Speaking of Jaylen Smith, there may be fans who are not familiar with him. Smith, who is the 10th pick in the first round of the 2020 draft, is 21 years old, 2.08 meters tall and weighs 97kg.
Today, he is really not famous, spent 2 years in the NBA, has neither good personal data nor any hard honors to hand. Left far behind by fellow rookie Edwards and three-goal Ball. At one point, he was also labeled as a parallel cargo, and in his rookie season, he averaged only 2 points and 1.4 boards per game, and his performance at both ends of the attack and defense was very average, full of childishness.
So much so that the Suns also lost confidence in him, announcing early that the team would not execute the team option for the third year of his rookie contract.
A high-ranking rookie, mixed into this look, really makes people sigh.
But in the middle of the season, Jaylen Smith also made a turnaround with the Suns. Plagued by the pandemic and injuries, Ayton McGee and others missing the game, and the Suns were extremely short of people inside, in this case, Monty used the fringe Smith.
Unexpectedly, this launch brought unexpected surprises to the Suns. Between December 28, 2021 and January 7, 2022, Smith scored in double figures in six consecutive games with Paul's help, averaging 15.8 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1 block per game, shooting 55.4%.
With his good personal performance, Smith successfully made a name for himself.
But then with the addition of Biyombo, McGee and Ayton ushered in a comeback, and the Competition inside the Suns suddenly became very fierce. In this case, Smith's playing time and drama have become less and less.
On Feb. 10, the Suns chose to trade him off, sending him to the Pacers.
So how is Smith, who is aiming to tear down the rebuilding, and who has no Paul to feed the bread by his side, how is he doing now? Let's take a look at it today.
After Smith changed teams, he did well. He played the first game of his Pacers career, playing 20.8 minutes, shooting 5 of 7, with 12 points and 3 boards; in the second game, he shot 6 of 10 and had 17 points and 12 rebounds; in the third game, he shot 4 of 9 and had 11 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists.
After coming to Indiana, he played more confidently, was able to eat cake under the basket, and developed three-point shooting ability, averaging 4 three-point shots per game, shooting 2 goals, and shooting 50% from three-point range.
Hopefully, Jaylen Smith will continue to work hard and prove himself after the Pacers.