This team is going to look very different

[Nerf DPOY]

I more see Smart like Rondo was to our big 3 before.  But a different player. More like dennis johnson.  DJ isn't in the hall to my knowledge although that's debatable.

I see our team now having a decent base and some guys that are going to stick and play minor to pretty major roles but we are lacking those big stars.  We dont have those guys yet.

Ainge kept Rondo and Perk last time and a few role guys like Tony Allen and a few others.  He traded for Posey and we had pierce and got ray and KG.  Right now i see a few guys that could fit on this team.   Totally different situation but you know what I mean.

DJ's in the Hall.

http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/nba/news/story?id=5052939

[Sketch5]

everyone i read in this forum is on the Marcus Smart train to all-star status,
but I just don't see it. I think the popular hopes on Smart are really just
a coping mechanism.

i don't see it either.  Should be a nice player, but I don't think he will be the face of the franchise.

Face of the franchise isn't on the team yet.

I don't think we are going to have "A" face of the franchise. But many faces, Kinda on the par of the Spurs and now the Hawks.  Duncan and Hardford are the top guys, but with out the Parkers and Teagues, Milsaps. Smart can be one of those guys. He's going to bring toughness, and heart with that D of his.

[greece66]

If I had to be perfectly honest, I agree with Nerf and see Smart becoming a really, really good player.
I do not know if he will become an all-star let alone a HoF like DJ.
But I've been impressed in two ways by him:
i/ everyone was talking about his D before he arrived to the C's, but it's even better than that.
Did you watch him play against Harden? Did you see how he got this last minute charge from Harden? Did you see tonight against Miami the block, then the last minute steal? These are not the kind of things that you will get you in an all star game, but they might turn defeats into wins. And with his hustle he leads the team by example.
ii/The kid is improving. He came to the C's with the reputation of being a bad 3p shooter (29% at college). This season he shoots 37%. 37! It's not about the % per se, it's about his ability to recognize his own weaknesses and improve.
So, yes, I agree the hype surrounding him is excessive, fans are always and everywhere like this. But this kid has promise.

[piercetruth34]

I don't even think it's as much a question as people make it out to be with smart.  YOu can see his talent.  Sometimes players are hyped up defensively but Smart is a legitament defender because of his size and mindset.  He is also not rattled for a young player and his intelligence already shows on the court.  He might not have those tweener shots and finishing moves yet but he's really not even taking it to the basket at this point.

I don't think its a matter of if with Smart though it's more just when.  He's playing it careful rigt now with certain parts of his game.  I think that's good though because we want him to be efficient. We don't want him just throwing up shots.  He needs to find those shots to take.

I think physically and how he anticipates is what stands out to me so far.  He's a patient player.  You can't teach someone's physical skills and someones intelligence aptitude level.  Those are things you are born with.

[Rosco917]

If I had to be perfectly honest, I agree with Nerf and see Smart becoming a really, really good player.
I do not know if he will become an all-star let alone a HoF like DJ.
But I've been impressed in two ways by him:
i/ everyone was talking about his D before he arrived to the C's, but it's even better than that.
Did you watch him play against Harden? Did you see how he got this last minute charge from Harden? Did you see tonight against Miami the block, then the last minute steal? These are not the kind of things that you will get you in an all star game, but they might turn defeats into wins. And with his hustle he leads the team by example.
ii/The kid is improving. He came to the C's with the reputation of being a bad 3p shooter (29% at college). This season he shoots 37%. 37! It's not about the % per se, it's about his ability to recognize his own weaknesses and improve.
So, yes, I agree the hype surrounding him is excessive, fans are always and everywhere like this. But this kid has promise.

Well said^
I'm not getting overly taken with Smart, he's not going to be a 20 ppg type of player. He's not going to be flashy point guard that thinks about himself all of the time, forgoing defense to concentrate on his points.
If given the chance he will be the heart and soul of a winning team. When Smart is in his defensive zone he actually hurts players he's defending. Setting a pick on him is painful. If that's not important to you, then yes, you may think were over reacting to him.

[jpotter33]

I'm one of Smart's biggest supporters on here, and I think he'll end up being a Kyle Lowry clone with much better defense. Something around 18/8/5/1.5 is realistic for him (pts, assts, rebs, stls). I think it's almost inevitable he'll be an All Star eventually, mostly because it's a popularity contest. Whether or not he'll be anything like a multiple year All Star is up for debate, but I think it could definitely happen. What I'm most excited about will be his constant presence on the All-Defensive team, and I think he'll be the first perimeter defender in a long time to win the DPOY Award. His defense is that legit.

