Defense and athleticism are Zhaire Smith’s answers
Not many coaches have a 6-foot-5 wing player take the jumpball to start the game. But not that many players have the unreal vertical athleticism of Texas Tech’s Zhaire Smith.
Smith played power forward quite a bit on both ends of the floor out of necessity for a relatively undersized Red Raider team, but in the NBA, his positions projects more towards a wing. It’s important to look at the skill sets necessary for that position in the NBA, more than analyzing the direct way he contributed last season. Starting as a low-ranked recruit to 19th in the Step Back’s latest big board, he has experienced a swift ascension up draft boards. Credit belongs primarily to Smith’s defensive ability and vertical pop.
Smith’s success percolates from constant high energy. On the offensive glass, he out-hustled and out-leaped opponents on his way to an offensive rebound percentage of 9.5. Smith can explode off the court from point blank allowing scouts to truly check the vertical athleticism box. I would be fairly surprised if his offensive rebounding translates much to the extent it has in college but he is incredibly crafty moving around and over defenders to snatch the board. Although he effectively boxes players out, depending on where he lands in the NBA, his offensive rebounding opportunities will be more limited.
However, Smith’s speed is a contributing factor to his athletic ability as well. His ability to fully rotate and deflect the pass displays some of his north-south and closeout ability. Consistency, like many freshman and players at large, wanes at times but his ability to make smarter decisions with his athleticism slowly increased as the season progressed.
The clip above showcases a matchup against Kenrich Williams, who resembles the type of player he will likely be asked to guard quite often at the next level. Smith has been able to rely on his athleticism his entire career and it has generally worked against weaker competition. That being said, NBA players’ ability to counter will expose Smith if he is undisciplined trying to rely on that athleticism too much. The majority of his on-ball mistakes occur from him trying to simply extend too far or reach too often. Fortunately, a major overhaul to his defensive identity is far from necessary and maturity matched with time in the gym will likely resolve those issues.
An incredible attribute of Smith’s defense is how rarely he fouls. Playing out of position and rim-protecting, it wouldn’t be surprising for him to foul more often. That wasn’t the case here.
Smith was also incredibly undisciplined staying down and not leaving his feet, which also usually increases fouls, but he does an incredible job of forcing opponents into tough shots without drawing calls.
NBA defenses are being forced to stretch further and longer than ever before and help defense is increasingly more vital as a result. Smith’s help defense can be a bit dicey at times, such as in the clip above but overall he discourages the drive with about as positive of a result a coach could ask for. Occasionally, inexperience and lack of dual awareness, potentially a result of over-stimulation, forces him to lose him man, but as the game slows down the defensive breakdowns will decrease.
Poor pick-and-roll defense and the ability to fight through or over screens raises serious red flags for Smith. If you look closely, the big is clearly calling out the coverage and the pick-and-roll being set. They end up switching up but the screener consumes Smith. I selected this example in particular because Brodziansky is far more frail than the bigs Smith will face in the NBA and he still is unable to fight over. If he can’t fix this aspect of his defense almost immediately for draft workouts, it may be worth pulling his name out of the draft to learn from a defensive minded coach at Texas Tech.
The other major critique on defense is his reactive nature in certain instances. He has a tendency to get blown by on drives and this is not because he is unable to keep up. It generally stems from two circumstances — he closes out unaware his man moved or he does a poor job closing off his top foot, forcing the ball handler to drive baseline. Other examples come from being too active or tense so he ends up being a step behind and reacting instead of moving with the drive.
Smith’s offensive tool belt is extremely limited and robotic. He strongly prefers to drive to his right but will occasionally use his left. Once he has determined he is going to the rim or going to shoot, it happens. Going left, he lacks confidence and ends up taking a bad step back as a result.
He does a decent job drawing fouls but lacks control and finishing ability, including in transition and around the rim, with ball security going up being a major issue.
Driving the ball, Smith keeps his head down and has tunnel vision. As a result, poor shots are often generated. Or, when he makes a pass he passes to where the teammate was before the drive, not where they moved. This alone presents a major concern for his overall development as an offensive player.
All that said, when Smith can slow down and look he is able to make some pretty difficult passes through traffic. This aspect alone should present some optimism that he can develop as he slows down a bit.
In the TCU game, he played in his NBA projected 2/3 combo position from a matchup standpoint. Offensively, his speed has shown instances where he can be an effective slasher in an NBA system.
Next: The Step Back's 2018 NBA Draft Big Board: Post-Tournament Edition
Zhaire Smith is incredibly raw but the glimpses of promise scouts are looking for definitely exist. If his stock gains steam during draft workouts and questions such as his shooting ability are answered, he should enter the draft. However, one more year in college could prove incredibly beneficial in the same way it has for Jerome Robinson. This major comparison or question remains if he will develop better or worse than Stanley Johnson.