Freakin ESPN

[Soonerman]

I'm not saying he's not a good player but the hype was there before his performance at the college level warranted it (and that hype helped him earn those honors, to boot -- especially the POY award).

Not every McD AA gets that kind of hype -- not by a mile.

I've cited this example more than once, but I'll keep bringing it up as long as OU fans (I expect it from aggies) keep claiming that Smart's not been over-hyped: Last season, in the third conference game of Smart's career, in a game OU led from wire to wire -- a game in which the then-11-4 aggies never seriously threatened and in which Smart, in one of his worst outings of the year, was only the fourth leading scorer on his own team, ESPN (I think that's who did the telecast) ran a Smart highlight reel with a couple of minutes left in the game and OU up by double digits.

And earlier in the game, one of the announcers excused Smart's poor play by saying he was so darned good that he got bored sometimes and lost his focus -- this in a Bedlam matchup in Norman.

You think every McD AA gets that kind of treatment, especially 15 games into his career? Of course they don't.

His freshman season matched up remarkably closely with Blake Griffin's, but BG wasn't even in the conversation for POY as a freshman. Why? Because he wasn't hyped NEARLY as much as Smart. And of course, Blake's sophomore campaign puts Smart's to shame. Blake's a player who earned his acclaim, and the hype didn't get hot and heavy until he proved deserving of it. That's not true of Smart.

Smart's had a good career, and his flopping (and recent attitude troubles) aside, I'd have been very happy to have him at OU (I don't hesitate to say he'd have been better off at OU -- he'd have progressed more as a player and wouldn't have regressed as a person).

But he is so far from being God's Gift to Hoops, it's not even funny, but that's how the national media has been touting him since the opening tip last season.

That's a lot of words for a player who plays for a school other than OU and who can't control *most* of the media hype that surrounds him.

You shouldn't let it get to you as much as it obviously does.

 

[DenverSooner]

It won't. It'll die down when Smart leaves for the NBA, but anytime he flops in the NBA, you can expect multiple threads on it. It's just a reality we now face here on OUhoops.com.

I doubt we will see much about Smart when he goes to the NBA. We don't even see much about Blake Griffin now that he is in the NBA.

 

[thebigabd]

I doubt we will see much about Smart when he goes to the NBA. We don't even see much about Blake Griffin now that he is in the NBA.

Hopefully Orlando gets him. They would still need 2 more pieces though.

PG: Marcus Smart
SG: Victor Oladipo
SF: ?
PF: ?
C: Nikola Vucevic

 

[152219]

Hopefully Orlando gets him. They would still need 2 more pieces though.

PG: Marcus Smart
SG: Victor Oladipo
SF: ?
PF: ?
C: Nikola Vucevic

Absolutely awful shooting backcourt if Smart goes to Orlando

 

[steverocks35]

Smart gets a lot of steals because he gambles constantly on defense, he won't be able to get away with that in the NBA.

 

[TheGimper]

Hopefully Orlando gets him. They would still need 2 more pieces though.

PG: Marcus Smart
SG: Victor Oladipo
SF: ?
PF: ?
C: Nikola Vucevic

I'd rather Orlando get Dante Exum. But I'd also Orlando draft Tyler Neal with their lottery pick instead of drafting Smart.

Also, the forward roles for Orlando are filled out by Tobias Harris and Mo Harkless. With Afflalo getting time at the 3 when Oladipo plays 2 and Nelson the 1.

 

[skyvue]

That's a lot of words for a player who plays for a school other than OU and who can't control *most* of the media hype that surrounds him.

You shouldn't let it get to you as much as it obviously does.

I'm a fast typist.

And I never said it was Smart's fault he gets so much hype. No college player has control over that. What a weird straw man argument to throw out there.

As for my letting it "get to me" -- I've never started a Smart thread, on this board or anywhere else.

sounds like your beef should be with the announcers and ESPN.

Who else would it be with? I have nothing against Smart and he's obviously a good player. I've never said otherwise. But he's not remotely as talented as the national media has promoted him as being.

That was due to Michael Beasley...dude averaged 26 and 12, his numbers were asinine. Points and rebounds were the second and third best totals in NCAA freshman history, all while shooting mid 50's percentage-wise.

