Dream was measured at 6'10 3/4" in bare feet. I'm 6'6", and stood next to him a couple of times, and can vouch that he was definitely not less than 6'10".
So... thoughts on the youngest Rocket? I think he looked good last night against the Hornets. Not that he's playing elite NBA competition, but he was playing hard, rebounding the ball, and was decent at finishing around the basket (point-blank shots, even a jump hook). He seems to have good strength and athleticism and makes good use of his gigantic foot-long hands. While other end-of-bench guys (Simpson and Fortson) likely will not come back, Smith likely will be a Rocket at least to start the next regular season. He has a partial guarantee next year and a team option for a third season. The team will most likely not have anyone better to use a 13th, 14th or 15th roster spot for at the very least.
That jump hook kinda surprised me. Smooth in its execution .... Wondered why they didnt go back to it. One thing I noticed is he doesnt shield defenders well when establishing position .... Tho that may come with experience.
He has a big body, kind of reminds me a bit of Otis Thorpe, he should watch tape of OT, and learn how to play like him....same sized hands etc. DD
OT was a more fluid athlete, remember in Sacremento OT was a 20 - 10 guy. But if Smith could be half the player the Rox have a gem.
This is true, that is why I said "A bit like"...but Smith is only 20 or 21, so he has some time to develop, he should live in the gym with McHale this summer. DD
Yeah, hard to ever really know when you have to filter through everyone's agendas, but it seems like there were a few of his teammates that claimed he was 6'9". Patrick Ewing claimed he himself was 6'9" - guess that depends on if you measure the flat top or not. Dwight Howard is listed on DraftExpress as 6'9" without shoes, and who knows how tall Moses actually was, even though he's listed at 6'10" and in some places at 6'9". And the list goes on...
Well at the NBA Combine he did measure 6'8.5 w/t out shoes... topping out at 6'10 w/shoes. However he makes up for any lack of height with his 7'3 wingspan, 9'0 standing reach and his 35.5 max vertical, along with his 11'11 max vertical reach!
http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Greg-Smith-5817/ Official measurements. 6'8.5'' without shoes. 6'10'' in shoes. 7'3'' winspan. 8'11.5'' standing reach.
That is pretty danged good, and he might grow a bit more at 21....hopefully he gets some good coaching this summer. DD
The Rockets have a bright future Hopefully Morris and Patterson work on their games( they seem like high iq guys, so im not worried) with D-Mo coming in next year, and the emergence of Parsons, we are def a playoff team next year Hope Greg Smith keeps developing
I'm sorry, and I won't get political... but your handle combined with this assessment of our team really cracked me up.
