The 7DAYS EuroCup's new all-time leader in three-point shots made, Jamar Smith of UNICS Kazan, is playing his best basketball ever and focused on getting his team to the Top 16.
Jamar Smith, UNICS: 'A huge honor for me'
Interviews
6 mins read
History was made in the 7DAYS EuroCup in Regular Season Round 6, as Jamar Smith of UNICS Kazan became the all-time leader in three-point shots made. Smith needed to hit 4 triples to go past three-time EuroCup champion Rafa Martinez. Smith downed 6 of 8 attempts to make sure he sealed the milestone. Smith, a EuroCup champion with Unicaja Malaga in 2017, is in his sixth season in the competition and is far from slowing down. In fact, he has buried 20 of 33 three-point shots for a career-best 60.6% so far this season and is averaging personal bests of 18.6 points and 4.8 assists, too. Smith is happy for the record, but knows it is a team effort and credits everyone for it. "I've had coaches and teammates that really believe in me," Smith told EuroCupBasketball.com. "It's definitely a huge honor for me. But I want to keep running that number up."
Congrats on the win over Umana Reyer Venice. How important was this game for UNICS?
"It was really important to win this game. The best scenario for us was to have won by 8, but in any case, we know that losing this game would kind of seal our fate in a negative way and put our chance of advancing in the hands of other teams. So everybody came out super focused and confident for the game because they knew what was at stake. So I was super happy with how everybody on our team responded."
Four of your remaining five regular-season games are on the road. How critical is this time of year for the team?
"It's super critical. Super important for everyone to stay healthy. For everybody to stay focused because with this many games on the road, it's going to be super tough for us to get into a rhythm of practicing because we'll have so much travel that we won't have a lot of practice. Guys are going to have to be really focused on our scouting reports and the material that coach gives us and just come in every game and compete off of that without having too much practice."
"It's definitely a huge honor for me. But I want to keep running that number up."
You are now the EuroCup's all-time leader in three-point shots made. What does this honor mean to you?
"It's a huge honor. I have to thank God first that I've been able to play so long and compete in the EuroCup for so long and I've had coaches and teammates that really believe in me. It's definitely a huge honor for me. But I want to keep running that number up."
You passed Rafa Martinez for the record and Marko Popovic is third. Those are two players you've competed against. How does it feel to beat such legends?
"That's an honor in itself too, being able to play against both of those guys who were really good players. But the game of basketball is all about competing. When I knew I was close to the record, it wasn't really ever a goal of mine to have the record, but it was always in the back of my mind."
You've made 20 of 33 three-pointers this season, shooting better than ever. With the long off-season, did you do anything differently? Did you practice more?
"I practiced less this offseason! Getting into gyms was kind of impossible. I just did a lot of running and conditioning this offseason for the most part. Shooting for me now at this point has become muscle memory. I shoot hundreds of shots a day. So it's really just about muscle memory and confidence at this point. Right now I'm just playing confident and getting good looks."
Over the last seven years, the shooting guard position at UNICS has been covered by Keith Langford and you. You've now been at the team longer than Langford. How much do you appreciate the relationship you have with UNICS?
"I don't really think of it like that, in terms of I've been here longer than any other player, but I definitely appreciate the trust that they put in me, that UNICS and the coaching staff and the management have in me. For me to have been here for so long, that's kind of unheard of, especially for Americans to be on one team for so long. I'm definitely thankful for that and I feel blessed."
"We have a really good team and I still don't think we've been playing our best basketball yet."
Your next game is against Bahcesehir Koleji Istanbul and Erick Green in Turkey. The first game between you guys was great. How much are you looking forward to this one?
"I look forward to every game. At this point in the EuroCup, every game is super vital and important to your chances to advance. I know that the position that they're in right now that they're going to come out fighting with their back against the wall. So I'm looking forward to this game like any other game."
Could this season be the best EuroCup season for UNICS since you got there?
"Yeah, I think this one could be. We have a really good team and I still don't think we've been playing our best basketball yet. We've had a lot of problems within the team with COVID and just being able to practice together that I still feel like even in games we're feeling each other out. Once we catch our rhythm and we really start gelling together on the court, I think the sky's the limit for us."
The next record you could add to your collection is most threes in a season, which Chris Lofton set with 63. Is that a goal for you?
"I'm not really a personal goals type of person. I don't even know about any of these things until it's mentioned to me. I'm about the team because at the end of the day if the team doesn't have success, the accolades are okay, but they don't really help your future as much as the team having success does. The thing I'm focused the most on is making sure we advance from this round."
The last time you played in the EuroLeague was in 2015-16 with Unicaja Malaga. Is getting there next season with UNICS the goal now?
"It's definitely a goal of mine. It's been a goal of mine since I came here. To win another EuroCup title and get UNICS into the EuroLeague and be able to compete in the EuroLeague again. Knowing what I know now and being the player that I am now, when I first competed in the EuroLeague competition, I wasn't where I'm at now mentally or physically. So I definitely want to get back to the EuroLeague and do that with UNICS."