As the news broke that the Marcus Smart of the Boston Celtics won the 2022 Defensive Player of the Year award, praise began to pour in for the 28-year-old guard.
Smart has always been known as a defensive specialist but has consistently fallen short in his bid to become the first point guard since 1996 to earn the prestigious individual award, until now. En route to being recognized as the best defender in the NBA, Smart had to beat out competition from the likes of Rudy Gobert, Bam Adebayo, and Mikal Bridges, who all had stellar seasons on the defensive side of the court.
Still, Bridges, who finished as the runner-up in the DPOY voting, was gracious in defeat and sent words of encouragement to Smart via Twitter shortly after the award had been announced.
Congrats to Marcus Smart fr ! Happy they start realizing it aint easy guarding mfs on the island every night ! Very much deserved … I appreciate everybody that was rockin wit me lol we’ll be ok😭 its a blessing to even be apart of the convo
“Congrats to Marcus Smart fr! Happy they start realizing it ain’t easy guarding mfs on the island every night! Very much deserved … I appreciate everybody that was rockin wit me lol we’ll be ok. It’s a blessing to even be a part of the convo,” Bridges wrote on Twitter.
Adebayo Didn’t Take the Snub So Well
Unlike Bridges, Adebayo wasn’t gracious in defeat, and blasted the voting panel’s decision, blaming his lack of TV appearances for the apparent snub.
“It’s disrespectful, obviously. I feel like I can do anything that two out of the three can do, besides not being able to teach height. All three of them play on TV more than me, so I would expect that. They get more TV games, they get more exposure, and people like to talk about them more. Nobody wants to talk about us, so it’s whatever at that point,” Adebayo said during a recent press conference, “I feel like that’s why a lot of dudes do get a lot of awards, in my opinion. They’re always on TV, getting to show their talent, and so happen to have good games.”
Shockingly, Adebayo didn’t make it as a finalist for the DPOY award, despite being the defensive anchor for the Miami Heat all season. The New Jersey native has been exceptional this year, especially in terms of switching onto the perimeter and also rotating over to protect the rim.
However, Smart has continually proven his value as a defender throughout the season, legitimately guarding players at every position and being the Celtics’ primary point-of-attack defender. And logically, when you’re the best defender, on the best defensive team in the NBA, you deserve to be in the running for the Defensive Player of the Year award.
Gary Payton Surprised Smart
What better way to find out you’ve been named the 2022 Defensive Player of the Year, than to have Gary Payton – the last guard to win the award, break the news. The former Celtics guard was present at the team practice on Sunday to hand over the award to Smart, and also to give a little speech.
“You’re a guy that I think reminds me of myself. Everybody asks me about it all the time and it’s you. You play that D the way you’re supposed to. You play with a chip on your shoulder and some heart,” Payton told Smart in front of his cheering teammates and coaches.
A special moment today celebrating the heart and soul of our team, @smart_MS3 ☘️
After receiving his award, Smart gave a short speech of his own, crediting his teammates and coaching staff with continually pushing him towards greatness.
“First off, I definitely want to thank you, guys. My coaching staff, my teammates. It’s not easy playing in this league full of guys like Jayson and Jaylen who score the ball the way they do. Getting the recognition on that defensive end and trying to guard these guys every night,” Smart said.
Hopefully, this award spurs Smart and his teammates forwards as they bid to stretch their lead over the Brooklyn Nets to 2-0 on Wednesday, April 20.
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DPOY Runner-Up Sounds off on Marcus Smart’s Win