When he matures... what do we have?

[laved11]

I hear many on both sides of the fence about Josh Smith, saying that he is still growing and maturing and the Hawks will be glad they kept him. My question is: What will a mature Josh Smith look like? So far it has been five years and I want to know what should I and we expect from Smith as he becomes 26, 27, 28 years old? Should we expect an All-Star who scores 25 points a night... is he a tremendous on-the-ball defender that hustles and runs the floor... Will he turn into a low-post presents with a strong move to the basket?

In the five years Smith has been a Hawk, I honestly can't tell one thing he does on a consistent basis. I am not bashing or saying we should get rid of him... all I'm saying is right now, he does a lot of stuff... some good and some bad, but nothing consistent.

What do some of you think he will be in the coming years?

Holla!

[coachx]

Its up to Josh as to whether he wants to mature or not.

If Josh Smith "matures" he will:

1. Stop whining at the refs for every call that does not go his way and play the game by getting back on defense

2. Listen to his coach instead of staring off into space during timeouts when the other 4 guys are paying attention

3. Stop shooting perimeter shots until he learns how to make them (he was the worst jump shooter in the entire NBA last year)

4. He will box people out with regularity as a NBA PF should

5. He will play consistent man post defense and not just bait people into shot block attempts

With maturity his numbers will EXPLODE !

If he does not matue he will be the same player he is today.

For the record, I think he will show BIG signs of maturity this year. I love the reports of him working out with Hawks vet, Steve Smith, at his old highschool.

Edited July 8, 2009 by coachx

[NowYouKnow]

Josh Smith is our basketball Andruw Jones. All world ability in certain aspects, too stubborn to do what it takes to become an all around player. A guy we fear trading because we don't want to see him blow up, but we're probably destined to see him end up being a relative disappointment in comparison to his ability.

[Flight]

When he matures he be kinda like a Lebron type player. This whole season I could tell his handle was getting better. If he works on his shot then I wouldn't mind the perimeter shots as much. When his BB IQ raises dude is gonna be even scarier than he already is.

[Sothron]

I don't remember what site it came from but someone linked it before on this board. I agree with that site's analysis that essentially all Josh has is elite athletic ability and once it starts to decline he will not have anything to fall back on.

[laved11]

When he matures he be kinda like a Lebron type player. This whole season I could tell his handle was getting better. If he works on his shot then I wouldn't mind the perimeter shots as much. When his BB IQ raises dude is gonna be even scarier than he already is.

Not being a downer... but how come it didn't take Lebron 5 years to turn into a productive player? In 5 years, LeBron is the game's best. Can we expect Smith to be among the top five or even a perenniel All-Star?

Holla!

Edited July 8, 2009 by laved11

[NineOhTheRino]

you got a sure 20/10 player

[NineOhTheRino]

Josh Smith is our basketball Andruw Jones. All world ability in certain aspects, too stubborn to do what it takes to become an all around player. A guy we fear trading because we don't want to see him blow up, but we're probably destined to see him end up being a relative disappointment in comparison to his ability.

Yunel Escobar

[JackB1]

Its up to Josh as to whether he wants to mature or not.

If Josh Smith "matures" he will:

1. Stop whining at the refs for every call that does not go his way and play the game by getting back on defense

2. Listen to his coach instead of staring off into space during timeouts when the other 4 guys are paying attention

3. Stop shooting perimeter shots until he learns how to make them (he was the worst jump shooter in the entire NBA last year)

4. He will box people out with regularity as a NBA PF should

5. He will play consistent man post defense and not just bait people into shot block attempts

With maturity his numbers will EXPLODE !

If he does not matue he will be the same player he is today.

For the record, I think he will show BIG signs of maturity this year. I love the reports of him working out with Hawks vet, Steve Smith, at his old highschool.

Ain't gonna happen under Woodson. Also, you can't grow brain matter :)

How can someone with the worst jump shot % in the league continue to take jump shots??? Lack of smarts.

You can't teach that or mature into that.

[Watchman]

I hear many on both sides of the fence about Josh Smith, saying that he is still growing and maturing and the Hawks will be glad they kept him. My question is: What will a mature Josh Smith look like? So far it has been five years and I want to know what should I and we expect from Smith as he becomes 26, 27, 28 years old? Should we expect an All-Star who scores 25 points a night... is he a tremendous on-the-ball defender that hustles and runs the floor... Will he turn into a low-post presents with a strong move to the basket?

In the five years Smith has been a Hawk, I honestly can't tell one thing he does on a consistent basis. I am not bashing or saying we should get rid of him... all I'm saying is right now, he does a lot of stuff... some good and some bad, but nothing consistent.

