2018 NBA Mock Draft: Enter the madness
41. . G/F. Texas Tech. Zhaire Smith. 29. player
In a narrow victory over annual tournament scare-giver Stephen F. Austin, Smith showed how his little bit of everything brand of basketball can be helpful to teams in any context.
Smith nearly posted a double-double, as he continues to wreak havoc against teams that have no athletic answer for him. The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor noted how the Red Raiders use Smith as a pick-and-roll screener in the half court on occasion, and the real reason that’s crazy is because it’s so out of place to mix and match roles like that in the college game, but also because it shows Smith’s flexibility.
The freshman may be the best wing athlete in the country, but he combines that physical freakishness with an understanding of how to use it that many lesser athletes do not even have. He will be able to help an NBA team by doing the little energy things that make young players so valuable, but as he’s shown in Lubbock, he can fit into a team context with talent around him.
The Warriors value all of those things, and need a little spark of athleticism alongside Jordan Bell as Andre Iguodala and Draymond Green age.