball handling ability? That's a new one. I don't really see how it would be that much of a limiting factor. Not to mention, I don't think anyone was projecting Zhaire to be an elite ball handler anyway.

[PhilasFinest]

Correlation between hand width and ball handling ability? That's a new one. I don't really see how it would be that much of a limiting factor. Not to mention, I don't think anyone was projecting Zhaire to be an elite ball handler anyway.

Okafor should have better handle then CP3!

[PhilasFinest]

I hope Brett digs back to the Spur days and utilizes the Richard Jefferson cut/dive play.

That was beauty and resulted in a ton of oops for RJ when he went to the Spurs.

Kid’s going to need time to develop offensively for sure, but there’s a niche for hyper athletes who can finish....and it should open up a few creative wrinkles for Brett to play around with and give us some different looks to throw at teams at times.