Van Gundy: Josh Smith has a 'very good understanding of the shots he needs to shoot'

Over the past three NBA seasons, no player has taken as many 3-point attempts as Detroit Pistons forward Josh Smith and made them at a less frequent clip. 575 attempts from downtown, and Smith has connected just 27.7 percent of the time. 

It's just not a shot in his repertoire, but for some reason, after taking the 2009-10 season off from threes (he attempted just seven - 80 fewer than in any other season since 2005-06), Smith began shooting them more than ever the past few seasons. His career mark sits at 27.9 percent, well below the threshold of being a better value proposition than other shots.

His insistence on firing away was one of the reasons new head coach Stan Van Gundy expressed a desire to play only two of Smith, Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond together at a time. With the trio of big men, floor spacing gets mucked up, and Smith becomes more of a perimeter player, even though he's far more effective in the interior.

Van Gundy may not have a choice but to play the three together, though, as an injury to Jodie Meeks leaves an already-thin wing rotation short on bodies. At the very least, Van Gundy is hammering home to Smith that no matter the unit on the floor, he needs to avoid his penchant for gunning from outside:

I think Josh has a very good understanding of the shots he needs to shoot that are not only best for him, but best for our team. He's one of the elite guys in the league around the basket. Last year, stuff inside, right at the rim, in two straight years, he has been 71% and 77%. There's very few guys at that level. So he needs to get more of those. He knows that. He also understands he really doesn't need to shoot threes for this team.

Will he get some? The other night, late in the shot clock, throw it back … you have to take that shot. He's going to shoot some. It's not a matter of number, one a game, less than one a game. It's when are you shooting them? There might be a game where he might take three.

Van Gundy isn't blowing smoke about Smith, either - he shot 71.1 percent at the rim last season, a top-20 mark among those with at least 150 attempts in close. He can also make his mark with his playmaking skills and defense, meaning he really doesn't need to be chucking to help the team.

Smith needs only to look at his own career to get Van Gundy's message. In 2009-10, Smith posted the second-highest true shooting percentage and player efficiency rating of his career and his best win share rate in averaging 15.7 points and a career-best 4.2 assists. His shot chart from that season compared to last year, when he had by far the least efficient statistical season of his career, is striking:

(Courtesy Nylon Calculus)

All samples in the preseason are understandably small, but Smith appears to be getting the message so far. He's 2-of-4 on 3-pointers through four games, instead opting to play primarily inside the arc. Some of that is because he's seen extended time at the four instead of on the wing, but it's encouraging nonetheless.

One of the most interesting subplots of the season is going to be how Van Gundy, a coach known for preferring a well-spaced attack, is going to optimize the offense for a Pistons team whose three best players are all unable to hit from outside.