Former Oklahoma State Cowboys’ point guard Marcus Smart will be one of the top-10 picks in the 2014 NBA Draft.
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He could go as high as four if Australian point guard Dante Exum is off of the board or the Orlando Magic, who hold the fourth-overall pick, simply decide to go with Smart, who they are very high on. He will also be in play for the Utah Jazz, Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, who hold picks five through seven.
Smart was in Boston to work out for the Celtics on Friday and was asked if he would mind being drafted by a Celtics team that already has an established point guard in Rajon Rondo.
“Not at all,” Smart said via Baxter Holmes of The Boston Globe. “Rondo is one of the greatest point guards to ever play this game. If I’m fortunate enough and Boston picks me, and that means I have to sit on the bench and play behind Rondo, that’s an honor, to learn from one of the greatest point guards of that position, especially me playing the point guard position.”
The Celtics clearly feel the same way.
“I think that clearly he’s got a way about him that people follow,” said [Celtics head coach Brad] Stevens, who noted Smart’s shooting and physicality in the workout. “He is a very tough guy and he competed the whole time. My expectations for him were high from that regard, but he certainly met them. He’s going to be a good player, too.”
Smart is ranked as the sixth-best prospect in the draft. He averaged 18.0 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game last season and shot 42.2% from the field, 29.9% from beyond the arc and 72.8% from the charity stripe. Smart measured in at 6’3.25 and 227 lbs. with a wingspan of 6’9.25.