Will Marcus Smart Still Be A Finisher?

Marcus Smart has finished a lot of games for us in his career-to-date.  Some of those games happened when we still weren't that good and he was the best player Brad could put out there.  Some of those games were 2 years ago, when Jaylen was still a rookie and some of those games were last year when we were battling season-ending injuries to Kyrie and Hayward.

Assuming a reasonable number of games lost to injuries, do you still think Marcus Smart will still be finishing as many games for Brad Stevens?  Even with Kyrie and Hayward back and Rozier's star rising?



bob


.

With the game on the line - Who would he be likely to relace ? - Horford, Tatum, Brown, Irving or Hayward ? His playing time should go down considerably this year. Perhaps even less than Rozier.

swish

I think he will still be a finisher but perhaps in an offense/defense substitution pattern late in games.

If Marcus was an average offensive player he could very well be in there but he is not a reliable scorer. His defense will still be needed to close out games.

For all the Marcus Smart doubters who are always questioning his offense, I do not think that you watch all the other things that this young guy brings to the floor.  

When the game is on the line he may be the Cs best overall player, in my opinion.  So, I still think that he will be a "finisher" in all games that are not blowouts as long as he continues to bring the "pulse" to our team.  He clearly makes every other player better when the games are close.  Smart plays great individual defense, greater team defense is willing to do whatever is necessary to seal the outcome of the game.  Smart makes his teammates bigger, badder and braver by leading by example and direction.

As good as many other Cs players are on offense who might you want directing the defense, getting key rebounds on both ends of the floor or diving all over the place to get another possession?

And, one more point/prediction...Smart will be a better on offense this year. Remember, you read it here first.

wideclyde wrote:For all the Marcus Smart doubters who are always questioning his offense, I do not think that you watch all the other things that this young guy brings to the floor.  

When the game is on the line he may be the Cs best overall player, in my opinion.  So, I still think that he will be a "finisher" in all games that are not blowouts as long as he continues to bring the "pulse" to our team.  He clearly makes every other player better when the games are close.  Smart plays great individual defense, greater team defense is willing to do whatever is necessary to seal the outcome of the game.  Smart makes his teammates bigger, badder and braver by leading by example and direction.

As good as many other Cs players are on offense who might you want directing the defense, getting key rebounds on both ends of the floor or diving all over the place to get another possession?

And, one more point/prediction...Smart will be a better on offense this year. Remember, you read it here first.

Wyde

At this point I am well beyond questioning his offense.  I have no questions about his offense.  I have accepted the reality that he is one of the absolute worst shooters in the NBA at his position.  My only hope at this point is that he stops taking as many 3 point shots and he returns to being a more reliable FT shooter.

Marcus impact on this team is undeniable.  Now that Hayward is back who do you sit on the bench when the game is on the line in favor of Marcus Smart?  I think the logical answer depends on the situation.  

So to answer your question "who might you want directing the defense, getting key rebounds on both ends of the floor", I would take Terry Rozier over Smart because he is a better rebounder and passer and a more reliable offensive player.  I left out the diving on the floor part because only Marcus does that.  Then again, a Kamikaze only gets one shot at the battleship.  While that level of commitment to making plays is admirable it has also resulted in injuries like the one Smart suffered during the playoffs.  

I am not suggesting that Rozier will be in the game at the end.  This is all situational.  There are no absolutes.

Don't misunderstand my argument here.  Marcus will be needed to close out some game (i.e The shutdown of James Harden)  

But if Boston is down by 3 points with the game on the line, Marcus Smart will not be on the floor given his well established inability to shoot the 3 ball and his team leading turnover average.  This goes beyond simply questioning his offense.  There is no question.  He sucks on offense.

Hell, Marcus Morris shooting at .368 would be a better choice if you need a shot.

wideclyde wrote:For all the Marcus Smart doubters who are always questioning his offense, I do not think that you watch all the other things that this young guy brings to the floor.  

When the game is on the line he may be the Cs best overall player, in my opinion.  So, I still think that he will be a "finisher" in all games that are not blowouts as long as he continues to bring the "pulse" to our team.  He clearly makes every other player better when the games are close.  Smart plays great individual defense, greater team defense is willing to do whatever is necessary to seal the outcome of the game.  Smart makes his teammates bigger, badder and braver by leading by example and direction.

As good as many other Cs players are on offense who might you want directing the defense, getting key rebounds on both ends of the floor or diving all over the place to get another possession?

