Brooklyn Nets guard Dennis Smith Jr. began his NBA career as the ninth overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft out of NC State by the Dallas Mavericks and from there, it seemed that his career continued to change by the season. Smith Jr. started his career well by making the All-Rookie second-team for the 2017-18 season, but ended up being traded from the Mavericks to the New York Knicks the very next season for a deal that brought Kristaps Porzingis to Dallas.
Smith Jr. was with the Knicks until February of 2021 when he was traded from the Knicks to the Detroit Pistons. Smith Jr.’s time with New York is when the basketball world started to see his career falter as his averages were down across the board compared to the heights that he reached while with the Mavericks. In fact, during the 2019-20 season, Smith Jr. started to display inconsistency in his play, dealt with injuries, and even had to prove himself despite having to deal with the death of his stepmother.
After his Knicks tenure, Smith Jr. spent time with the aforementioned Detroit and the Portland Trail Blazers in reserve roles that were markedly different from what he was used to early in his career. To his credit, Smith Jr. had a career revitalization during his stint with his hometown Charlotte Hornets in the 2022-23 season. While his scoring prowess seemed to have escaped him, Smith Jr. found a way to make an impact by playing amazing defense and letting his game go from there.
Now, Smith Jr. is with Brooklyn on a one-year, $2.53 million contract to see if the Nets can be his next home for the long-term. Let’s see what Smith Jr. brings to the table at this point of his career for a Brooklyn team vying for the playoffs and beyond next season: