Name: Joshua Smith DOB: 5/14/1992 (22) School: Georgetown
Height: 6’10 Weight: 350 Projected Position: C
2014-15 Stats (as of 2/16/15):
11.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 0.8 bpg, 1.0 spg, 2.3 tpg (21.8 minutes per game)
64.3 FG%, 65.4 FT%, 65.4 TS%, 64.3 eFG%
26.5 USG%, 15.1 ORB%, 19.6 DREB%, 17.4 TRB%, 13. 9 AST%, 4.6 BLK%
SKILLS & ATHLETIC BREAKDOWN
Offense
Post Offense
With his size and bulk, Smith is an intimidating player in the post, and he can be extremely tough to stop, without fouling, if he gets the ball in the lane. Smith uses his body well to seal off defenders, and it takes a lot of effort for any defender to move him off his spot. He is able to set up on either the left or right block, and he has the ability to make a move over either shoulder. He has very good footwork, for his size, and his shooting touch is very good out to 8 to 10 feet. While he can use either hand to finish around the basket, he is much better with his right hand. Though he does have good footwork, a lot of his moves to the basket often involve just powering his way through defenders, and he has little trouble getting shots off through contact. Smith has developed some nice secondary moves, including a strong up-and-under move. Smith should be a good screener, though he can be slow to get to his spots, and Georgetown hasn’t used him much in pick-and-roll situations, so his inability to open up quickly to the ball doesn’t come into play much. Smith has big, strong hands, but he can be lackadaisical about catching the entry passes, leading to some silly turnovers. The movement created by Georgetown’s offense can lead to a lot of open space, and Smith has much become better at finding open spots in the lane and flashing to the ball. Smith’s lack of effort and conditioning are running themes when discussing his game, but when he is motivated, there aren’t many college defenders who can stop him from getting to the basket.
Ballhandling/Passing
Smith isn’t a very good ballhandler, even at his size, but he smartly limits the how often he puts the ball on the floor. He is good for one or two power dribbles to the basket out of the low post, or a dribble or two to keep the ball moving, but you don’t want him doing much more. Smith has become much better passing out of the post since he’s gotten to Georgetown. He does a good job anticipating the double-team, keeps the ball high, and gets the ball out quickly to an open teammate. He has also improved his vision, not just looking for a perimeter player to dump the ball off to, but seeing weak side cuts to the basket.
Perimeter Offense
Smith doesn’t get many attempts at taking jumpers, you can probably count the amount he has taken in the past few years on just two hands, and realistically, I don’t see much of a benefit to having someone from his size away from the basket. Still, he has decent shooting form, and there should be opportunities for him to at least take some mid-range jumpers at the next level, especially in pick-and-pop situations.
Free Throw Shooting
Free throw shooting is an important area for Smith to put in work, especially with the amount of times he draws fouls. For a skilled player, Smith’s shooting motion isn’t very smooth, especially when he gets to the release; he has a tendency to stop his motion at its peak, and then he releases the shot, making for a very flat shot coming off his hand. As I mentioned, he does a tremendous job drawing contact, getting to the line almost .7 times for every field goal attempt.
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Defense
Post Defense/Help Defense
Smith is a below average to average post defender, but his size allows him to compensate in some ways. He uses a wide, balanced base with his legs and positions himself well between his man and the basket. His footwork is slow, and he needs to improve when defending against both back-to-the-basket and face-up post moves, but his girth still can make post players go much wider than they want to on their move. Smith needs to work on using his lower body better to force his man away from the basket; even just a bit more effort could make a big difference. Smith’s defensive awareness isn’t great, but he can be a good help defender around the basket if he has time to get into position. He needs to work on reacting to penetration, and he needs to stop committing bad fouls, such as reach-ins in the lane. Smith isn’t a very good shot-blocker, but when he is in position, he does a good job holding his ground and extending straight up on the ball. Smith has improved as a pick-and-roll defender, but he can still be too slow getting out to hedge, leaving the space for the ballhandler to create a shot or find an open teammate. When he does get out to hedge, he can be slow to recover to his man.
Rebounding
Smith is doing a much better job rebounding this season, especially on the defensive end. He does a good job tracking missed shots, though he doesn’t react and get into position well. While he is inconsistent looking to box out, his width can make it unnecessary sometimes, and he doesn’t always go strong after the ball. On the offensive end, Smith is much more effective on the offensive end, where he is often close to the basket to begin with, and he shows in interest in going after the miss that he doesn’t always show on the defensive side. Smith is very quick to get to his own missed shots, and he uses his body well to clear space for second, and sometimes, third shot attempts.
Intangibles/Summary
Smith’s journey since he entered UCLA in 2010 has been a long, disjointed one, but he still has a unique size and skill combination which makes him one of the top big men in college basketball. At 350 pounds, he is extremely tough for any defender to stop one-on-one around the basket, but he also has an offensive post skill set, which makes it that much harder. He has good footwork for his size, and very good touch around the basket. He has added to his game since coming to Georgetown in 2013, including becoming a much better passer and a smarter offensive player. Smith’s size also helps him on the defensive end, but it is also a liability. He doesn’t move his feet very well and he can be very slow to react, which affects him both covering his man and as a help defender. No matter how skilled or big Smith is, the issues that will always come up are his conditioning and his effort on the floor. He does seem to be playing for longer stretch this season, when he doesn’t get into foul trouble, but his effort is still inconsistent.
Draft Value: Mid 2nd Round to Undrafted – #40-N/A
Smith will be one of the tougher prospects to gauge because the biggest questions facing him and a team that may be interested will be can they get him into better playing shape, and will he put in the work needed? If this works out, and Smith does what he needs to play at the next level, a team could get a nice back-up big man, especially with his skill on the offensive end, but there is going to be a lot of work to be done before that’s even a possibility. Still, he is the kind of prospect a team with multiple second round picks could take a chance on.
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