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It was certainly inevitable, but Ish Smith's tenure in Philadelphia has officially come to an end. Smith inked a non-guaranteed deal with the Washington Wizards, Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post reported.
The #Wizards have signed Ish Smith and Toure' Murry to non-guaranteed deals with training camp invites.
— Jorge Castillo (@jorgeccastillo) September 8, 2015
This will be Smith's eighth NBA team in just six seasons. He latched on with the Houston as an un-drafted free agent out of Wake Forest in 2010, and made pit stops in Memphis, Golden State, Orlando, Milwaukee, Phoenix, and Oklahoma City before joining Philadelphia in February.
He played in 25 games with the Sixers, averaging 12.0 points and 6.1 assists in a career-high 27.1 minutes per game. All things considered, Smith played really well, and was a stabilizing presence to a position that had been a revolving door since Michael Carter-Williams departure. Nerlens Noel even went as far as to call him the first "true point guard" he's ever played with, which is quite the endorsement.
But as the summer rolled around, it seemed clear Philadelphia was set to head in a different direction. They added T.J. McConnell, Pierre Jackson, and Scottie Wilbekin all during the span of a couple weeks, unofficially shutting the door on a reunion between Smith and the Sixers.
It's a little surprising he walked considering both Smith's price tag and his ability to gel with Noel, but maybe Philadelphia thought there wasn't much room for improvement in a 27-year-old who struggles to shoot. Jackson, Wilbekin, and newly signed Kendall Marshall are all under 25 with a decent shooting foundation.
If Philadelphia felt that the three aforementioned point guards were more likely to be a part of the long-term solution then I would tend to agree, but right now Philadelphia doesn't have anyone who can replace Smith's passing abilities (keep in mind Marshall won't be ready to start the season) or his chemistry with their most valuable player.