The Dallas Mavericks are one of Josh Smith's options as a free agent, and the presence of point guard Rajon Rondo is one of the reasons why the Mavs seem appealing. The forward, who was recently (and surprisingly) released by the Detroit Pistons, was teammates and roommates with Rondo at Oak Hill Academy. The two of them have talked about playing together in the NBA, Smith told NBCSports.com's Dan Feldman in March, and Rondo sees Dallas as a good landing spot for his friend, via ESPN's Marc Stein:
Rondo, who said he talks to Smith "pretty much every day," believes his friend and former high school teammate would be a good fit for the Mavs.
"I think we can use an athletic big," Rondo said after the Mavs' 105-102 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. "They traded me for Brandan Wright. Besides Tyson [Chandler], our other bigs are perimeter shooters. Josh brings a lot to the game -- his intangibles, he can make plays, rebound, defend. He'd be a good fit anywhere, but especially here I think he'd be a good fit."
The Houston Rockets appear to be the best destination for Smith on paper -- and they are the frontrunners, according to Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski -- but no one should be shocked if Smith decides to sign with the Mavericks. Their offense, which features a ton of ball movement and few playcalls from the sideline, has to be attractive, and the Mavs give him a good chance to compete for a championship.
The obvious question, though, is how Dallas plans to use him. Rondo's right in that Smith gives the Mavs an athletic defender, but forward Al-Farouq Aminu already has trouble finding minutes under coach Rick Carlisle. I think Smith could be great as a backup big man who can guard multiple positions, but he'd have to be OK with sacrificing playing time because of the presence of Dirk Nowitzki and Tyson Chandler in the frontcourt. Owner Mark Cuban told reporters on Monday he'd try to sell Smith on being a power forward and small-ball center as a reserve.
Would Smith choose to play that role in Dallas instead of going to Houston and presumably starting? We'll see. It's worth noting, too, that Smith played for a loaded Atlanta Celtics AAU team alongside Dwight Howard, who served as the best man at his wedding. Howard would very much be in favor of adding Smith, via the Houston Chronicle's Jenny Dial Creech:
” I would really love to see him here, Howard said. “I think he would bring some more defense to our team.
“He is one of those guys who can play the three, four, or the five. We played together back in high school and he actually played the three. We were very successful as a unit together.”
Howard said he thought Smith could bring another dimension to the Rockets’ defense.
“I would be great to have him here,” Howard said. “He could do a lot of stuff for us on the defensive end. Blocking shots, rebounding, playing against some of those big two and three guards in the league. I think having him would take some of the pressure off of some of our other wing defenders.”
Howard said he has had some communication with Smith about the Rockets.
“Yeah I’ve been in his ear,” Howard said. “The only thing I told him was if you want to win this would be a great place for you. We are headed in the right direction as a team. We have won together in AAU. Let’s get another one.”
Houston also has an edge in that it can offer Smith its biannual exception, which is worth about $2.1 million. The Mavs, on the other hand, can only give him the minimum.
Smith is expected to clear waivers Wednesday, at which point the sweepstakes for his services will officially begin. Smith was scheduled to meet with his reps to go over the various possibilities Tuesday afternoon, per Yahoo Sports' Marc Spears.
