There isn't anything worse than disappointment, especially when it comes to trust. It hurts the people with expectations, as well as the image of the subject who failed to meet them.
In this case, the subject is enigmatic guard J.R. Smith.
He almost convinced us he'd taken that next step last year. Smith channeled all of that bottled-up talent and converted it into a Sixth Man of the Year trophy, along with 54 regular-season wins.
It appeared Smith had turned the corner, both on and off the floor, and evolved into a guy who could be featured on a contender. For a good five months, Smith was completely locked in.
Until he wasn't.
Smith's elbow to Jason Terry's dome might as well been a punch to fans' guts who thought his bonehead tendencies had finally washed away.
It's been a downward spiral for Smith following that one-game ban during last year's playoffs. He helped shoot the Knicks out of the second round, finishing the Pacers series with a 28.9 percent field-goal clip on 15 shot attempts per game.
Not long after, ...
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Article written by Jonathan Wasserman