J.R. Smith’s Twitter handle says @TheRealJRSmith. For years, people were under the impression that the real J.R. Smith was the mercurial shooter and oftentimes lackluster player in terms of focus, commitment, and effort on the basketball court.
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Almost everyone have already come to terms that Smith will just be another insane talent who never realized his potential. But when he got traded to Cleveland, of all places, last year, the once Knick baggage became Cavalier gold.
After the Cavs’ Game 7 win in Oakland, LeBron James talked about his excitement after learning that the Cavs and Knicks had agreed on a deal that will send Smith to his team.
Just understand what J.R.’s been through and people just saying that there’s no way he can be a winner.
When our GM came to us last year and said, ‘Hey, we’ve got a deal to get Timofey Mozgov and get Iman Shumpert, and the Knicks are going to throw in J.R.’ I was like, ‘What? They’re going to throw in J.R. into the deal?’ And I was like, ‘Okay, I’ve got him. I got him.’ And J.R. turned himself into not only a huge boost to our team, but he turned himself into a two-way player, both sides of the floor.
The main piece that the Cavs were supposed to get from New York was defensive-minded guard Iman Shumpert. J.R. Smith was only an “add-on”. But the tables were turned and Smith’s part in earning a bigger role than Shumpert was very commendable. Gone were the infamous night outs as fans were treated to a very valuable “three-and-D” contributor.
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So, who’s the real J.R. Smith? Well, we saw it at the podium in front of the media, crying his heart out. The real J.R. Smith is a champion, and Cavalier fans will forever be thankful for the universe in turning the wheels for his arrival in Cleveland.