Former 10th Overall Pick Inks New Deal with the Bulls
Even though former 10th overall pick Jalen Smith has been mostly a role player through his four-year NBA career, he’s been an excellent piece for two franchises’ bench during that time. Both of those teams made the Western and Eastern Conference respectively, with the Suns making it out of the West, and making their first NBA Finals appearance since 1993. With the Indiana Pacers, the team made the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2014. Although they were demolished by the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics in four games, this young team showed ferocity and grit against some of the toughest Eastern Conference foes. Now that the season is over, and Smith is a free agent, it was just reported the former 10th overall pick has agreed to a three-year deal with the Chicago Bulls for $27 million.
After two seasons playing with the University of Maryland, Smith declared for the NBA Draft. The Phoenix Suns selected the big man as the 10th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. Over the course of one and a half seasons, the 24-year-old big man played 56 games with the Suns. During his first season in Phoenix, the team made the NBA Finals but lost in six games to the Milwaukee Bucks. In the middle of the 2021-2022 regular season, the Suns decided to trade Smith to the Indiana Pacers. That offseason, the former 10th overall pick signed a two-year extension with Indiana. Starting in December during the 2022-2023 season, Smith moved in and out of the starting lineup, starting in 31 games while playing in 68. The following season, he became the backup center for Myles Turner, becoming a key asset to the team’s scoring, rebounding, and defense.
Last season in 61 games played and in 14 starts, Smith averaged about 17 minutes on the floor. The former 10th overall pick put up 10 points, six rebounds, an assist, and a block a night. He shot a career high 59 percent from the field, and a career-high 42 percent from deep. On February 1st, during a matchup with the New York Knicks, Smith dropped 20 points, along with nine rebounds, and two blocks during a 109-105 loss.
