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BPA won out for the 8th spot in the Liberty Ballers Community NBA Draft Big Board, as Marcus Smart took home 67% of the vote. Smart's a guy I've been thinking about a lot recently -- he's certainly not the ideal fit to share a backcourt with Michael Carter-Williams, but I don't know that I've given him enough credit for his athleticism and defense. His shot is ugly and potentially irreparable, but maybe that's not quite as big a deal as I thought.
Consider Victor Oladipo. He shot a putrid 18-74 (24.3%) from beyond the arc his first two seasons at Indiana. As a junior, he went 30-68 (44.1%) and jumpshooting became a strength on his draft card. In his first year with the Magic, playing out of position, VO shot 32.7% on threes. His form has always looked better than Smart's but after two years at Oklahoma State, Smart shot 29.5% from deep on far more attempts. Playing off the ball with the Sixers, maybe Smart could get a few cleaner looks and get those numbers up.
Also, Smart is a fairly solid free throw shooter at 75%, better than Oladipo was in school. You'd certainly want a more traditionally great shooter next to MCW at the 2, but the idea that Oladipo's shooting was a strength coming into the draft a year older and Smart's is a deterrent may be too simplistic. If he's around at #10, I don't know that I'd be able to pass him up.
Now we add another polarizing prospect in Zach LaVine to the voting for the 9th spot in the Sixers-centered big board. I'm not a LaVine supporter, I don't think jumping=upside, and find the idea that LaVine is a better fit than Gary Harris for what the Sixers are trying to do pretty illogical. But if you like him, take your defense to the comments and feel free to bark about who should be the next guy added to the voting.