"...it didn’t take long for the perpetually upbeat, proven veteran point guard to make an impact....
More than any measurable statistic, though, Smith’s return to the Sixers broughtexperience, poise, and leadership to a position that Brett Brown deems the most important in basketball.
“Big personality, big charisma,” Brown said on December 26th,...
“Had a presence,” continued Brown. “Allowed me to coach him. I could coach him hard. He found a new layer in Nerlens [Noel]. He’s got live legs. There’s a pace that he plays with. There’s a reliability from a turnover standpoint that he is respected for around the league. All those things are what we need.”
As was the case during the previous year, Smith exhibited an ability to unlock additional potential and production from Noel, thanks to the easy chemistry that existed between the two of them.
“It’s just you miss some shots, you make some shots, you just got to keep pushing and keep going. Your body gets tired a bit, mental and stuff like that. Everybody’s scouting report, now they want to stop you. So you have to get through all of that, and stuff you haven’t experienced before. You just kind of got to play through it, and eventually you’ll get your groove back and being playing better than ever.”
Off-Season Objectives:
On the heels of a career season, Smith heads into the rest of the spring and summer with momentum.
Looking back on the progress he’s made over his six years in the NBA, Smith said in late March, “Sometimes I pinch myself, sometimes like, ‘Holy crap, how did I get this good?’ Like, I don’t know. Seriously. Because I was just two or three years ago waving a towel. It’s a blessing. I thank God every day for it.”
As a Sixer this season, Smith has enjoyed being a starter for the most extended period of his career. The 27-year-old, who will become a free agent this summer, will have to decide how much he wants to keep that role.
"Eventually, I will have to pray about that and figure it out," Smith said before Saturday's late game against the Portland Trail Blazers at the Moda Center. "But if it's a good situation, and stuff like that, you can't be like, man, I just want to start. You got to humble yourself. If you are meant to start and you are meant to be an all-star, it will happen."
(snip)
But no one can deny that he has been an upgrade for the Sixers since being reacquired. They ranked 26th in the league with an average of 18.8 assists per game in the 31 games before Smith arrived. In their 41 games since, through Wednesday, they've averaged 22.8 assists, putting them in 11th place.
Heading into Saturday, Smith was averaging 14.7 points and 7.0 assists since rejoining the Sixers, and has finished with 10 or more on seven occasions.
He was averaging 6.5 assists in 67 combined games with the Pelicans and Sixers, tied for 11th in the NBA with Kyle Lowry, the Philly native and Toronto Raptors all-star point guard.
"Listen, I would be thrilled to have Ish back," Brown said. "He's done everything and then some. As we all know, it's a volatile world that we live in. There are draft picks. There are trades. There's all the stuff that we know.
"But he's done everything that I have asked of him and then some. And I'm just personally fond of him."
Smith's perimeter shooting and defense have some questioning whether he can become a regular starter in the NBA. Right now, he's known for pushing the pace and excelling in the pick-and-roll.
To his credit, Smith had shown improved three-point shooting during a stretch after the all-star game. But teams are now making it tough for him by putting taller, athletic defenders on him.
Keith Pompey
A source said Smith will get a three-year $18 million deal with the #DetroitPistons. He made $1.1 million last season.
ich würde übrigens ganz gerne Terrence Jones bei uns sehen. Ist ufa geworden nachdem Houston das QO nicht gemacht hat.
The Detroit Pistons have filled their backup point guard vacancy with the impending signing of Ish Smith to a three-year deal.
Everyone knows I was on the Matthew Dellavedova boat. I was the skipper, chef, first mate and prisoner all tied up in one bundle. But now that news has come out that the Pistons have signed Smith, I'm going to attempt to walk everyone through what his strengths are and how he can make the Pistons better.
Speed
The first thing that comes to mind when you watch Smith play is his incredible speed with the basketball. But not only is he quick with the ball, but his units played quick. Let's look at some of the statistics, courtesy of NBA.com, as to the pace of Ish Smith's play.
