Los Angeles Lakers: Complete 2018 NBA Draft first round grades
. Shooting Guard. Texas Tech. Zhaire Smith. 16. player. 93
The Philadelphia 76ers landed the 16th pick in a trade with the Phoenix Suns. The 76ers traded the No. 10 overall pick, Mikal Bridges, to the Suns in exchange for No. 16 and future first rounder. With the No. 16 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, the 76ers selected Texas Tech shooting guard, Zhaire Smith.
When watching Smith play the first thing that pops out is his athleticism. Smith is a freak athlete, registering some of the highest numbers at the NBA Combine. Just scroll through some highlights from his time at Texas Tech and that athleticism is on full display.
Right now, Smith relies heavily on his athleticism offensively. He is reluctant to shoot despite knocking down 45 percent of his 3-point attempts in college. However, he attempted only 40. Smith is an excellent rebounder for a shooting guard, pulling down 5.0 per game with the Red Raiders.
Defensively, he also gets the job done. He averaged 1.1 steals and 1.1 blocks per game. The blocks are what is really impressive given his position on the court. However, his fit with Philadelphia is questionable.
If he is not going to shoot the ball more, he could clog things up for the 76ers. While he is a much better defender than the wing players that may be leaving in free agency, he isn’t near the same shooter. Spacing is something that the 76ers need, so trading away a shooter in Mikal Bridges for Smith is an odd decision.
At some point, the 76ers have to stop looking into the future and look to improve the team now.