Utah Jazz: Five free agent options at point guard

Marcus Smart

To me, the biggest downside about Marcus Smart this summer will likely be his price tag. Although in a market that is squeezed for cash there’s a good chance he won’t get as much as he’s hoping, he’s still almost certainly in for a raise. Said raise could very well price him out of the Boston Celtics’ range and make him available for a team like Utah to come in.

Smart’s deficiencies are well known. He’s not anywhere close to an elite shooter, in fact quite the opposite. He went just 36.7 percent from the field and 30.1 percent from deep this past season. However, the positives that Smart brings to the table could very well outweigh his weaknesses, especially in terms of his potential fit with the Jazz.

He is an absolute bulldog on defense that would only further Utah’s prowess on that end of the floor. Just imagine him hitting the court alongside the likes of Thabo Sefolosha and Jae Crowder in the second unit. That would be a scary group! Smart’s ability to switch defensively onto several different positions would make him extremely valuable to what the Jazz hope to accomplish in upcoming seasons.

Not only that, but Smart simply finds ways to make his team better by injecting energy and playing with about as much hustle and heart as a player can muster. He always does the little things – fighting for boards, going for loose balls and relentless hustle plays that make a team better. It’s no coincidence that despite his shooting woes, Smart was in the top five on his team in both the regular season and playoffs in plus/minus.

Smart’s skill set certainly would fit Utah’s culture and on-court style. The energy, especially defensively, that he brings would be invaluable. He could be too pricey or perhaps not the ideal target for a team that desperately needs more shooting, but there’s no denying that his pairing with the rest of Utah’s hard-nosed defensive squad is intriguing.