Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart wants Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to pass the ball more and believes they will with more experience.
He told reporters as much following Boston's 128-114 loss to the Chicago Bulls:
"I would just like to play basketball. Every team knows we are trying to go to Jayson and Jaylen and every team is programmed and studies to stop Jayson and Jaylen. I think everybody's scouting report is to make those guys try to pass the ball. They don't want to pass the ball, and that's something that they're going to learn.
"They're still learning and we're proud of the progress they are making, but they are going to have to make another step and find ways to not only create for themselves but create for others on this team, to open up the court for them later down in the game where they don't always have to take those tough shots or take tough matchups when they do get the 1-on-1 and then they bring the trap. Just reading that. It's something that we've been asking for them to do and they're learning. We just got to continue to help those guys do that and to help our team."
Emotions were surely high for Smart and Boston following the game.
After all, the Bulls outscored the Celtics 39-11 in the fourth quarter and completely flipped a game that seemed like a sure Boston victory. The home team shot a mere 21.7 percent from the field in that final quarter with Tatum and Brown going just 1-of-10 from the floor and fell to 2-5 on the campaign.
Smart also called for the ball to be in his hands more, suggesting "there's only so much I can do without the ball in my hands. I'm just standing in the corner."
He also called himself a "great passer" in situations when the ball is in his hands, although he finished Monday's game without a single assist.
The Oklahoma State product shot 5-of-11 from the field and an impressive 3-of-5 from three-point range, but that was an anomaly compared to his previous five games this season when he shot 25.5 percent from the field and 23.5 percent from deep.
Smart has never been known as a particularly good shooter and has just one season in his entire career where he hit more than 39.8 percent of his shots from the floor since the Celtics selected him with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft.
Given those numbers and the fact Kemba Walker is on the New York Knicks, looking for Brown and Tatum in crunch time is typically the right move for the Celtics. Yet neither star could find their footing with the game on the line against the 6-1 Bulls, and Smart would have liked to see some adjustments and additional passes.
Perhaps those will come in Wednesday's game against the Orlando Magic.
Celtics' Marcus Smart: Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown Are 'Going to Learn' to Pass - Bleacher Report
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