Dennis Smith Jr. (43 views)

[Druce]

Dennis Smith Jr.
PG
6'2
205
20
NC State


Smith is a nightmare in the open court, changing gears powerfully and being absolutely fearless slashing right to the front of the rim, where he can finish emphatically above the rim, or acrobatically off the glass. He has an excellent first step from a stand-still as well, getting low to the ground, and will often split ball-screens impressively, with a tight handle, excellent footwork, and the ability to take contact at the rim. Smith wasn't especially efficient from the field (50% 2P%), but made up for that at the college level with his ability to get to the free throw line at a strong clip, a product of his aggressiveness with the ball, and willingness to drive into the teeth of the defense to draw fouls. In the half-court, Smith shows promise with his first step, array of fancy ball-handling maneuvers, and an innate ability to operate at different speeds. He wasn't in an ideal situation at N.C. State, being surrounded by three non-shooters almost at all times, in traditional two-big men lineups that clogged the paint and made his team easy to game-plan against. Nevertheless, he posted a solid 6.8 assists per-40 pace adjusted, the fourth best rate in our Top-100, as he is capable of creating space, surveying the floor and passing the ball with either hand out of pick and roll situations, sometimes in very impressive fashion. N.C. State's offense didn't look very smooth with him at the helm, as he can be a bit predictable at times with his approach, not always being a willing passer, and killing his dribble unnecessarily too frequently, leading to careless turnovers.

While Smith has clearly progressed with his jumper, getting red-hot at times and making a barrage of difficult attempts, there are still question marks about this part of his game, as he's only converted 32% of his career 349 attempts. He is a very jump-reliant shooter, often holding onto the ball too long, and shooting on his way down. He connected on just 71% of his free attempts this season, and is a career 72% from the charity stripe (511 attempts). Scouts also have question marks about Smith's defense, specifically the role he played in N.C. State ranking dead last in the ACC in this category. There's no doubt that Smith has the physical tools to be very good on this end of the floor if he wants to be, with his strong frame, quick feet, and solid anticipation skills that allowed him to get in the passing lanes frequently. He'll show you flashes of that at times, heating up the ball impressively, fighting over screens, and walling off penetration, but would never really sustain this for more than a few seconds at a time, relaxing in his stance as soon as the ball was swung the other way.