Ever since the Sixers brought Zhaire Smith into the fold on Draft Night 2018, the now-21-year-old has experienced one setback after another. Smith suffered a broken foot during his first summer as a professional, then dealt with a food allergy reaction that became a life-threatening situation. Following his recovery, Zhaire had to undergo a nearly year-long process to regain 40 pounds and get back into basketball shape.
After all that went down, you’d need a heart of stone to not want the young man to succeed on the court. Although Smith only appeared in seven games for the Sixers this season, he had an encouraging 2019-20 campaign in the G League.