Grizzlies GM Explains How Marcus Smart Trade Came Together

The Grizzlies really wanted Marcus Smart, and they eventually found an opportunity to strike.

Memphis entered a three-team deal with Boston and Washington at the 11th hour, which allowed Kristaps Porzingis to pick up his player option and join the Celtics. The blockbuster deal also included Smart, who reportedly was “blindsided” by his move to the Grizzlies.

Speaking with the media at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, Memphis general manager Zach Kleiman pulled back the curtain on how the organization ultimately landed the 2022 Defensive Player of the Year.

“When you come out of the season, you take a step back and you start to put things up on the board,” Kleiman told reporters, per MassLive. “What are the aspirational best-case scenarios for who we could potentially add to this group? How do we elevate the approach that we’re taking? Who are the individuals who can really drive winning and fit in a meaningful way with our group?

“When we started to put names up on the board, there was no one higher than Marcus. And this is, early on, this is the pie in the sky if there happens to be a way that Boston would engage on this. And obviously, there was a transaction that didn’t happen earlier in the day before the trade was agreed to with Boston. And you never know what could have happened if that possibility didn’t come together, but we had expressed a very high level of interest and Boston knew that Marcus is someone that we have felt passionately about being able to bring into our group.”

Smart recently expressed his appreciation for the Grizzlies and their sincere interest, as well as excitement about the opportunity to start a new NBA chapter with a legitimate championship contender. But make no mistake, the veteran guard experienced a great deal of sadness upon learning of his Boston exit.