[ssspence]

everyone i read in this forum is on the Marcus Smart train to all-star status,
but I just don't see it. I think the popular hopes on Smart are really just
a coping mechanism.

i don't see it either.  Should be a nice player, but I don't think he will be the face of the franchise.

Face of the franchise isn't on the team yet.

This is not news. Didn't Ainge say after the draft he felt Marcus could become a good NBA starter? Ainge has a long history of avoiding the home run swing in the draft -- last year was no different.


Who actually believes Smart going to be a Franchise Player? That's just reaching.

[celticmania]

Marcus Smart isn't going to be good. He's a point guard who can't dribble. He can't do anything to create offense for him or others. The only thing he can do is catch and shoot and he's at best going to be an average shooter in the 37% range. He'll be good defensively though.

[gpap]

Boy I sure hope so.

[spikelovetheCelts]

everyone i read in this forum is on the Marcus Smart train to all-star status,
but I just don't see it. I think the popular hopes on Smart are really just
a coping mechanism.

i don't see it either.  Should be a nice player, but I don't think he will be the face of the franchise.

Face of the franchise isn't on the team yet.

Hopefullly We can Get Cousins to be our face. He is the main ALL Star I think we have a shot at this moment.

[Eddie20]

Marcus Smart isn't going to be good. He's a point guard who can't dribble. He can't do anything to create offense for him or others. The only thing he can do is catch and shoot and he's at best going to be an average shooter in the 37% range. He'll be good defensively though.

I'm sure some these same comments, minus the catch and shoot stuff, were made about Gary Payton after his first couple of seasons. Difference being that Payton was older than Smart his first couple of seasons. Regardless, Payton was a player that was drafted highly and struggled offensively at first. Instead he was much more advanced defensively. Payton wasn't the fastest guy around and didn't have the best of handles, but what set him apart was his desire.


(using per 36 mpg)
          Smart  Payton
Age     20       22
FG%   38.7    45.0
FT%   68.3    71.1
3PT% 37.2    0.77
PPG    10.6    9.4
RPG    3.9      3.9
APG    5.1      8.5
SPG    1.8      2.6

http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2013/08/28/payton-nearly-quit-early-in-his-career/

Hall of Famer Gary Payton was so down on himself as a player and so frustrated with the coaching situation in Seattle early in his career that he came close to retiring after his rookie season, he told NBA.com on Wednesday.

“I was thinking about it,” Payton said in a phone conversation from his home in Las Vegas. “I was like, ‘What am I out here for? This isn’t even what I want to do. I’m not happy.’ I didn’t want to do anything….”

Payton played well enough in 1990-91 to be voted second-team All-Rookie, but the 7.2 points and 6.4 assists for a 41-41 team that finished one place lower in the Pacific Division than the season before was not up to the standards he set for himself as the No. 2 pick in the draft. It was being the starter without getting true starter’s minutes, though, that truly bothered him, the 27.4 minutes per that led him to feel a lack of support from coach K.C. Jones.

[Celtics4ever]

I think Smart and Young are two guys they will try to build around.   Both are talented and young but both has a ways to go.    I think we need new frontcourt players,   Sully and KO are dead end bigs.   Neither is going to be guys you can build around as they both have finite ceilings.   They could be bench bigs though.   I would love to have a real athletic versatile four, an athletic five who can rim protect  and a three that could score and spread the floor.

AB and Zeller might be decent bench guys too.   I would rather have Zeller in the long run instead of Sully as he can run the floor and stay in front of his man.

We have draft picks galore and I hope two stars want to play together and we can facilitate that and draft a stud or two.

[celticmania]

Is Derrick Favors a cornerstone piece ?

[scotto1205]

Smart-Young-Johnson(AU)-Favors-Cousins I think that team 2-3 years would be a force.

[hwangjini_1]

Is Derrick Favors a cornerstone piece ?

favors season averages this year, his 5th
15.7 pts/game
8.5 rb/game
1.7 blk/game

sully season averages this year, his 3rd
14.1 pts/game
8.1 rb/game
0.9 blk/game

sully's number far exceed those of favors for the 3rd year of each, by the way.

in either case, i have doubts either of them are cornerstones. but i do think each can be a very good complimentary player on a good team.