What do some of you think he will be in the coming years?

Holla!

Here we have a young man with arguably more athletic ability than Dominique Wilkins, but so far in five years has done nothing to even begin to approach Dominique's production level. He has a tremendous vertical leaping ability, but is a mediocre rebounder at best. He is aggravatingly inconsistent. How many more years until he reaches his "potential"?

[ATLSmith]

Also, you can't grow brain matter :)

Okay, you could be joking, but this isn't true.

Sure, the brain devleops at a slower rate as you get older but its always improving and DOES grow. Especilly if you provide it with new experiences and problems to solve.

On topic... If for some reason he develops a jump shot I could see him being like Paul Pierce or Carmelo.

[Ruckus]

Ain't gonna happen under Woodson. Also, you can't grow brain matter :)

How can someone with the worst jump shot % in the league continue to take jump shots??? Lack of smarts.

You can't teach that or mature into that.

I agree and disagree. Agree that Woody might not be right mentor for our young maturing players. But I completely disagree that Josh will not mature into a smarter player. We depended on Josh for offense that we will no longer need. Josh has good playoff experience now, as well as Al and Marvin, and these young players can only get better and smarter. He could even end up developing a shot, who knows. It's happened to bad shooters before and Josh actually does have a decent stroke- just really bad percentage. But my point is that smarts comes with experience as much as anything.

[MaceCase]

I don't remember what site it came from but someone linked it before on this board. I agree with that site's analysis that essentially all Josh has is elite athletic ability and once it starts to decline he will not have anything to fall back on.

You are refereing to the link from http://www.hoopinionblog.com/ 's end of season evaluation of all our team's players. Yea the Smoove eval caused quite the stir here amongst the members.........

[EazyRoc]

If Josh Smith matures, he could be an All-Star for the next 7-9 years.

[BusBoyIsBack]

Top 5 in the entire NBA talent, Bottom 5 in the entire NBA maturity level/Basketball IQ.

It's anybody's guess if Josh Smith will ever truly get it or even come close to it.

As already stated, he needs to accept his role as a POWER Forward and stop trying to pretend he's a Small Forward or even a Power Forward that has range on his shot.

90% of his shot attempts should be near the basket.

Edited July 8, 2009 by BusBoyIsBack

[tomac]

He'll be a more athleltic Antwoine Jamison. I believe that he can average 20pts, 10rb, 4ast, 2blk, and 1.5stl a game. He's honestly not far from that now. I beleive that his jumpshot will eventually come around. It reminds me of karl malone in his early years with the Jazz. he couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, but he worked at it. Josh will eventually be proficient because he actually does have a solid work ethic. His jumper will continue to improve, and so will his decision making.

Just like in any sport, the game eventually slows down and players figure it out. We can't determine when that happens for anyone, but it does. Josh's skill set is the thing that will allow him to maximize his potential. The tools are there, and he'll put it together.

[JackB1]

Josh actually took a step backwards this past year Stats-wise, so I am not sure why people are conviced he's ever going to mature and improve past where he is now?

[DeacKillsaDevil]

Josh Smith is our basketball Andruw Jones. All world ability in certain aspects, too stubborn to do what it takes to become an all around player. A guy we fear trading because we don't want to see him blow up, but we're probably destined to see him end up being a relative disappointment in comparison to his ability.

Great comparison!

[Watchman]

He'll be a more athleltic Antwoine Jamison. I believe that he can average 20pts, 10rb, 4ast, 2blk, and 1.5stl a game. He's honestly not far from that now. I beleive that his jumpshot will eventually come around. It reminds me of karl malone in his early years with the Jazz. he couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, but he worked at it. Josh will eventually be proficient because he actually does have a solid work ethic. His jumper will continue to improve, and so will his decision making.

Just like in any sport, the game eventually slows down and players figure it out. We can't determine when that happens for anyone, but it does. Josh's skill set is the thing that will allow him to maximize his potential. The tools are there, and he'll put it together.

So you think he can improve by 5 ppg, 3 rpg and 2 apg? Based on what? Would he have to play 48 mpg?

[ngc7]

i watched every hawks game the past 2 years and he is getting better. stats are not everything. wait till he adds a couple more post moves to his game and gets a little better at his midrange. he will def be a 20 - 10 guy.

and i got to tell ya. it took me till i was about 27-28 to grow up and stop doing dumb stuff to set myself back. i always had a similar type of attitude . got mad too much when i should just chill, etc, etc... I finally did get it though. just took more time then some. i think smoove will too. hopefully we will notice a change right from the start this year...