Tuesday, April 21, 2009
INDEPENDENCE (AP) — Joe Smith’s hoops odyssey has spanned 14 years and bridged from Golden State to Cleveland with seven NBA stops in between.
Strapped with the impossible expectations that come along with being the league’s No. 1 overall draft pick, he has been labeled everything from colossal bust to consummate ’baller.
“It’s been a journey,” the Cavaliers forward said.
Smith has documented every step and misstep along the way, scribbling down life’s lyrics in notebooks he takes on road trips.
He has written 400-500 songs. On Monday, he performed his newest.
Bobbing from side to side, Smith broke out “Playoff Anthem,” a track he — actually his rapping persona Joe Beast — created especially for Cleveland’s postseason run.
“Once again it’s on, back on the quest for a title,” Smith rhymed, spitting out the words while keeping the beat in his head. “In order for us to get it we must compete with our rivals. ... See the president, ’Bron James the King; and Anderson Varejao, they call him the Wild Thing. ...”
Smith went on, adding the Cavs “can’t celebrate till we finish paying dues. ... one team, one goal, one dream. One thing, one quest, one ring.”
Traded by Cleveland last summer in a three-way deal that brought guard Mo Williams to the Cavaliers, Smith again has become an important piece in the club’s push toward a first NBA title. In Saturday’s playoff opener against Detroit, Smith scored 13 points in 19 minutes as the Cavs beat the Pistons 102-84 to take a 1-0 series lead.
His impact was immediate. Moments after entering, he streaked down the lane and caught a no-look pass from LeBron James before delivering a two-handed dunk. It was the type of hustle play the Cavs have come to expect from Smith, who returned to the Cavs in March after buying out his contract with Oklahoma City.
Smith could have gone elsewhere. He was coveted by Boston, Dallas and other contenders, but he wanted to come back to Cleveland.
“It’s home, man,” he said.
That from a Norfolk, Va., native who went to college at Maryland and also has played with Golden State, Philadelphia (twice), Minnesota (twice), Detroit, Milwaukee, Denver and Chicago since breaking into the league in 1995.
At the trading deadline last year, Cleveland acquired Smith in a deal with the Bulls and Smith, who had never gotten past the first round before, helped the Cavs get to the Eastern Conference semifinals where they lost a seven-game series to the Boston Celtics.
Smith was reluctantly dealt by the Cavs during the summer to Milwaukee for Williams, one of his closest friends. He ended up in Oklahoma City, where he enjoyed the company — just not the basketball. As his playing time dwindled, the Thunder packaged him a deal for New Orleans center Tyson Chandler, but it collapsed when Chandler failed his physical.
There was only one way out, and Oklahoma City obliged with his release and a buyout settlement.
Smith longed for Cleveland.
“What we accomplished last year, I feel we got unfinished business,” he said.
“That was part of the reason I decided to come back and because I felt so comfortable with the guys in the locker room. I wanted to get back here.”
When it looked like he might return, his phone started ringing.
“We all made our courtesy calls,” Williams said. “Everybody put in their two cents. And the feelings were mutual. We knew with Joe, it would take us over the top.”
While Detroit’s focus in Game 2 tonight will be on containing James, the Pistons know what Smith can do. He spent the 2000-01 season with them.
“Joe Smith is one of those X-factor players,” Tayshaun Prince said. “They knew that when they had him the first time, he ended up somewhere else and they knew it was important to get him back. He’s great on and off the court and is a great teammate.”