[2022 NBA Draft/1-3] Jabari Smith Jr., F, Auburn

So Smith has the worst points per possession of any of those rookies. Terrific.

But but.... "Jabari is a more efficient scorer than Paolo". Just look at his slightly higher college TS%!!!!

Thats what clutchfans insisted. But I'm the idiot ROFL. Anyone care to change their mind?

 

I think Jabari’s shortcomings are magnified by the overall structure. I never thought he was a project but never considered him in the running for ROY

 

I didn't expect him to b the primary superstar, more like defensive robin to green. It's quite hard to gauge Smith progress especially on offense, since the silas system isn't really a system, but more like a KPJ centric training program

 

Sample size of less than 10 freaking games. Jesus Christ some of you are impatient!

 

Good post. Thanks.

 

Nope, gotta wreck in less than 10 games or bust! What’s that saying from Tropic Thunder again?

 

Wonder what Paolo would look like in the corner watching KPj dribble for 20 seconds.

 

I wanted Ivey if we couldn’t get Chet. I thought Smith was nothing but red flags

 

He has flaws, the same ones that were known before the draft. I suppose we could argue that his shooting is worse than expected but I actually felt he would struggle with that as a rookie too. His body reminds me in some ways of Kevin Durant, and as great as KD is, he struggled to shoot as a rookie too. The shot from the perimeter will come around and that alone should get him up to 15-17 points a game. Whether he is a 20 point a game scorer or more will depend on how he improves scoring inside and how he improves his handle. His handle is good enough to stay on the floor, but not good enough to be proactive.

Defensively he has actually been out of position more than I would have expected. When he is in the right spot, he is a vastly superior defender to Green, Porter and Sengun. He will overall be a positive on that side. The question is whether he will be a good defender or take the step to be an All NBA type defender.

Right now, he looks like a future high-end role player because of his skill limitations at this time on offense, and some strength limitations on the defensive end. However, he has a chance to be more than that. If you do a little projecting and he can end up like Paul George if most things go right for him. A low-end comparison would be Marvin Williams.

He also doesn't have a lot around him going right. He has a point guard that doesn't have the type of court vision needed to help Smith. He also has Jalen Green next to him trying to figure it all out himself and sometimes Smith has to help Green defensively. I don't know how Smith has been in practice other than he pushes very hard and can be very vocal and at times physical with his own teammates.

Hopefully fans don't compare him to Banchero or even Holmgren, because they are very different players. Smith more so than anyone else at the top of the 2022 draft, is reliant on good teammates with solid spacing and passing so that Smith can get his on offense.

He is another piece of the pie, but he isn't the whole pie but more like the ice cream on top.

 

Do you remember me repeatedly asking how we think the rockets are all of a sudden going to generate open looks for a Jabari if we drafted him? I was called a KPJ hater and a Jabari hater all summer. We need a play initiator. Someone to utilize KPJ’s strength off ball. Paolo has that skill set so I doubt that he would just stand at the 3 point line. That’s more of a Jabari Smith thing.

 

I thought Summer League was an anomaly but this is who he is this moment. Way more raw and much lower floor than we all expected

 

Do you feel at 3, you need a franchise type of player or would that be cool with you at 3? Having some kind of role player?

 

Well let's say if we were to redraft and it went Paolo and chet, who would u draft if not smith?

 

@Clutch knowing you were so high on Jabari prior to the draft, if you had the choice between Jabari or Banchero, who would you rather have now?

 

Ivey

 

Chet is even more red flags lol

 

Great point. As a follow up, here is approximately how old these players were when they first averaged 20 PPG.

giannis - year 4 - 22 years old
jaylen brown - year 4 - 24 years old
brandon ingram - year 4 - 23 years old
jayson tatum - year 3 - 22 years old
dejounte - year 5 - 25 years old
ja - year 3 - 22 years old
derozan - year 5 - 25 years old
steph - year 4 - 25 years old
beal - year 5 - 24 years old

 

This should be adjusted for pace