Player of the Week : Now, Smith Will Pull the Trigger

Someone with an overwhelming desire to shoot a basketball whenever he gets his hands on one, no matter where he is on the court, is known as a gunner. He rarely considers passing the ball because that only decreases his chances of getting it back to take a shot.

Carlsbad High School guard Tim Smith is the antithesis of a gunner. In fact, Smith was so intent on avoiding the label that he virtually stopped shooting the ball earlier this season. He chose to pass it or dribble it--anything but shoot it.

Smith hadn’t always been reluctant to shoot. He led his freshman and junior varsity teams in scoring the past two years. And he was not taking more than his share of shots this season, but as a junior on a predominantly senior team, Smith wasn’t going to take any chances.

“Sometimes I worried that if I started shooting too much, my teammates would be on me about being a gunner,” Smith said. “I missed my first couple of shots against San Marcos and kind of lost my confidence. So, I stopped shooting.”

Resorting to such extremes, however, resulted in Carlsbad Coach Scott Wright benching Smith for most of the Lancers’ game against San Marcos and also for the first half against El Camino last week. Wright decided if Smith wouldn’t shoot, he wouldn’t play.

Once Smith figured this out, he quickly remedied the situation. Entering the El Camino game in the second half, Smith immediately began shooting--and scoring. He finished with 17 points in Carlsbad’s 65-49 upset of the eighth-ranked Wildcats.

Smith continued to shoot on Saturday against Escondido, scoring 14 points. His final basket came with just two seconds left and gave the Lancers a 52-50 victory.

For his efforts, Smith has been selected The Times’ Player of the Week.

“For some players, it’s telling them not to shoot in certain situations,” Wright said, “but for Smith, it’s telling him to step up and take his shot. My job is to explain to him that there’s a difference between being a gunner and being gun-shy. I’ve had more confidence in his shot than he’s had.”

As with most basketball teams, the Lancers need scoring from the outside to help open up the middle. That wasn’t happening earlier in the season, when center Rick White was carrying most of the scoring load. Until last week, White was the North County scoring leader.

“We weren’t scoring much as a team earlier in the season,” Wright said. “White would score 20 points, and we would score about 44 altogether. But one guy can’t carry the load, and I think Tim understands that. When a team is in a zone, you really have to have that wing shot to open it up.

“When Tim scores, we win. When he doesn’t, we’re in trouble. It’s as simple as that. We need the outside threat from our guards, and Tim is the man we figured would fill that role. He’s got to be our outside threat.”

Wright said he has been faced with reluctant shooters before. Once he went so far as to send a player into the game with a note for the hesitant shooter. The note had just three words on it: “Shoot the ball.”

In Smith’s case, Wright gave an ultimatum--shoot the ball or be replaced by someone who would.

“The first shot he passed up,” Wright said, “he got hooked.”

Smith viewed the benching as a positive experience. Now, he is ready to help the Lancers (3-0 in the Avocado League, 10-4 overall) complete a successful season.

“I put a lot of pressure on myself,” Smith said. “Coach wanted me to think about what I was doing. It was really a good thing that he sat me down because we needed the guards to score and I wasn’t shooting.”

Smith is no longer concerned with the word “gunner” preceding his name in conversations.

“My teammates were starting to get on me for passing up shots,” he said. “I’m not really worried about it anymore. My shots have been falling, and I’m feeling more comfortable about shooting again.”

Tim Smith Carlsbad High Position: Guard Height, Class: 6-1, Jr. Last Week: Scored 17 second-half points in 65-49 upset of eighth-ranked El Camino. Scored 14 points, including game-winning basket in 52-50 win against Escondido. Season: Averaging 8.7 points and 5.5 assists in 14 games.