Marcus Smart's three-point shooting is getting better
Marcus Smart has always been hailed as a lock down defensive guard with the biggest knock on his game being his shooting ability.
However, he has significantly improved his 3 point percentage since returning from his ankle sprain.
Pre-injury:
| Rk | G | Date | Tm | Opp | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 2014-10-29 | BOS | BRK | 1 | 4 | .250 | |
| 2 | 2 | 2014-11-01 | BOS | @ | HOU | 0 | 5 | .000 |
| 3 | 3 | 2014-11-03 | BOS | @ | DAL | 1 | 5 | .200 |
| 4 | 4 | 2014-11-05 | BOS | TOR | 3 | 7 | .429 | |
| 5 | 5 | 2014-11-07 | BOS | IND | 1 | 4 | .250 |
Post-injury:
| G | Date | Tm | Opp | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 2014-12-03 | BOS | DET | 0 | 3 | .000 | |
| 7 | 2014-12-07 | BOS | WAS | 0 | 0 | ||
| 8 | 2014-12-08 | BOS | @ | WAS | 4 | 8 | .500 |
| 9 | 2014-12-10 | BOS | @ | CHO | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| 10 | 2014-12-12 | BOS | NYK | 0 | 0 | ||
| 11 | 2014-12-19 | BOS | MIN | 2 | 4 | .500 | |
| 12 | 2014-12-21 | BOS | @ | MIA | 1 | 4 | .250 |
| 13 | 2014-12-23 | BOS | @ | ORL | 0 | 0 | |
| 14 | 2014-12-26 | BOS | BRK | 1 | 3 | .333 | |
| 15 | 2014-12-27 | BOS | @ | WAS | 0 | 0 | |
| 16 | 2014-12-31 | BOS | SAC | 3 | 6 | .500 | |
| 17 | 2015-01-02 | BOS | DAL | 2 | 6 | .333 | |
| 18 | 2015-01-03 | BOS | @ | CHI | 0 | 0 | |
| 19 | 2015-01-05 | BOS | CHO | 2 | 3 | .667 | |
| 20 | 2015-01-07 | BOS | @ | BRK | 2 | 4 | .500 |
In his first five games he shot 24% from the three point line and in his previous 14 games he's managed to raise it to 40.5%.
At the same time Smart has developed a better shot selection evidenced by nearly halving his attempts per game from 5 to 2.8 while still being able to sink threes at the same rate (1.2 per game).
Smart also seems to be improving his shot selection. Still needs to work on driving, but he's not launching as many wild ones from deep.
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) January 8, 2015The biggest flaw in Rajon Rondo's game that people brought up time and time again was his lack of a consistent shot. Smart was criticized of the same flaw both in college and during his pre-draft workouts. But, if Smart can refine his shot early on in his career (and he seems more than capable of doing so) imagine the weapon he can become on both ends of the court.
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