Our defense is not going to maintain elite status if we keep trading away our top defenders.
People need to figure out that a top defense is NOT about a bunch of top defenders. Defense is a team more than individuals. In our case, it’s being able to switch the way we do, taking away pick and roll options. It’s anout being long and athletic, making guys shoot over the top of us.
And does that not describe what Smart brings to this team? He takes the dumbest shots, but if he just shot maybe 2-3 shots less, we would infinitely be a better team with him, than without him.
Not just about switching, but also being vocal on defense which Smart and Horford are very well known for.
Oh, make no mistake, Smart is an excellent defender, both individually and within the scheme the team runs.
But I think Horford is overall more important on that end, and between Brown and Rozier we can make up for what we would lose by letting Smart go.
Smart is a very good role player, but it sure seems like he's got a lot of baggage that is making it harder to justify keeping him.