[ESPN] Smith signs one-year deal with Hawks

I will stand corrected if more than just a few of us remember how good he was at Maryland. Most people think of him as nothing more than an old decent journeyman NBA player. A few more might recall the tampering incident with the T-Wolves.

He was drafted 14 years ago. The majority of people here were less than 10 years old at the time. I doubt any of them need to get over Joe Smith not living up to the hype because they don't remember the hype.

 

I thought Joe Smith was a good fit with the Cavs, especially now that they have Shaq. He can shoot the midrange shot, can even score a bit in the post, has the size to guard the post, and rebounds and defends decently. I don't know why they spent so much on retaining Varejao while letting a guy like Smith go to sign with a competitor for peanuts. Joe Smith will be good for the Hawks. I think he still has game left.

 

this guy has freakin 9 lives, if i die, i want to come back as joe smith. it seems like hes been around for a hundred years.

 

I thought this was Josh Smith, was about to laugh my ass off.

 

Really odd thing to say.

 

Fair enough. I was young but I remember both AI and Duncan in college. For whatever reason I don't remember Joe Smith. My buddy is a huge Maryland fan so he occasionally reminds me of how good Smith used to be. Definitely don't remember the hype.

 

I'm 21 but I remember the T-Wolves drafting him number 1 and losing picks the next few years because of it.

 

The Golden State Warriors drafted him first in 1995. The Wolves thing was later when he signed 3 minimum contracts in a row with the Wolves with an under-the-table agreement that he'd get a max contract after those 3 minimum years with the Bird exception, which was a circumvention of the salary cap and harshly punished by the NBA.

 

Oh I guess I didn't know as much as I thought I did lol.

 

I was 9 at the time, but I lived in the Bay Area and I certainly remember him being drafted -- I went to some Warriors event one day and tried to get his autograph, but he wouldn't do it. I got some other guys signature who I don't remember.

Anyways, back on topic, I think he's certainly worth keeping around for the Vet Minimum, but does anyone have any thoughts on why he did not return to the Cavaliers?