I hear you guys on Smart being better than Brooks. No argument from me there. Though, they play different positions. Smart isn't exactly big enough to match up against guys like Kawaii, LBJ, Durant, MPJ, Doncic, etc. in the west. Against those teams, it probably wouldn't be wise for Memphis to play Morant, Bane, and Smart at the same time. Against the Warriors? Sure, why not. They play small. But against bigger guys, Smart will likely find himself on the bench, which may cause other issues.
But just in general... Smart's value appears to be more about his leadership and adding value to a team's culture more than it is about his play. I'm not a Celtics fan and only watch the prime time games... and whenever I watched the Celtics, I often caught myself having thoughts like, "Why the **** does Smart keep taking these dumb ass shots?", "Dude (Smart)! Pass the ball to Tatum or Brown... what the **** are you doing?", "Look at that.... another flop.", "why have the Celtics continued to extend this guy?"
And I know he won DPOY a year ago... but when watching him, especially this year, idk... for a talent standpoint, I don't see him as an extremely special player. Particularly on the offensive end. I always felt like his poor shot taking and bad decisions in general would cost the Celtics critical games.
Even now that the trade is done.. it seems like everyone is talking about how Smart will help Memphis' locker room, and Celtics fans will miss him because he was the "glue" of the team. Not many are exactly talking about how much the Celtics will miss him on the court or how much better he'll make the Grizzlies.
Some various quotes from Celtics fans, who published articles since the trade:
"...Last season, Smart regressed. Sure, his Defensive Rating was 111.7, over four points higher than it was the year prior, but Smart didn’t necessarily pass the eye test. Many of those hustle plays he’s made a name of himself for were rare last year, and there wasn’t really anything he did better than White. Smart is a serviceable PG, but he was never a true playmaker, and that showed for much of last season. His growth on offense has stunted as well. His inconsistent and sometimes frustrating decisions on offense cost the Celtics many games, especially in crunch-time situation..."
"...While Smart’s game would elevate in the postseason, there was enough inconsistency, especially in crunch time, that cast enough doubt on his fit with Tatum and Brown. The offense found a better flow with Tatum as the lead ballhandler, and players like White showed enough ability to create their own shot..."
"...I watch a ton of Celtics games, and this year I saw two things that had me thinking this current team may have outgrown his leadership. The first was his tendency to take a ton of big shots and waive off Tatum and Brown in key moments, which is hardly new to Celtics fans during the Smart era. He’s an alpha dog, and nothing will ever change that. Last year, I felt like Smart finally accepted that he needed to defer to the two stars, and he had the best season of his career because of it. But this year I saw him take a step backward, always finding the ball when it should probably have been elsewhere..."
And I want to note that in all of those articles, those writers/fans spoke glowingly about Smart's impact in the locker room, hustle, etc.
But they all point out things that can become a real issue for Memphis when Ja comes back. Ja needs the ball in his hands. Smart wants the ball in his hands.
