Marcus Smart: "An All-Star in the NBA for years"?
Yesterday ESPN's NBA Insider Chad Ford answered some fan questions in a brief web chat. Here is Ford's response when asked about the improved shooting of Marcus Smart:
We are talking about a pretty small sample size here. I'm not sure anyone is ready to call Marcus Smart the next Ray Allen. However, where he's really stood out to me is defensively. We knew this during the draft, but it's played out immediately in the NBA. Smart looks like a good bet to win Defensive Player of the Year someday. If he can shoot a respectable 37% or higher from 3? He's going to be an All-Star in the NBA for years.
Grantland's Zach Lowe gave similar high praise regarding Smart's defense:
Watching Marcus Smart play D is the best reason to watch Boston for the rest of the season -- and it might not be close. A terror.
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) January 20, 2015
As far as his three-point accuracy goes, Smart currently sits at 36.5 percent for his brief NBA career. However, since December 8 he's shooting 42.6 percent, which would rank him in the top 10 in the league. Perennial All-Star sounds pretty good to me...
Follow Mark Vandeusen on Twitter @LucidSportsFan