And, one more point/prediction...Smart will be a better on offense this year. Remember, you read it here first.

Yes he should be better - but if anyone can be any worse it would probably be Marcus.

swish

dboss wrote: Marcus will be needed to close out some game (i.e The shutdown of James Harden)

IMO, I would edit this to say - Marcus will be needed to close out LOTS of games.

You may well see more offensive/defensive substitutions than in past year - but ANY close game against a team with a G/SF that needs to be shut down - Marcus will find his way on the court.

I was gonna say he can’t get any worse, but maybe he can...???

Knowing all the intangibles that Smart brings to the game and still complaining about his shooting, is like a person living in Boston for 50 years that still complains about "snow".

mrkleen09 wrote:Knowing all the intangibles that Smart brings to the game and still complaining about his shooting, is like a person living in Boston for 50 years that still complains about "snow".

Are we complaining or stating facts?

cowens/oldschool wrote:

mrkleen09 wrote:Knowing all the intangibles that Smart brings to the game and still complaining about his shooting, is like a person living in Boston for 50 years that still complains about "snow".

Are we complaining or stating facts?

In other news, water is wet.

To me, you take the good with the bad or you take a position one way or the other. The flip flopping as it suits you, gets tiresome.

Some people out here rip Marcus all night long for his poor shooting - then when he makes a game winning defensive play, praise him for his grit and intensity.

Which is it? Do you want him on the court during crunch time to shut down the best player on the other team or not?

I’ll leave it up to Brad, I don’t think I’d want Perk or Silas or Don Chaney taking the last shot either, and loved those guys. Not everything is black and white, sure he brings intangibles, but if it’s offense, it’s just a fact we have many better options on a loaded team.

mrkleen09 wrote:Knowing all the intangibles that Smart brings to the game and still complaining about his shooting, is like a person living in Boston for 50 years that still complains about "snow".

Kleen

No one is complaining about his shooting.  The thread simply ponders Smart as a finisher.  His shooting would certainly be a factor as would his defense.  

Again my position is that his time on the court as a finisher is likely to be more situational because his game on offense vs defense are polar opposites.

I think it will be interesting to see how this plays out during the season.

dboss wrote:

mrkleen09 wrote:Knowing all the intangibles that Smart brings to the game and still complaining about his shooting, is like a person living in Boston for 50 years that still complains about "snow".

Kleen

No one is complaining about his shooting.  The thread simply ponders Smart as a finisher.  His shooting would certainly be a factor as would his defense.  

Again my position is that his time on the court as a finisher is likely to be more situational because his game on offense vs defense are polar opposites.

I think it will be interesting to see how this plays out during the season.

You and I are pretty much in agreement. But if you can read this thread and not see people still complaining about his shooting - not sure what to tell you.

If people want to go on the record and say Smart's offense is so bad, I dont want him on the court in tight games that is their right. But then, those same people lose the ability to talk about how great he is when he make a big play to save a game (or in his case, dozens of games)

mrkleen09 wrote:

dboss wrote:

mrkleen09 wrote:Knowing all the intangibles that Smart brings to the game and still complaining about his shooting, is like a person living in Boston for 50 years that still complains about "snow".

Kleen

No one is complaining about his shooting.  The thread simply ponders Smart as a finisher.  His shooting would certainly be a factor as would his defense.  

Again my position is that his time on the court as a finisher is likely to be more situational because his game on offense vs defense are polar opposites.

I think it will be interesting to see how this plays out during the season.

You and I are pretty much in agreement.  But if you can read this thread and not see people still complaining about his shooting - not sure what to tell you.

If people want to go on the record and say Smart's offense is so bad, I dont want him on the court in tight games that is their right.  But then, those same people lose the ability to talk about how great he is when he make a big play to save a game (or in his case, dozens of games)

Kleen yes we are very much on the same page. Think back to the Houston game where he befuddled James Harden into successive turnovers with the game on the line. It was truly amazing.

But then you have the Golden State game where he took the last shot and did not make it and a day later had a fight with a picture frame.

If Boston has a final possession for example and we are down by 3 points we need to have our most accurate 3 point shooters in the game. I do not know how often that situation will occur but last year the Celtics lost 7 games by 3 or fewer points.

We can only assume how often Smart will be in the game down the stretch because we do not know how getting Hayward back alters the rotations throughout the game. So I would tend to disagree with him being in there a lot. We have no way of knowing.

The great thing is that Brad has a full compliment of options to address every conceivable situation throughout the game.