Marcus Smart’s On-Court Impact Unforgotten By Ex-Celtics Teammate

Marcus Smart grew as both a fan- and teammate-favorite throughout a nine-year run with the Boston Celtics.

Before being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies in part for Kristaps Porzingis during the offseason, Smart was the undisputed defensive leader in Boston. Whenever a hustle play needed to be made, Smart was there. Never did an instance come where he wasn’t willing to lay it all on the line, leaving an unforgettable mark still appreciated to this day by ex-teammate Sam Hauser.

“On the court, the way he played, it was tenacious,” Hauser said, according to Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston. “He was competitive. He was always the first one to the floor for a loose ball. You really appreciate the way he played. He really represented Boston.”

When it came to hustle, Smart was unmatched.

Smart was never unwilling to do all the dirty work, whether it’d require stepping up to draw offensive fouls or taking on defensive assignments much larger than the 6-foot-3 veteran. The Smart experience as a whole made it difficult to digest a Celtics team without the 2022 Defensive Player of the Year.

Albeit much improved all across the floor, the Celtics always had an edge when Smart sported Boston’s threads. He didn’t back down from anyone and in many cases, Smart’s defensive excellence was contagious. It appeared easy for Smart to ignite a team-wide flip of a switch to turn the intensity up a notch and play with a never-quit mindset.

While struggling to deliver that same impact in Memphis, Smart recently suffered an ankle injury that’s projected to keep the 29-year-old sidelined for multiple weeks, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.

That rules Smart out from Sunday’s Celtics-Grizzlies contest.