J.R. Smith And Denver Are Clashing
J.R. Smith (photo. Mark Mann)
So you think you’re going to end up in a new city with a new team next year? So what? That happens all the time with dozens of players and it happens all over the country. But if you’re a Nuggets fan, you have to ask yourself, why J.R.?
Why now and why like this? Of course, if J.R. Smith wasn’t J.R. Smith, people probably wouldn’t care. Look at his numbers: in the playoffs, he’s getting a dozen minutes a game and contributing 5.5 points on 29 percent from the field. If this wasn’t the mercurial Smith we were talking about, no one would care. No one should care with those numbers. Now with starting two guard Arron Afflalo set to return in Game 3, Smith may not see the floor at all.
There are going to be fans, just as I noticed on Twitter during Game 2, that will say Smith isn’t getting enough minutes. He’s not getting enough touches for someone so talented. They must’ve missed Denver coach George Karl’s postgame rant, when he basically said that whenever Smith was in the game, the Nuggets sucked.
The Denver Post’s Benjamin Hochman says the back and forth between player and coach has been going on for a few days.
But the reality is, after losing the first two games at Oklahoma City, the Nuggets “didn’t have a pulse” in Thursday’s team meeting, according to J.R. Smith, the mercurial guard who admitted there is “a strong possibility” he will sign with a new team this summer.
The talented reserve guard, routinely labeled a “good-bad player” by coach George Karl, was pretty much just bad in Game 2, shooting 1-for-6 in about seven minutes, while logging a minus-17 in plus-minus rating. This came after he had nine points and a minus-11 in Game 1.
Karl was told Thursday that if Smith isn’t clicking on the court right away, he feels the coach won’t give him a second chance.
“He gives us minus-17 in six minutes. Those guys shouldn’t get second chances,” Karl said in response. “I’m not saying it was all his fault, I’m just saying — when that happens, I’ve got to make a change. . . .
“I hope he’s ready to play on Saturday (in Game 3) and will be in a situation to bounce back.”
Smith didn’t talk to reporters after Wednesday’s Game 2 loss in Oklahoma City. But he opened up Thursday, after the team meeting, which he described as “just frustration, just really didn’t have any life in there. No one was really into it.”
After Game 2, Karl said once Smith got in the game, the “floodgates opened.” Asked Thursday about the statement, Smith said: “I don’t read the quotes anymore. I don’t even want to get into that. If he asks me to play, I’ll play. If not, I won’t. It’s kind of getting ridiculous.”
Smith will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, and if there was ever a time he was going to cash in, it would be now. At 25 years old, this might be his one opportunity to get a big deal. But Smith hit his plateau about three years ago. Every team in the league knows what they are bidding on. He’s a seventh man who can give you 12-15 points off the bench, but will take a lot of bad shots and has a fleeting defensive focus. You can dismiss the word “potential” with Smith. This is what he is.
Since he came to Denver in 2006, Smith is in the top 30 in the entire league (of players who played more than a few games) in points per 48 minutes (26.6). He’s one of the most lethal streak shooters in the NBA. But how often does that happen? It’s obviously not enough for him to get minutes in the playoffs this year.
Smith believes he’ll be somewhere else next season and he’s probably right. But Denver fans must be wondering why’d he have to speak up now with his team down 0-2 and in the midst of one of the feel-good stories of the NBA’s second half? The timing isn’t great.
Where should J.R. Smith be playing next season?
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April 22nd, 2011 at 5:01 pm
Michorizo says:
He still plays with Denver?
April 22nd, 2011 at 5:11 pm
TIP says:
Good player…that’s all.
April 22nd, 2011 at 5:38 pm
Dima says:
I think a GS uniform would be a good look for J.R.
April 22nd, 2011 at 5:44 pm
dapro says:
I’m flip-flopping on this kid, he could be dangerous on the Bulls next year IF he can show any sign of discipline. He gives them another scorer and secondary ball handler which is what they need more than anything else right now.
April 22nd, 2011 at 6:40 pm
LakeShow84 says:
Needs a change of scenery..
Its damn near IMPOSSIBLE to play when ur coach declares you an idiot and a cancer to your team..
Karl bashes the kid way too much in the media.. He always has.. Me, us, fans can hate the kid and call him a douche but your coach should never do that so much..
Hes a douche to me who doesnt understand basketball.. he has a low IQ and doesnt have interest in playing good fundamental D..
April 22nd, 2011 at 6:53 pm
Me says:
funny you said that dapro.
before i scrolled down to the comments, i was thinking “as long as he doesn’t go to the bulls.”
