Is the Magic All Gone for Chris Smith?

Is Chris Smith ill? In a perverse way, maybe we should hope so. What other logical reason can there be for his inconsistent play this season and his horrendous offensive play Wednesday night?

The University of Connecticut defeated Boston College in its Big East opener 96-70 little thanks to Smith. Watching Smith flounder, it was hard to believe this was the same player who was MVP of last season’s Big East Tournament.

Check that. It was impossible to believe.

In the latter stages of his sophomore season, Smith emerged as one of the best guards in the country. Entering this, his junior season, he was a coverboy on several national basketball publications. Big East coaches made him a preseason first-team all-conference pick. He played alongside Georgia Tech’s Kenny Anderson at the Goodwill Games. Reports were he was coming back to Storrs, Conn., better than ever.

So far, reports have been greatly exaggerated.

Why? Is Smith worn out from too much summer globetrotting and all-star basketball? Could his ego be out of control from hangers-on telling him he’s ready to go pro? Is he lost in space without Tate George and Nadav Henefeld to get him the ball where he likes it? Or maybe a bit of each?

No, no, and not really, Smith says.

Whatever the reason, Smith’s enormous get up and go seems to have got up and went. At UConn, they’re praying it’s temporary. If it isn’t, if this is to be the winter of Chris Smith’s discontent, it will be UConn’s as well. Without Smith in a starring role, a high-scoring role, UConn’s basketball hopes will crash faster than “Cop Rock”.

Anybody who figured Smith couldn’t have a worse offensive game than his seven-point, six-rebound performance against Lafayette last week at the Civic Center was in for a sad surprise Wednesday night.

Smith was 1-for-12 from the field against BC, 0-for-7 in the first half. When he wasn’t throwing up proverbial bricks, he was tripping over his own feet.

He began the first half by missing a layup. He began the second half by not realizing where he was on the floor and committing a backcourt violation. As long as he tried to get the ball to his teammates -- he had six assists, five in the second half -- Smith was OK. But when he tried to get his own offense untracked, he was a disaster.

“If you’re off, you’ve got to make the team better,” Smith said. “Offense isn’t everything. That (poor shooting) happens to everybody. Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, right on down the line.”

But Bird and Magic have slightly better supporting casts than Smith does. Although BC is improved over last season’s team, the Eagles are expected to be the Big East’s doormat again. Jim Calhoun can try to sweep Smith’s offensive woes under a BC rug, as he did in his post-game press conference. But does anybody seriously believe the Huskies can challenge the other Big East beasts with Smith as a low-scoring playmaker?

But that’s what he was Wednesday night, finishing with eight points -- the second time in three games he has failed to score in double figures.

Smith’s only basket came on a leaning jumper from the right side with 9 minutes, 35 seconds left. Perhaps the most considerate thing Calhoun did was have Smith sit out six minutes.

Check that. The most considerate thing Calhoun did was not criticize his star. After Smith’s horrendous outing against an alleged cream puff like Lafayette -- “In that game, I didn’t do anything” -- Calhoun took him aside and told Smith he wanted him to be more aggressive, to work harder at creating his own offense, rather than being content to dish off to teammates.

But Calhoun was singing a different tune after Smith’s sorry offensive performance at BC. He said he had wanted Smith to take control of the Huskies offense and was satisfied that he did.

“I’m not going to ram him and say that Smitty played awful,” Calhoun said. “He played very poorly early, but he ran the team. When he goes from one to two (from point guard to shooting guard), he plays differently. As a one guard, he floats. As a two-guard, he attacks. That’s his biggest problem.”

As a shooting guard playing alongside Tate George last season, Smith had it easier. He could roam the baseline, use picks to free himself for the inevitable pass from George or Henefeld.

But now, with neither Steve Pikiell and Gilad Katz quick enough to play the point well against Big East opposition, not only must Smith be the leader of the band, he also must be able to free himself for frequent offensive solos.

So far, it ain’t happening.

About one of his stars on the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team, Coach Herb Brooks once said, “you’re playing worse all the time, and right now, you’re playing like the middle of next week.”

Is Smith pressing? He says he isn’t, and he answers questions about his offensive woes pleasantly. If he feels put upon, it doesn’t show. Still, you wonder. How can a guy who busted down the lane in overt defiance of Alonzo Mourning and Dikembe Mutomobo last season be made to look like a bit player against a disorganized group like BC?

Of course, that’s not the way the loyal opposition saw it.

“I thought he was a tremendous factor out there,” BC Coach Jim O’Brien said. “He doesn’t have to score to be effective.”

But Smith has to score for UConn to be a Big East beast. John Gwynn, who tied his career high, (21 points on 10 of 13 field-goal shooting), is UConn’s only consistent outside shooter. Rod Sellers is the Huskies only consistent inside scorer.

Smith? He’s drifting. No, he says, friends aren’t whispering in his ear that he’s ready to go pro.

“Most of my friends say, ‘Stay in school,’ ” Smith said. “They say the NBA is going to be there. It’s no rush.”

Until Chris Smith gets his act together, it’s also no chance.