With Josh Smith, you take the good with the bad.
It’s a package deal.
Eight years into his career as a Hawk and the basketball player leaves us dropping our jaws in amazement and scratching our heads in frustration. At times, the opposite ends of the spectrum come seconds apart.
The Hawks took a chance on Smith by drafting him in the first round, 17th overall, out of high school in 2004. He ranks among the franchise’s all-time leaders in many statistical categories. What a ride it’s been — from highlight-reel dunks to ill-advised jump shots and plenty in between.
“I don’t think he’s appreciated the way he should be appreciated,” coach Larry Drew said. “I’m not just saying that as his head coach, because he’s one of my players, but there are things that take place out on the basketball floor that when I go back and watch tape I have a whole new appreciation for him.
“Yeah, there are things that he does out there that get me angry, get me scratching my head, too. And he knows it. But I have a whole new appreciation for that kid because of what he brings to the table.”
Smith, 26, is the longest-tenured Hawk. Only three players drafted after him remain: Marvin Williams (2005), Al Horford (2008) and Jeff Teague (2009). The others have come and gone. Statistically, his name is among the franchise’s all-time greats such as Dominique Wilkins, Bob Pettit and Lou Hudson. Smith ranks second in blocks, fourth in defensive rebounds, fifth in steals, eighth in rebounds, ninth in points and field goals made and 10th in games played. Since 1968, only four other players have more double-double performances.
“I think he has matured a great deal,” Drew said. “Are there some things that he still needs to work on? Absolutely. He will be the first to admit that. He has really started to understand the type of player that he can become. He has made tremendous strides in developing. You see a guy, and I’ve said it before, he’s one of the few guys in this league to impact both ends of the floor.”
As the Hawks open their first-round playoff series against the Celtics on Sunday, Smith is coming off a solid regular season. He averaged a career-best in points (18.8) and rebounds (9.6). He has scored 35 fewer total points than last season in 11 fewer games. Smith shouldered much of the burden, especially in the post, when the Hawks lost Horford, their All-Star center, to a torn pectoral muscle 11 games into the season. In the final two regular-season games, Smith drew the defensive assignments on the Clippers’ Blake Griffin and the Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki.
For his part, Smith said he was unaware of his place in the Hawks’ record books.
“I was just trying to play,” Smith said. “Being with this organization as long as I have been, I thought I would be in some categories, but it’s crazy to be able to mentioned in almost all of them.
“God willing, hopefully I’ll stay healthy so I can keep moving up the ladder.”
The Hawks enter their fifth consecutive postseason and there is the possibility it could be the last for Smith in a Hawks uniform. Next season will be the final under his current contract with the Hawks that will pay him $13.2 million. He will become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2013.
Smith asked the Hawks to trade him before this season’s trade deadline in March. If the team can’t alleviate his concerns and re-sign him there is the risk of losing the local product. Smith is from College Park and attended McEachern High before transferring to Oak Hill Academy in Virginia.
Smith was snubbed from the All-Star team again this season — a blow made more severe when Joe Johnson had to pull out with a knee injury. The NBA selected Celtics guard Rajon Rondo, a roommate of Smith’s at Oak Hill, as the replacement.
“I know that is still fueling him to be a better player,” Horford said.
Drew said Smith, who started all 66 games in the lockout-condensed season, has played with knee tendinitis much of this season. Drew is quick to point out that Smith knows, can play and defend every position.
While there are bad shots or passes, Drew said Smith erases more mistakes by the Hawks than he commits. It’s a luxury — albeit a frustrating one at times.
While his numbers have been impressive, Smith’s demeanor can be bothersome for some. No one can scowl like Smith after being called for a foul. That might account for the reason he is often under-appreciated — in Atlanta and around the NBA.
“People view him in different ways,” Drew said. “I’m sure during the course of the game something might happen that people don’t like. He has to get better with officials. That people don’t like. Certainly, one thing I do know, talking about the All-Star [snub], it wasn’t his numbers the reason why he didn’t make it. He certainly had the numbers.
“You can still sense some things that people don’t like about him. The one thing I do know, you can ask anybody around the league, when he’s playing at a high level, when he’s competing, he’s as good as anyone in this league.”
