Just a statistical PG observation for the month of January.
Turner 28.5mpg 10.3pts 5.9ast 5.7rb 0.8stl 2.5to
Rondo 30mpg 8.5pts 6.6ast 5.3rb 1.5stl 2.8to
Smart 25mpg 7.7pts 4.3ast 2.4rb 1.1stl .9to
I think at this point his production makes this less of an experiment and more a utilization of talent with Turner. In College he was a PG and he was very effective. This lead to him being drafted #2. He is a player who needs the ball to be effective. The Cs have realized this and put him in a position to thrive. While this has come at the experience of Smart getting 100% control of the PG duties I don't think its a bad thing. Marcus is still getting his minutes and producing.
I think the problems here are two fold:
Turnovers (in January)Marcus Smart = 4.8 ast/to
Evan Turner = 2.3 ast/to
A rate of 2.3 assists per turnover is not reflective of a starting calibre NBA PG - much more 'combo guard' territory.
Marcus Smart's average of 4.8 ast/to over that stretch is, however, exceptional...especially for a such a young rookie that isn't known for being a natural playmaker.
DefenseMarcus Smart has been so good defensively that he is starting to make Avery Bradley look bad...and that is a hell of a feat. As great as Bradley is with his agility and tenacious work ethic, Smart's superior size and strength combined with surprising lateral quickness) has made him IMHO the better defender.
Then to add to this, Smart is currently shooting 38% from three - despite the fact that he's actually taking a pretty significant 6 attempts per-36 minutes. I expected him to become a solid outside shooter in time, but not this quickly. I don't think anybody expected it this soon...
His FG% has also jumped up to around the 40% mark - a big jump up from earlier this season. Still leaves a lot to be desired, but the important thing is it's improving consistently.
In 14 games through January Smart is averaging 14.5 points, 8 assists, 4.4 rebounds, 2.1 steals and only 1.7 turnovers per 48 minutes...while shooting 42.4% from the field, 44.4% from three and (not so crash hot) 64% from the line.
Like Turner's energy on offense because he's always running, always active, always making things happen. What I don't like though is that his approach to offense is "just put your head down and drive in to the defence - if the defence collapses we will figure it out when the time comes". Then when the time does come he gets stuck, dazed, confused and very visibly does not know what to do. Then he either tries to do something too fancy (like a behind the back dribble) and bounces it off his foot, or he passes it to an opponent.
I like him at the PG for a few minutes here and there just to boost the offense if I becomes stagnant, but I don't think he works as a permanent solution there. Just too turnover prone, too unstable.