Philadelphia 76ers: Zhaire Smith is Making Noise With the Blue Coats

When it comes to Philadelphia 76ers' first-round draft picks, you can always expect the unexpected. Actually before, you could always expect a significant injury during the first year, ultimately keeping the Sixers' first pick off the court for their entire first season in the NBA. Although that didn't specifically happen to Zhaire Smith, he came awfully close to missing his actual rookie debut during the 2018-2019 season.

No thanks to a foot injury and a serious allergic reaction, Zhaire Smith missed a majority of his rookie year. For a while, it seemed as if there would be no way he was going to debut last season. But the Sixers allowed him the opportunity to lace up for the Delaware Blue Coats in the G-League later on in the year.

Then suddenly, the Sixers expedited his rookie season development and called Smith up to the big league. He didn't get a ton of playing time on the 76ers. With six total games played, two of which he started in, Smith averaged 6.7 points-per-game in around 18 minutes of playing time.

Seeing as though he joined the team so late, Philly wasn't willing to give Smith any burn in the postseason. Therefore, he remained inactive and watched from the bench. It seemed as if the Sixers were going to build Smith up in year two on the Sixers' roster, but so far, that hasn't really been the case.

From the beginning of the season until now, the Sixers have been more focused on growing the rookie, Matisse Thybulle, with the 76ers instead of giving Smith some minutes on the main roster. By no means are the Sixers giving up on Zhaire Smith, but so far this season, it has been evident they aren't eager to call him up.

Perhaps, the second-year shooting guard is using his lack of opportunities with the main squad as motivation. Because as of late, Smith has been doing an excellent job of standing out with the Blue Coats -- especially in an area he needed work in.

During his six-game stint with the Sixers last year, Smith averaged two three-pointers a game, knocking down 37-percent of them. As a guard, who typically likes to drive to the basket, Smith has found himself playing what he described as "lazier". . . But in a good way.

"I'm trying to hunt threes now, I'm not trying to get to the rim and dunk," Smith said on Monday, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia's Noah Levick. "I'm being lazy now, trying to shoot the threes," he joked. "Give me three-balls."

According to Levick, Smith's newfound desire to fire from long-range has helped the second-year guard improve his shooting. Since the beginning of December, Smith has made 41.5-percent of his three-point attempts with the Blue Coats.

That's good news for the Sixers, who are actually looking to improve their roster with better perimeter shooting. While they likely won't call up Zhaire Smith to fill that void right now; knowing the 20-year-old guard is developing into a confident shooter must make the Sixers feel good about what they have stocked up.

However, that impressive number could also drive-up Smith's stock in the eyes of the other teams around the NBA. As the Sixers look for 'win-now' type of veterans through the trade market, there's a good chance that Zhaire Smith would be requested in a trade package.

While letting go of a young developmental player isn't ideal, the 76ers do need to ensure they get pieces to make a run this season while their championship window is still open. Perhaps, Zhaire Smith can help out with that one way or another.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_