There's no doubt Smith has benefited with being able to take club combinations into the rep level, which probably makes his game seem a little better than it truly is. That sort of innate knowledge of where your teammate will be in different situations and what they are good and bad at makes his decision making look better than it would be if he was going into a team with a spine he wasn't familiar with. Slater, Cronk and he, and to a lesser extent Inglis, have played plenty of games together.... they know each other back the front. (I'm sure they've lined up in the shower like that many a time)
But saying that I still think he is the best in the business. He's not a dynamic, sniping, running dummy half, but he has a very good football brain and is a great ball player. Grub or not, he is still the best.
Friend has some way to go before he even start to hold a candle to Smiths achievements.