With the goal of shoring up their perimeter defense, the Los Angeles Lakers agreed to a two-year contract with former NBA Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart.
Smart has dealt with some injuries over the past couple seasons, but he and the Lakers believe he is primed for a bounce-back year.
With Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves, the Lakers have their core trio and the idea is to find the right types of players to fit around them. Smart’s defensive intensity and attitude is something this team needs and he plans on bringing that.
In an interview with Allie Clifton of Spectrum SportsNet, Smart spoke about his fit on this Lakers team, believing he will bring exactly what this team needs:
“Very well, very well. I feel like what I bring, this team could use. And I think any team could use, but this team in particular. Because of the competitor that I am, and the competitive nature that this team is, I think I’m gonna fit very well.”
As he said, Smart is a big-time competitor who brings the energy and intensity any time he is on the court. He is absolutely fearless and willing to take on any challenge put in his way and has no problem doing all of the dirty work and whatever is necessary to help his team win. It is that attitude and relentlessness that made him one of the most beloved Boston Celtics players in recent memory and will likely endear him to Lakers fans just the same and that is a fit on any team.
Now set to enter his 12th NBA season, there are some questions about whether Smart can still contribute at that level, which also saw him make three All-Defense First Teams and whether his body can hold up throughout the year. But Smart is already hard at work preparing himself for what is to come and he plans on being a big piece of the Lakers’ success this season.
Marcus Smart believes Lakers stack up with top teams in the Western Conference
Once again, the Western Conference will be extremely stacked with the majority of the top teams in the league on this side. The Lakers aren’t viewed at the top with the likes of the Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets and, of course, the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder, but Marcus Smart believes this team is right there alongside them and has no ceiling.
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