Woof, the thread has gone downhill. Can we chill with the personal attacks for a minute? The fact that there's no moderation doesn't mean we gotta be -slinging on a fine Sunday afternoon.
Anyways.
This part of your analysis, I disagree with. Why say Jalen is lacking in shooting? And why would Poeltl's presence (since I'm assuming that's the other big) affect our draft pick? You can grab Jalen (and I want to make clear, it's not about Jalen alone - you can perfectly disagree with my evaluation of him, I'm talking from a roster-building POV) and then sign a FA big, or draft another one, that fits the playmaking/passing bill you need to complement Smith's game. I think Luka can be that playmaking/passing big in the future, IF he absolutely pans out in terms of skills, but even if he isn't, I wouldn't see that as a deterrent to draft Jalen. As is, the Spurs have enough playmaking coming from their guards to keep the ship floating, and it's not like I want them to get immediately better next season and miss a high draft pick for the '21 draft...
I also don't see why Smith couldn't bully big wing 4's in the post. It's a "low % shot" by modern NBA standards, but the Spurs particularly don't really follow those modern trends to a T anyways, and Smith is physically more than capable of imposing himself and getting quick (and not-so-quick) buckets against bulkier opponents. I say again - there's a lot of tape of him doing this against perfectly fine compe ion in college. I once again highlight his game against Tillman, he made him work for some of those buckets. I don't want players or a team that isn't versatile - if anything, this years' playoffs have shown that the midrange and more "vintage" methods of scoring are FAR from gone or irrelevant. The fact that Smith is an absolute threat from deep, on top of being a good to great rim scorer, is just icing on the cake.
To be honest with you, I could care less about "credible center play". The Spurs aren't going anywhere by getting "credible center play". They need high-impact, versatility, shooting, strength, and rebounding from their bigs if they want to get to the promise land anytime soon - and I guarantee you, that's not something you just sign off waivers or trade a second-rounder for. Those kinds of players, you get in the draft, in the lottery even depending on the case. "Credible center play" is good for a team like the Clippers, with stars holding down the fort in other positions (and we've seen even for them, it wasn't enough).
I wholeheartedly agree that biggest need is elite, high-end talent; I just fail to see which prospect you're thinking of that is so above-and-beyond in terms of talent, that you'd dismiss the Spurs' roster needs, both long and short-term, to draft. Seriously, I'd like a name, so I can at least see what you're picturing in your head. Is it Vassell? I can guarantee you that guy isn't moving the needle for us, nor guarding any "big wing" whatsoever. If it's Neismith, I fail to see what good does drafting a SG (especially considering the logjam the Spurs have there) for your argument's sake. Again, it's not about Jalen alone, but from a pure roster-building point, I really don't see what player your argument lines up with, in this specific draft. To be honest, the prospect that comes closest to what you'd like... Is Achiuwa. Good skills, dribbling/playmaking potential, absolute strength to defend modern wings/big men, switchable to an extent, athletic, plays much better perimeter defense than Smith. But I haven't seen you mention him in any of your comments, so that mustn't be.
Again I ask the question - why would you select a high-floor, low-ceiling wing with a lottery pick, in a VERY wing-weak draft, when the very next draft is already known to be packing much, much higher talent level prospects at this position? What is this absolute, urgent hole the Spurs have to fill? I'm not seeing it. Of course, you can have your preferences on what you think the Spurs should draft - it's just weird to me that you're passing on your personal preference, as factual, indubitable gospel. Please expand.
I was a bit offended by the Bertans comment, ngl. When in God's name have you ever seen a pass by Bertans that was anything more than serviceable?! Is Bertans really your image of a passing/ball-handling big? The guy could literally not take the ball to the rim if his life depended on it. Like, seriously, post a YouTube highlight or something
maybe my memory is tier than I'm thinking, but I would never in my life call Bertans a "big with ball handling skills". Let's be real.
And again, Smith's defensive position is the 4. Specifically, which 4's do you think he could not match up against? I could see him doing well against most that come to mind. He could handle Siakam, he could handle Giannis (as good as anyone can handle a league MVP, of course), he could handle Brown unless he's going full 3pt chuck-fest. I can see, for example, AD giving him problems when he plays the 4 in the RS, but that's not a real 4. Again I fail to see which part of Smith's game you think will translate so badly, that he'll go from being a very good defender in college, to not being able to guard even his own position in the NBA. And I don't see why the fact that he's got potential as a small-ball 5 would mean he doesn't have a "true" position, if that's what you mean. Just an overall very vague comment, tbh.