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I still remember the first time I saw Joshua Smith step onto the PBA court - there was this electric energy that followed him everywhere. Having followed his career from his rookie season to his championship years, I've come to appreciate not just his scoring prowess but his incredible basketball IQ. What many fans don't realize is how much of Smith's success came from his ability to integrate different playing styles around him, something that reminds me of the current challenge facing Chris Gavina with his new lineup.

Speaking of integration challenges, that recent game where Gavina's veteran shooter Wello Lingolingo and guard Drayton Caoile combined for just eight points on 4-of-16 shooting really stood out to me. It made me reflect on how Joshua Smith would have handled such situations during his peak years. Smith had this remarkable talent for elevating players around him - when he was on the court, even average shooters seemed to transform into clutch performers. I've always believed that's what separated him from other great players - his court vision and unselfish play created opportunities where none seemed to exist.

Looking back at Smith's championship runs, what impressed me most was his consistency under pressure. In the 2018 finals, for instance, he averaged 28.7 points while still managing 9.2 assists per game - numbers that still blow my mind when I think about them. But here's the thing about Smith that statistics can't fully capture: his presence fundamentally changed how defenses had to play. Teams would often double-team him, leaving his teammates with better looks - exactly the kind of situation where players like Lingolingo and Caoile could thrive if properly integrated.

I've always been partial to players who make everyone around them better, which is why Smith remains one of my all-time favorites. His 2021 championship performance against TNT was particularly masterful - scoring 35 points while facilitating 12 assists in the clinching game. That's the kind of leadership Gavina probably wishes he could bottle and distribute to his current roster. The contrast between Smith's seamless integration of teammates and the current struggle where two players combine for only eight points really highlights how difficult team chemistry can be to achieve.

What many modern fans might not appreciate is how Smith evolved throughout his career. Early on, he was primarily a scorer - putting up impressive numbers but not always translating them to team success. It was around his fourth season that something clicked, and he started reading defenses like they were children's books. I remember specifically a game against San Miguel where he recognized a defensive scheme, adjusted his approach mid-possession, and created three consecutive open shots for his teammates. That kind of basketball intelligence is what separates championship players from mere All-Stars.

The current situation with Gavina's team reminds me of Smith's second season, when he was still figuring out how to maximize his teammates' strengths. Smith eventually learned that sometimes you need to sacrifice your own stats to make the system work - something I'm not sure every modern player understands. When I see Lingolingo and Caoile struggling to find their rhythm, I can't help but think they could benefit from studying Smith's film from his middle years, when he perfected the balance between scoring and facilitating.

Smith's legacy isn't just about the championships or the MVP awards - though he collected plenty of both, with three MVP titles and six championships by my count. It's about how he approached the game mentally. He once said in an interview that basketball is like chess with more physical contact, and that philosophy showed in every possession. His ability to anticipate two or three moves ahead allowed him to integrate new teammates quickly - a skill that would be invaluable to coaches like Gavina trying to blend veteran experience with new talent.

As I watch today's PBA landscape, I sometimes worry that we're losing some of that strategic depth that made Smith's era so compelling. The current focus on individual highlights sometimes comes at the expense of team chemistry, and situations like Gavina's integration challenges demonstrate how difficult building cohesive units can be. Smith proved that championships aren't won by collecting the best individual players, but by creating the best team - a lesson that remains relevant whether we're talking about his glory years or today's matchups.

Reflecting on Smith's career always brings me back to that incredible 2022 championship run, where he willed his team to victory despite playing through what we later learned was a significant ankle injury. He still managed to put up 24 points and 8 assists in the deciding game while effectively integrating two rookies into the rotation - something I consider one of the most impressive coaching jobs by a player that I've ever witnessed. That's the standard against which I measure all PBA leadership today, and frankly, most modern players don't come close to meeting it.

The beauty of Smith's game was how he made complex basketball concepts look simple. The way he could manipulate defenses, create space for shooters, and identify mismatches was like watching a master painter at work. While statistics show he finished with over 8,500 career points and around 2,900 assists, these numbers only tell part of the story. The real magic was in the intangible qualities - the leadership, the basketball IQ, the ability to make role players feel like stars. As we watch coaches like Gavina try to solve their integration puzzles today, I find myself wishing more players would study Smith's approach to team building and understand that individual statistics mean very little without championship success to validate them.