Getty Marcus Smart of the Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics shocked the masses when they traded Marcus Smart in their three-way deal to acquire Kristaps Porzingis from the Washington Wizards. While no one knows why exactly the Celtics decided to part with their longest-tenured player in the trade, Bill Simmons gave his take on why the Celtics decided to trade him.
On the June 23 episode of “Off the Pike with Brian Barrett,” Simmons explained why Smart’s influence on the team made it hard for them to bench him.
“I think Marcus has been on the team for nine years and felt like it was his team,” Simmons said. “It was him and Tatum and Brown. It was the big three, and he had an outsized voice in the locker room, on the court. I think it was really tough to bench him.”
Simmons added that because it was tough to bench him, it got in the way of them playing Derrick White, who Simmons believed was better than Smart, which led to the trade.
“I think it became a real thing where (Smart) was being treated like he was Tatum or Brown. Meanwhile, White was the better guard the whole year unquestionably, so maybe that was a piece of it. I just feel like, eh, this is awkward. Maybe we gotta just fix this.”
Unless the Celtics make more moves, White is likely to slide in as the Celtics’ starting point guard.
Brad Stevens Gets Emotional Talking About Marcus Smart
In his first press conference after he traded Smart, President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens started to get emotional when talking about the impact Smart had on the Celtics.
“As I told him, when he got here, we were 25-57 the year before,” Stevens said. “The greatest legacy that you can leave is to be someplace, and it’s better off because you were there, and I think everybody here feels that way. He will always be appreciated and thought of so fondly here for any number of reasons… We’re all really grateful to have had Marcus in our life for as long as we’ve had.”
“We’re all really grateful to have had Marcus in our life for as long as we have”
An emotional Brad Stevens talks about the difficult decision to trade Marcus Smart
Stevens added that he believes Smart will have “a huge impact on that really good Memphis team” while adding that trading him was hard.
Smart has been around the Celtics for nearly as long as Stevens, who had been hired one year prior to when the Celtics had drafted Smart.
Jayson Tatum Promises Reunion With Marcus Smart
Following the trade, Jayson Tatum took to Instagram to pay tribute to his former teammate. In the process, Tatum vowed to not only play with Smart again but also win a title together.
“My dawg Forever grateful for you and how you pushed me and helped me along this journey. Never change keep being you, one of a kind can never be replaced! My brotha for life! We gone link back up one day and get us one no doubt about that! Until then, Much love brodie!”
From Jayson Tatum’s Instagram story:
Smart has been Tatum’s teammate ever since he came into the league in 2017. With the former now off to Memphis, Tatum is expected to shoulder more of the playmaking load.