Is Terry Rozier Making Marcus Smart Expendable?

Is Terry Rozier threatening to take Marcus Smart’s future role on the Boston Celtics?

Everything the Boston Celtics have done is indicating that they want Marcus Smart to be a part of their future. They have given him a massive role since his rookie season, and they have made it clear how important the plays he makes are to the team.

Some uncertainty creeped up after the Celtics did not sign him to an extension, meaning there is a chance that he will be parting ways with the team next season.

The big dilemma is that Smart does everything so phenomenally, except shoot. If Smart figured out the shooting it would be a no brainer to keep him and the Celtics would have no problem spending the money.

If, however, Smart does not develop that outside shot ,then he may have to worry about one of the guards behind him becoming more important to their future plans.

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He has a long ways to go before he can establish anywhere near the same level of trust, but Terry Rozier is becoming the kind of player that could have that two way impact for the Celtics.

He will never have quite the same defensive versatility of Smart. Smart is the most dynamic defensive guard in the NBA, who is battled tested guarding literally every single position on the court.

Smart has the kind of defense that no individual would be able to replace, and certainly not Rozier. That being said, Rozier is proving to be a play maker on that end. He has all the rebounding ability you could imagine, and has a similar knack for making the big effort plays in critical situations.

Rozier is a constant playmaker when he is on the court, and Rozier may be the closest thing the Celtics could ever get to replacing those hustle plays with Smart.

Rozier has some of that defensive potential, while appearing to be more polished on offense. Smart is definitely a better distributor, but Rozier is a strong instigator, and could quickly become a more trusted finisher.

A lot could depend on exactly what the Celtics believe they need, but if they believe that Smart is going to cost too much money to bring back, then they have an alternative in Rozier that will present a more balanced option.

Rozier has along ways to go before proving that he can sustain his level of play. that being said, Rozier is making fewer mistakes than Smart has been making, and never looks to be a liability in any situation.

Rozier is a player that the Celtics will love to use in a lot of different situations, and if they believe that their defense could be good enough without Smart in the future, then the lack of shooting will leave open that window for him to be expendable.

Rozier and Smart are half of the players that survived the massive roster overhaul this offseason, so they are clearly two players that the Celtics believe in.

The Celtics will certainly do everything they can to keep the two of them on the roster, but sometimes the difficult decisions are inevitable. We saw it when the Celtics had to choose to trade away Avery Bradley. There are often business decisions that get in the way of the commitment on the court, and Rozier is one of the biggest risks to Smart’s future.

We will see how the rest of the season plays out, because Smart could still have that big improvement on offense, and Rozier could start making the wild mistakes that hurt him in the past.

Next: Has the Time Come for an Okafor trade?

In any case, these are two players that should be watched closely this year, because the two of them could have everything on the line depending on how things shape up.

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