Exactly. There was a guy who earned the hype he received as a freshman. But even without Beasley, BG wouldn't have been considered for conference POY honors his freshman season, nor should he have been.

 

[SoonerBounce13]

Hopefully Orlando gets him. They would still need 2 more pieces though.

PG: Marcus Smart
SG: Victor Oladipo
SF: ?
PF: ?
C: Nikola Vucevic

lol

 

[Soonerman]

I doubt we will see much about Smart when he goes to the NBA. We don't even see much about Blake Griffin now that he is in the NBA.

Being slightly facetious, but I'm not sure Blake got even this much attention when he was in school on this board that Smart gets...

 

[BoulderSooner]

Hopefully Orlando gets him. They would still need 2 more pieces though.

PG: Marcus Smart
SG: Victor Oladipo
SF: ?
PF: ?
C: Nikola Vucevic

smart is not going in the top 5 .. and it is looking more and more like he is not going in the top 10

 

[Soonerman]

I'm a fast typist.

And I never said it was Smart's fault he gets so much hype. No college player has control over that. What a weird straw man argument to throw out there.

As for my letting it "get to me" -- I've never started a Smart thread, on this board or anywhere else.

Your impassioned responses about Smart on this thread and others suggest otherwise about it getting to you. You are clearly uncomfortable with the amount of attention he gets from the media. Hence me suggesting that you shouldn't let it get to you so badly. My outlook is that OSU will blow up in spectacular fashion either in the NCAA's or not even make it all together, and we can all join hands and laugh at them as the spotlight will be on them because of Smart. Sounds like a win-win to me.

Props for not starting a Smart thread though. I hope it continues!

 

[DenverSooner]

Hopefully Orlando gets him. They would still need 2 more pieces though.

PG: Marcus Smart
SG: Victor Oladipo
SF: ?
PF: ?
C: Nikola Vucevic

Do you think Smart is a starting NBA pg? I don't follow the NBA very much but I don't see him in the same category as Tony Parker, Chris Paul, or Russell Westbrook. I get those are pretty big names but I don't have the knowledge to name 20+ NBA starting pgs.

 

[campbest]

Exactly. There was a guy who earned the hype he received as a freshman. But even without Beasley, BG wouldn't have been considered for conference POY honors his freshman season, nor should he have been.

There was only one unanimous first-team all selection and that was Beasley. The other members, including Blake, all had people who left them off their ballot. Therefore, he would have definitely been considered.

 

[DenverSooner]

How much hype did Kevin Durant get?

 

[steverocks35]

How much hype did Kevin Durant get?

Quite a bit, but even he was overshadowed by Greg Oden and the other players on that Ohio State team. Nothing I've ever seen compares to the Marcus Smart hype machine.

 

[skyvue]

Your impassioned responses about Smart on this thread and others suggest otherwise about it getting to you. You are clearly uncomfortable with the amount of attention he gets from the media. Hence me suggesting that you shouldn't let it get to you so badly.

I have my opinions like anyone else, and yeah, after nearly two seasons of Smart hype, I've more than had my fill (frankly, I don't see how any fan who's not an aggie isn't sick to death of it).

But it's not "getting to me." Just expressing an opinion. I don't give Smart a first thought, much less a second one, when I'm not on this board or watching a game.

 

[JDSooners]

Darn, just a Smart conversation, I thought this was gonna be about Mushburger saying OU was getting blown out of the gym like Texas when the score was 6-2 in the KU game

Think the Smart hype needs to stop until say a Big 12 championship game, OSU playing in the Sweet 16, or the NIT championship.
That team has done nothing lately to earn the praise.

 

[WTSooner]

Do you think Smart is a starting NBA pg? I don't follow the NBA very much but I don't see him in the same category as Tony Parker, Chris Paul, or Russell Westbrook. I get those are pretty big names but I don't have the knowledge to name 20+ NBA starting pgs.

Today, there is no way Smart is in that category. Doesn't mean he isn't an NBA starting caliber pg though.

I think Smart definitely has a place in the NBA. I'm just not sure where it is. He is never going to be the best player, or probably even 2nd best player on a good NBA team. But if you put him on the floor with the right scorers, and give him time to mature, I think he can certainly be serviceable. And who knows, maybe NBA coaching can improve his shooting some. He certainly shows signs of being able to knock down shots.