MVP chants for Ish Smith? Normally I’m not a fan of the patronizing nature of such chants, as they are normally not directed at actual MVP-caliber players. But at this very moment, Smith IS an MVP-caliber player. Because here’s an abridged list of what typical MVP-caliber players do:
-Win games against good teams
-While scoring tons of points
And here’s an abridged list of what Smith is doing:
-Winning games against good teams
-While scoring tons of points
Those two lists are the same, are they not? The defense rests, your honor.
Smith has scored 32 and 27 in the last two games, in wins against the Nuggets (good team) and the Celtics (good team), respectively. And it’s not like he’s just lucking into these points by hitting a bunch of threes. No sir. He’s taking the offense by the BALL and creating his own looks. His teammates act only as vessels to receive his passes, should he decide that he doesn’t need to score on that particular possession. If he was doing worse, maybe not making all of the extremely tough (for other players, not for Smith) shots he’s taking, I’d criticize him for monopolizing the ball too much. But right now, there is no arguing with success.
My only regret is that I could not be there in Washington DC screaming “M-V-P” with all the other delirious Ishophiles. They are the ones lucky enough to experience Ishsanity in person, instead of through a screen.