The Boston Celtics headed to Memphis on Monday night to take on the 7-3 Grizzlies.
They fought hard and it wasn’t easy but the Celtics pulled out the win and now stand at 7-3 themselves as the third seed in the East.
The 109-106 game was an intense one and it featured a few wonderful performances from both teams.
Jayson Tatum put up 39 points while Ja Morant scored 30 of his own.
Marcus Smart put on a passing clinic in Memphis. #Celtics pic.twitter.com/n2TCI7yNva
— Adam Kaufman (@AdamMKaufman) November 8, 2022
However, it was Marcus Smart of the Celtics who gained the most attention on Monday because of his fantastic passing skills.
Again and again, Smart found his teammates and helped them score.
In the end, he had 15 points and a whopping 12 assists.
Smart looked smooth as silk throughout the evening with a number of great passes.
Making plays like this is never easy but it’s even harder against a team like the Grizzlies.
Playing Smartly
Smart is one of the best passers in the league right now.
Seeing him perform as he did on Monday is even more impressive because his team was facing off against the Grizzlies.
They are a team that is fast, energetic, and never steps down from a tough fight.
Watching Smart’s highlight reel from Monday, you see how Smart was able to duck and weave through the suffocating defense coming from Memphis.
Despite the best efforts from the Grizzlies, Smart was still able to make his passes count.
Smart’s number of assists per game has risen in 2022-23.
Last season, he was putting up 5.9 assists a game.
This season, he’s scoring an average of 6.6 per contest.
That is a career-high for Smart and it shows that he has never been so tuned in and in sync with the rest of his squad.
NEXT: The Celtics Are On The Hunt For Another Player