Philadelphia 76ers: Top 10 Prospects to Watch, 3rd Edition
Smith has, for the most part, disappointed so far in 2016. As somebody who I had ranked third in my first big board, Smith’s production hasn’t stacked up favorably to the other elite point guards in the class — yet. With that said, the recent debut of Omer Yertseven in the rotation figures to help quite a bit, and his talent level is still incredibly high.
From an explosiveness perspective, it’s hard to match Smith — which is saying something given the level of athleticism at the forefront of this draft class. Smith is extremely quick off the dribble, and boasts great strength for a 6-2 point guard. He finishes through contact with impressive force at the rim, and can play vertically as well as anybody else at the one spot.
While his 3-point shot isn’t the most prolific, he has certainly made it a legitimate part of his arsenal. He’s still putting up over 18 points per contest on 34 percent shooting from deep, and is by no means floundering towards the bottom of the lottery talents.
As his passing accuracy improves, Smith figures to be a highly dynamic point guard at any level. He gets into the teeth of the defense with ease, and has the jerky style of play needed to find space in any scenario.
Where he fits with the Philadelphia 76ers
Smith’s fit is obvious given the Sixers’ needs on the perimeter. He’s another ball handler to throw into the mix alongside Simmons, and has all the tools necessary to excel both with and without him on the court.
As somebody who thrives with the ball in his hands, Smith’s fit would be interesting with the Simmons dynamic — as it will be with any ‘true’ point guard, per se. With that said, he’s a good enough shooter to find success in that avenue. In addition, he shows no problems finding room as a slasher, and would still be featured plenty in Brett Brown’s offense as the primary initiator.
Smith is far from some secondary piece alongside Simmons as well. If we were analyzing on the scope of last year’s draft, the argument for picking Smith over Simmons would be very real, and very prominent.
The talent level in this year’s class in extremely high, and Smith is an embodiment of that. Expect him to play a massive role if drafted by the Sixers.
Expert’s Opinion — Jeremy Woo, SI.com
"He’s taken a backseat to Fultz somewhat in the point guard conversation, but Smith is the other slashing guard with a nose for the basket garnering top five consideration. He’s returned from a torn ACL to mixed individual results—Synergy data shows he’s struggled in iso situations, and his overall efficiency could improve. [Smith is] carrying a heavy workload, to be fair, and the more he gets his feel back, his change of pace and direction should help that improve. Smith is more scorer than playmaker, but the overall package pops nicely."
Big Board Rankings:
- Big Board 3.0 — 4
- Jeremy Woo — 5
- DraftExpress — 2
- Sam Vecenie — 7