Tag: dennis smith jr

Nets sign Dennis Smith Jr.

The Brooklyn Nets have signed free agent guard Dennis Smith Jr.

Smith Jr. (6’2″, 205) spent the 2022-23 season with the Charlotte Hornets, appearing in 54 games (15 starts) and recording averages of 8.8 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.8 assists and a career-high 1.4 steals in 25.7 minutes per game. Smith Jr. ranked third in the league in steals per game among players to play 26.0 or fewer minutes per game, trailing only Washington’s Delon Wright (1.8 steals in 24.4 minutes per game) and Chicago’s Alex Caruso (1.5 steals in 23.5 minutes per game). Charlotte’s defense improved by 10.7 points per 100 possessions with Smith Jr. on the court, and his on/off ‘defensive impact’ ranked as the second-best in the league among players to log at least 1,000 minutes. Smith Jr. also posted a career-best 3.18 assist-to-turnover ratio in his lone season with the Hornets.

In six seasons split between Charlotte, Portland (2021-22), Detroit (2021), New York (2019-21) and Dallas (2017-19), the 25-year-old has registered averages of 10.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 24.2 minutes per contest across 270 games (150 starts).

He earned NBA All-Rookie Second Team honors with the Mavericks in 2017-18 after averaging 15.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 1.0 steals in 29.7 minutes per game over 69 games (all starts).

Smith Jr. was selected with the ninth overall pick in the first round of the 2017 NBA Draft by Dallas after spending one year (2016-17) at North Carolina State University, where the Fayetteville, N.C., native secured ACC Freshman of the Year and All-ACC Second Team honors in his lone season with the Wolfpack.

Trail Blazers guard Dennis Smith Jr. out with elbow injury

Portland Trail Blazers guard Dennis Smith Jr. has been diagnosed with a high-grade partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, per the results of an MRI.

The injury occurred in practice on Friday, February 11.

Smith will be reevaluated in three to four weeks.

In 37 games (four starts) this season, Smith has averaged 5.6 points (41.8% FG, 22.2% 3-PT, 65.6% FT), 2.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.22 steals.

Dennis Smith Jr. happy for fresh start with Pistons

Sometimes, players make no secret of being happy about a change of scenery. Such is the case with former Knicks guard Dennis Smith Jr., who is now a Detroit Piston. Via the NY Post:

Dennis Smith Jr. said he was “smiling all day’’ after hearing on Sunday he was being traded from the Knicks to the Pistons for Derrick Rose.

At the time, Smith, a key acquisition in the Kristaps Porzingis trade, was in the G-League’s bubble in training camp for the Westchester Knicks — upon his request.

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau had banished him from the rotation after an early season quad injury, and Smith, 23, knew his chances of getting back weren’t good.

“I was super excited,’’ Smith said in his introductory Zoom call Wednesday after his first practice. “I was down in the ‘G’ getting ready to have our first scrimmage. I heard the news. I was just smiling all day. I couldn’t really sleep that night. I was looking at it as an opportunity and a fresh start and make the most out of it.”

The Pistons were the talk of the NBA yesterday, beating the Nets, who were without Kevin Durant but, on paper, certainly looked like the favorite. Smith didn’t play, but could make his Pistons debut Thursday in Detroit against the Pacers.

Pistons trade Derrick Rose to Knicks for Dennis Smith Jr. and draft pick

The New York Knicks have acquired guard Derrick Rose in a trade with the Detroit Pistons for guard Dennis Smith Jr. and a 2021 second round draft pick (via Charlotte).

Rose, 6-3, 200-pounds, has appeared in 611 NBA games (504 starts) recording 18.7 points, 5.6 assists and 3.4 rebounds over 12 seasons with Chicago, New York, Cleveland, Minnesota and Detroit. In 15 games with Detroit this season, he is averaging 14.2 points, 4.2 assists and 1.9 rebounds over 22.8 minutes.

The Chicago-native returns to New York, where he previously spent one season with the Knicks, after being acquired from Chicago via trade on Jun. 22, 2016. He averaged 18.0 points, 4.4 assists and 3.8 rebounds over 32.5 minutes in 64 games (all starts) as a Knick.

Career highlights for the first-overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft include: 2011 NBA MVP; 2009 NBA Rookie of the Year; three consecutive NBA All-Star selections (2010, 2011, 2012); 2009 NBA All-Rookie Team; two-time Eastern Conference Player of the Month; five-time Eastern Conference Player of the Week and three-time Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month.

Smith Jr., 6-2, 205, was the ninth overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks and went to New York as part of the Kristaps Porzingis trade on January 31, 2019. In 159 career games (122 starts), the 23-year-old has averaged 12.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.1 steals with Dallas and New York. In his rookie season, he averaged a career-high 15.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 1.0 steals and was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2017-18. He was also selected to play in the 2018 Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles, CA.

“We welcome Dennis Smith Jr. to the Pistons family. Adding another young player who was a high draft pick alongside a draft asset advances our goals in building for the future,” said Troy Weaver, Detroit Pistons General Manager. “We thank Derrick Rose for his contributions on and off the court during his time as a Piston and wish him and his family well as they move forward.”

A native of Fayetteville, NC, Smith Jr. played one collegiate season at North Carolina State University where he was named ACC Freshman of the Year after averaging a school-freshman record 18.1 points and 6.2 assists per game. He also garnered All -ACC Second Team honors.