Marcus Smart's NBA career had gotten off to a rather nondescript start before Monday night. Smart is averaging 6.3 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 21.3 minutes per game through three contests, and he's shooting just 28.6 percent overall and 14.3 percent from three.
Marcus Smart flashes his potential in breakout performance vs. Mavericks
The Celtics’ rookie showed why the team believes in him so much during a furious Boston rally on Monday.
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
But Smart showed flashes of his immense potential during a thrilling second-half rally in the Boston Celtics' 118-113 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night. The strong fourth-quarter performance came in a homecoming for the Dallas-area native, and while the Celtics couldn't finish off the comeback, the contingent that came to support Smart had to be impressed.
The game initially looked like it was going to get out of hand. The Mavs scored 40 points in the first quarter and led by 21 after the first buzzer sounded, and that lead ballooned to 31 late in the second quarter. The margin was 26 at halftime, and it looked like Dallas was headed for an easy win.
Smart and the Celtics had different plans. After trimming the deficit to 12 heading into the final frame, Boston was down 13 with nine minutes left when head coach Brad Stevens went to his three-guard lineup featuring Smart, Rajon Rondo and Avery Bradley. That group sparked a furious rally that got the deficit down to three in the final minute with Bradley heading to the line for three free throws. But he only made two out of three and Monta Ellis helped save the day for Dallas.
Smart did it all during the run, racking up five points, four rebounds, three assists and a block. The 20-year-old had several impressive highlights, including this gorgeous behind-the-back-pass to Jared Sullinger (via @KWAPT):
The youngster was also all over the court on the defensive end, showing the type of versatility the Celtics saw when they chose him with the No. 6 pick in the draft despite Rondo already being on the roster. Whether it’s playing with Rondo or taking his place down the road, Smart has a bright future, although he may want to tone down the flopping.
Despite the loss, Smart characterized the night as “good,” according to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. Smart was pleased with the support for him in the crowd, and he told the Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn that the supportive crowd provided motivation for him:
“It amplifies things, you want to bring that energy, you want to keep that energy up,” Smart said of playing at home. “I love it when my family comes to watch because when I was growing up they really weren’t there to watch because they were always busy or couldn’t afford to, so they’re all coming out tonight.”
Smart's strong performance against the Mavs came after an 0-of-7 shooting effort in a loss to the Houston Rockets, which just embodies the rookie's inconsistency at this point in his career. It's natural for rookies to have this problem, but he also had this issue at Oklahoma State, especially on offense.
One of the main problems is a below-average outside shot paired with the fact that Smart seems to rely on it too often. Despite shooting 29.9 percent from three in his final season at Oklahoma State, Smart jacked over five three-pointers per game.
That trend has carried over to the NBA. In the preseason, Smart took 5.5 threes per game and only made 25.0 percent of them. In three regular-season games, he’s 2-of-14 from deep, and those 14 attempts represent two-thirds of his total shot attempts. Unless the jumper becomes significantly better, that’s no way to be efficient.
Smart will have to find a modicum of consistency if he wants to reach his full potential. It’s one thing to be blessed with the physical tools to be successful, but another to put them in action night in and night out. Hopefully we see more nights like Monday moving forward.
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