Detroit Pistons Coach Stan Van Gundy spoke to the media about his new backup point guard Ish Smith, who seems to have found a home in Detroit.
Smith averaged 14.7 points and 7.0 assists in 32.4 minutes for the Sixers last season, but the team didn't have much success ending the season with only 10 total wins.
That doesn't matter to Van Gundy who sees past the disappointment of last season, and plans to give Smith a fresh start, per NBA.com.
It did matter. What you want with all of your backups, one of the things you ask is can those guys start. You can’t look at somebody and say he’s OK as a 16-, 18-minute a game guy because it can quickly become more than that.
The fact he has that experience and did well, yeah, that’s a big thing. I feel like certainly with what would at least appear to be our first four guys off the bench, all of ’em are capable of starting.
Van Gundy also says he's familiar with Smith and already knows what to expect of him based on the words of former teammates along with what he saw.
I knew Ish (from coaching him briefly in Orlando in the 2011-12 season). Reggie Jackson played with him in Oklahoma City. Marcus (Morris) played with him in Phoenix. Both those guys, ‘Best teammate I’ve ever had. There’s a lot to Ish. He brings to the floor great quickness, pushes the ball on the break, gets in the paint, makes plays for other people, really athletic guy.
But the other thing he really brings is great energy to your team – and not just physical energy, mental energy. Every single day, he’s an upbeat, positive guy that people love being around. He makes coming to the gym a better day every day.
We knew all that about him and that played into it. We knew we were losing – at the time, we didn’t know how many, but you knew you were going to lose some veteran guys. So Ish, his intangibles, figures in to that a lot, too.
Van Gundy is certain Smith is the right fit for the team and the locker room. He loves his upbeat attitude and feels it will help lighten the mood during the long season.
He seems to find much value in Smith's character and appreciates what he brings to the basketball court, and at such a bargain, how could he not?
If it wasn't enough to hear it from Stan Van Gundy's own mouth, his actions agreed because the Pistons signed Smith on the first day of free agency.
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