Player MPG Avg. Speed on Offense (mph) Pace
Reggie Jackson 30.7 4.50 97.88
Ish Smith 29.1 5.19 100.43
This serves as proof that Smith will bring a jolt of energy and speed to the Pistons bench unit, which was lacking last season. Everyone knew Reggie played slower, and while it was annoying, it generally fared OK. But the noticeable drop off to Steve Blake was suicidal, which is why Jennings looked so good those few weeks he played before getting traded.
Smith uses up almost 3 more possessions per game than Jackson, and he plays a much faster brand of basketball on offense. In terms of speed, Smith is tied for 3rd in the league in average speed on offense per game, while Jackson was well down the list (page 6 out of 10 on NBA.com).
Speed burns, and with a bevy of shooters on the bench unit, Smith will dash the court and find them for open looks in transition.
Playmaking
Take his stats in Philadelphia with a pinch of salt, but Smith was a very effective playmaker for a struggling 76ers squad last season. Smith played 77 games last season, 50 of those with Philly, and he racked up 7.0 assists per game for Brett Brown's team. He averaged 6.5 over the whole season thanks to a still-healthy 5.7 assists per game in 27 games for New Orleans.
What helps even further is that, over the course of the season, Smith only coughed up the ball 2.3 times per game, very efficient for someone playing 29.1 minutes per game. And it's not like he wasn't a dominant force on offense. Smith had a usage rate of 23.9 percent last season, yet a small turnover percentage of 14.4 percentage. For comparison, Jackson, who played about 1.6 more minutes per game, averaged 6.2 assists per game, and a turnover rate of 13.8 percent (with a high usage at 29.1 percent).
Smith also had a high assist rate of 38.3 percent compared to 36.3 percent for Jackson. Smith can be counted on to effectively lead an offense, and considering what he had around him in Philly, he shouldn't feel too out of place on the Detroit bench.
Attacking
If there's one thing above all else here, Smith knows how to score the basketball. He averaged 12.6 points per game over the course of last season, and he has a strong proficiency and tendency to take the ball inside and finish at the hoop.
Despite his small stature, Smith was one of only 19 guards in the NBA to take at least 4.5 shots in the restricted area last season. He also had the fourth most drives per game in the NBA with more than 10 per game, and of players with at least 10 drives per game had the highest assist percentage. His issue is converting, as he only hit 53 percent of his attempts in the restricted area. Still, it's not hard to imagine what he can do with better offensive talent surrounding him.
He also has the endorsement of current Piston and former teammate in Phoenix, Marcus Morris (via Rod Beard at the Detroit News).
"I love Ish Smith from Philly. That's my guy. I played with him in Phoenix and he might be the best backup point guard in the league, in my opinion," said Morris, who watched the Pistons' summer league team in Orlando. "If we could get him, he could make our team a lot better on and off the court. He's a great teammate."
***
All in all, whilst you probably shouldn't feel exceptionally excited at the signing of Ish Smith, there's a lot to like, and perhaps it's a good thing Stan Van Bower did not get suckered into paying the big bucks (presumably) for a bigger name.
Not satisfied at all? Don't worry, there'll be a counterargument on why Smith is a terrible signing where you can vent your frustrations there. Let's keep this thread sunshine and lollipops, ok? Great.
So where do we begin? How about his size?
Size
Ish Smith is one of the smaller point guards on the open market. When you look at the likes of Matthew Dellavedova (6'4", 200lbs) and Jeremy Lin (6'3", 200lbs), Smith is a rather seedy and wiry 6'0" and 175lbs wringing wet. While he does have rather long arms, with a wingspan extending past 6'4", his small frame still mean his standing reach is a tiny 7'10".
His limitations in terms of physical stature make things a little tougher for him. He can't body up anyone and offers little to no resistance in terms of stopping the drive, especially with all the bigger point guards in the league today (hell, the Pistons just drafted a sometimes point guard who stands 6'7").
