It was more than clear that the Boston Celtics needed to make a big move.
They’ve been on the fence of winning an NBA championship for way too long, but they couldn’t seem to get over the hump.
That’s why making a run for Kristaps Porzingis made a lot of sense.
However, losing Marcus Smart is something they simply couldn’t afford, at least, according to Celtics beat writer Gary Washburn.
Recently, Washburn called out the team for pretty much giving away their locker room leader and vocal presence, stating that there’s a void in that area now (Legion Hoops).
“You lost a guy who’s going to tell everyone where they need to be. Now, the leadership void is huge.”
— @GwashburnGlobe on the Celtics trading Marcus Smart to Grizzlies pic.twitter.com/jZGs5XTs20
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) September 20, 2023
That’s perhaps the biggest loss that comes with trading Smart, not to mention the fact that we’re also talking about a player who’s two years removed from winning the Defensive Player of the Year award as a combo guard.
Smart has never hesitated to get in his teammates’ faces, and while that hasn’t exactly translated into success in terms of a championship, he’s been instrumental in getting the team over their so-many bumps and humps over the past five years or so.
The Grizzlies got a great leader, and someone who’s going to tell it as it is and will hold Ja Morant accountable for his actions off the court, which is something they desperately needed in that locker room.
They have a lot of young talent, but reports stated that they didn’t exactly respect Steven Adams as a veteran, and they’ll now have Smart and Derrick Rose to listen to.
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