Boston Celtics: 3 reasons to love the Marcus Smart extension
By Jack Simone
It is now official — Marcus Smart will be a member of the Boston Celtics for the foreseeable future. The fan-favorite inked a four-year, $77 million contract extension to stay with the team.
Barring a trade, Smart will now be in Boston for the next five years of his career. Unless Ime Udoka starts Dennis Schroder, he will be the starting point guard for the Celtics.
There are a lot of mixed opinions on the deal, as Smart’s status with the team has been up in the air in recent months. Some people still love Smart, while others want him gone yesterday.
Well, considering how important he is to the organization, this extension is an absolute blessing, even for people who aren’t a fan of Smart. Here are 3 reasons why everyone should love the extension.
Reason to love the extension of Marcus Smart No.1) A tradeable contract
This is the one and only reason that is tailored to the people who don’t like Marcus Smart. For those who want him off the team, this extension could be seen in a positive light.
If the Boston Celtics chose not to extend him this year, they would have been forced to either trade him at the deadline or simply let him walk. Now that he is under contract for a while, they have more flexibility in making that decision.
His extension averages out to around $19.25 million per year. This is a very tradeable contract in the NBA, especially considering how much value Smart could hold for certain teams.
The Bradley Beal dreams are still alive and well regardless of Smart’s status with the team, but this also gives the Cs another avenue of trading away cap space.
So, for those hating on Smart, here’s the one reason to not hate the deal.