His limitations on size transition well into his next key weakness, and that's his defensive potential.
Defense
My criteria for a backup point guard this offseason was rather specific and possibly geared towards Matthew Dellavedova. I'll run through it quickly. Size, ability to hit the 3, defense, ability to play next to another PG. If we evaluate Ish Smith next to that criterion, he fits basically none of them. The defense is something I want to highlight though, because all season last year the Pistons were not offering much in the way of PG resistance.
The simple fact is that Ish Smith is just too small to be of any serious defensive impediment to an opposing point guard. His light frame mean that he will get bullied by the stronger guards in the league, and his short stature mean it isn't that hard to shoot over him. Opposition point guards can easily take him down in the post and have their way with him.
He may find it easier to defend the likes of D.J. Augustin (who has apparently signed with Orlando), but when it comes to backup PGs with even a semblance of size, he will struggle, and the defense will be forced to collapse. Again.
Shooting
Here lies perhaps the biggest problem with Ish Smith on a team like the Pistons. For a coach like Stan Van Gundy who has expressed his desire to have shooting at every orifice, the signing of Ish Smith makes little to no sense as a backup point guard where there were likely similar priced options who are far better shooters. Let's look at Smith's numbers over the course of his career.
Player % of FGA from 3 3P% FT%
Ish Smith 15.2% 29.8% 64.5%
So, yeah, not the greatest numbers from Smith here. While he does try to go inside more than settle for the three, the fact that he is such a bad shooter is still worrying. Perhaps Van Gundy feels his broken jumpshot can be mitigated by a bench unit of Bullock,Marcus Morris (when he plays with the reserves) and Aron Baynes, but that unit still has three guys who aren't much of a threat from three (Smith, Baynes, Stanley Johnson).
Three-point percentage can be somewhat fixed. He did shoot 34% over his time with Philly last season. A big worry, though, is the atrocious FT% for a point guard. To put it in perspective, Reggie Jackson upon arrival at the Pistons was a 29% three-point shooter, and people moaned about that, with good reason. He has upped that to about 35%, but a big help was the fact that he already was close to a 90% free throw shooter, so he had the foundations of a good shot. With Smith's poor free throw rate, I question his ability and the likelihood of the coaching staff to be able to convert him into a respectable shooter. His best three-point zone was above the break at 32% (he shot 63% on left corner threes, but I don't put much stock into a 5-for-8 sample size).
***
So yes, the concerns with Smith are very real. For a small point guard, it's always going to be difficult for him to defend anyone with any real effectiveness. Coupled with his disappointing shooting percentages, it could be a long year at back up point guard for the Pistons yet again.
Ja okay, aber dieser "Rotationsspieler" hat es letzte Saison für das Minimum nicht aus der Preseason der Wiz in die Rotation geschafft. Wenn er sich als euer Backup PG etablieren kann, ist das sicher ein Schnapper, aber ich bin da nicht ganz so zuversichtlich. Kein Wurf, keine Defense und dribbelt die Luft aus dem Ball. Ist das was mir da im Gedächtnis geblieben ist. Selbst wenn man die 6,5% auf den Cap der letzten Saison bezieht, finde ich die 4-4,5Mio für Smith als teuer.Andererseits sind 6 Mio nur 6,5% des 94 Mio Salarycap für einen Rotationsspieler, das ist lachhaft. Bin gespannt wie er sich macht.
Ja okay, aber dieser "Rotationsspieler" hat es letzte Saison für das Minimum nicht aus der Preseason der Wiz in die Rotation geschafft. Wenn er sich als euer Backup PG etablieren kann, ist das sicher ein Schnapper, aber ich bin da nicht ganz so zuversichtlich. Kein Wurf, keine Defense und dribbelt die Luft aus dem Ball. Ist das was mir da im Gedächtnis geblieben ist. Selbst wenn man die 6,5% auf den Cap der letzten Saison bezieht, finde ich die 4-4,5Mio für Smith als teuer.