Is JR Smith ever going to grow up? Coming into the league out of high school you know Smith could possibly have some maturity issues, but that was 10 years ago. JR is now 29 years old and yet he still parades around the league like he is 12.
His latest incident, hitting the Wizard’s Glen Rice Jr. in the groin, just cost him the Knicks’ upcoming game against the Pistons and adds to the list of troubling behavior he continues to have in the league, mostly since joining the Knicks. Here is a brief look at JR’s rap sheet over the past few seasons in NY.
- He was suspended the first five games of last season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy
- He was fined $50,000 for untying Shawn Marion and Greg Monroe’s shoe laces during games
- He was fined $25,000 for sending a tweet in bad taste to Brandon Jennings after Jennings mentioned that he didn’t think Smith’s brother Chris deserved to be in the league
- He was fine $25,000 for tweeting an inappropriate picture of model Tahiry
- He was suspended for a playoff game in 2013 for elbowing Jason Terry
- Singer Rhianna made a comment about Smith during those same playoffs saying that he was struggling as a result of him “being hung-over and partying too hard” during the playoffs.
This is just some of JR Smith’s laundry list of bonehead things he has done in the last few years. This latest incident has to have the brass in New York ready to pull the trigger on shipping him out of there. He has already mentioned that he is struggling to learn to the triangle offense, stating that he doesn’t know when to shoot and when to pass.’ His minutes are down to 24.5 per game versus 33 per game last year. On top if it all, the former sixth man of the year is only averaging 7.5 points per game. This guy is in the prime of his career, blowing a good situation in NY by making bad decisions on and off the court. JR has the talent to be mentioned with the top 5 shooting guards in the league i.e., James Harden, Klay Thompson, Kobe Bryant, and Dwayne Wade, and Demar Derozan. Instead, he is mentioned as a player with talent that you don’t really want on your roster because of the headache.
Smith has lost a lot in fines and salary. After being sixth man of the year, had he not had these issues he would’ve been due a nice long term contract with another team and probably would’ve had a starting role. As a result of his behavior, he had to re-sign with the Knicks at bargain rate because no one else wanted to pay him. He has been the subject of trade rumors already only 4 games into the season. A deal has been discussed shipping Smith to the Pacers for Forward Chris Copeland.
JR Smith is 29 and has a player option next season that he probably won’t have any choice but to take since he can’t get his act together. He may not be accepting that option with the Knicks however, because they may realize it’s time to move on.
Be sure to check out Nick’s website NBAOnlineBlog.com.