He’d make them worse. only thing worse than them having a defensive liability at the 2 spot is having a defensive liability who’s a jacker at the 2.
I still say OJ Mayo is perfect for the bulls. Less unpredictable, just as good a shooter, marginally better defensively, but a way, waaaay smarter player.
April 22nd, 2011 at 7:14 pm
McSimon says:
No way Bulls would take him. No way.
Afflalo is target for summer.
April 22nd, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Flying_Aussie_Dutchman_PistonFan says:
Eeek @Me..
OJ on the Bulls? Thats just crazy SCARY! Possible lineup of Rose, Mayo, Deng, Booze, Noah? :O
April 22nd, 2011 at 8:23 pm
hahns says:
wow hes still only 25???? feels like hes been in the league for a while. would be interesting to see him on the mavs
April 22nd, 2011 at 9:27 pm
Chaos says:
Damn is he only 25….he came out of high school right? he needs to go to a coach who can reign him in a cultivate him. Karl can’t do that with this dude, same i think can be said with Melo. He cant really deal with knuckleheads. JR needs to go to a team that can reach out to him. Coming outta high school he still has that high school mnetality as far as basketball IQ. Thibodeau, Rivers, Popovich, and maybe Jackson could reach him
April 22nd, 2011 at 9:51 pm
Big Island says:
Let him go to the Knicks with Melo and Amare. NY fans wold crap themselves and the team would still suck.
Just stay away from him, it isn’t worth the trouble.
April 22nd, 2011 at 10:51 pm
NBA'S ADVOCATE says:
He should go to CHARLOTTE or back to NEW ORLEANS cause they’re in desperate need of a SCORER that can help CHRIS PAUL.
April 23rd, 2011 at 2:53 am
smoove chips says:
He should go to a team that gives him a green light to shoot, maybe he can get some kinda rythm going like michael beasley’s situation in minny OR a team that’ll have him in regular rotation..
expecting him to come of the bench for 8 minutes and consistently give you buckets on some ginobili-type shyt is the stupidest gamble ever.in game,in rythm,in longer stretches JR smith gets buckets.
April 23rd, 2011 at 2:58 am
Talented says:
Possible options:
1.New Jersey
2.Utah
3.Golden State (except between him and Monta there’s gon b more shots taken then a free clinic)
4.New York(JR in a D’antoni system???)
5.Sacramento
6.Chicago?
..and there’s always Minnesota.
April 23rd, 2011 at 3:03 am
smoove chips says:
And for the record,if i had the roster George karl has right now I’d play it exactly like he has and so would 90% of ballers here.
Gimme Afflalo and i know what i’m getting especially when the stakes are higher.He is simply in the wrong place right now for what he brings to the table.Either he changes(doubtful) or things around him will.Either way a change is the only natural progression,anything else is this..conflict.
April 23rd, 2011 at 4:44 am
iCARNACKi says:
Smith and Karl (Sounds like a lawyer firm) have never seen eye to eye and have never been a good fit.
Everyone thought Jamal Crawford was just a chucker and would never settle down but he did in ATL, so I think its unfair to completely write JR off.
Depending on: Coach, scheme and team then yeah I definitely would like JR Smith on my team.
April 23rd, 2011 at 5:52 am
Soopa says:
Afflalo may never score 50 or 40 point. But he is in every way a better player then Smith. Ill go as far as say Afflalo is one of THE most underrated players in the L right now. Im rooting for OKC and im glad he isnt a part of the series this far.
Wanna bet Smith ends up with the Cavs or the Wolves with a nice contract?
April 23rd, 2011 at 8:20 am
mark says:
As a Nj Nets fan I hope he lands in NY or Boston .. or really any team other than NJ.. I just don’t like him score first do any thing else second mentality. My team is bad enough with out that kind of headache.
April 23rd, 2011 at 10:13 am
100K says:
Smith is a bonehead. I do think he would do well under the Bulls, because he can give them a dynamic second scorer and a secondary ball handler. Thibbs would challenge him and hold him accountable and they already have a system.
April 23rd, 2011 at 9:40 pm
IDOT says:
I would like to see JR go back to the Hornets. Him and CP3 are close friends and they would be a deadly backcourt in the league.
April 24th, 2011 at 3:08 pm
K Dizzle says:
Bulls would be even more ridiculous with Afflalo…
April 25th, 2011 at 8:31 am
porkpiehat says:
I really LOVE all the RANDOM CAPS by poster number TWELVE.