After losing Louisville’s all time leader in steals Peyton Siva to graduation, and center Gorgui Dieng as an early entry to the NBA Draft, future Hall of Fame coach rick Pitino has to be thrilled to hear that his leading scorer from last season, junior Russ Smith, will be returning for his senior season next fall.
Bolstered by 6 returning players, Final Four MOP Luke Hancock, Chane Behanan, and Wayne Blackshear, along with Smith from last season’s NCAA Championship team, the Cardinals now should begin the season as a pre-season Top 10 team with at least a fighting chance at repeating as national champions.
Smith had been undecided about returning or declaring for the 2013 NBA Draft, but ultimately made the right choice after getting feedback that he was only regarded as a late 1st or early 2nd Round selection in most Mock Drafts.
Part of the problem is that the barely 6 foot tall and 165lb Smith is drastically undersized and slender at his natural shooting guard position at the next level. Returning for his senior campaign should help him develop more improved passing skills and add some much needed bulk to improve his stock for next year.
There’s no denying that “Russdiculous” already has the heart, handle, and offensive capabilities to play in the NBA but can he defend the bigger guards at the next level?
As a best case scenario, some see him as a poor man’s Allen Iverson because of his blazing speed with the basketball and innate scoring and daring driving abilities to get to the basket. A more realistic projection would be as a sparkplug off the bench in a 6th man role.
Those skills potentially make Smith a prohibitive favorite, along with Oklahoma State’s Marcus Smart, Creighton’s Doug McDermott, Ohio State’s Aaron Craft, and Michigan’s Tim Hardaway Jr for next season’s Wooden Award given annually to the nation’s best player along with Pre-Season All American status.
Time will tel if “Russdiculous” can improve upon his 18.9 ppg average from last season and earn some guaranteed money as a legit 1st Round NBA selection in 2014…
Louisville’s Russ Smith “Russdiculous” Mix:
Allen Moll has been a lifelong NBA and NCAA College Basketball fan who watches and studies games religiously, and coaches youth basketball in his native Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania. Allen has also provided content to Bleacherreport.com, Upperdeckblog.com, Cleveland.com, CSN Philly.com, Buckets Magazine, in addition to being a tenured NBA and NCAA columnist for TheHoopDoctors.com.
