Marcus Smart opens up on emotional Boston Celtics trade to Memphis Grizzlies
By Sam LaFrance
Just over two weeks after the Boston Celtics traded away Marcus Smart in a three-team deal that netted them Kristaps Porzingis and two first-round picks, the former Defensive Player of the Year was introduced as a member of the Memphis Grizzlies.
A mix of media members from Boston and Memphis gathered for a press conference in Las Vegas, as Smart opened up about the move. He even discussed his emotional reaction to the deal.
“I have cried because the special relationships I had with the guys,” Smart told Grind City Media’s Chris Vernon. “I grew up with Jaylen [Brown] and Jayson [Tatum], even Al [Horford]… When my mom passed away, they were there.”
Smart was sure to mention that he is proud of his time in green, even if he and his teammates didn’t accomplish their ultimate goal of raising Banner 18 to the rafters.
“Everything I accomplished, I left everything I had wearing that jersey out on that court,” Smart said, per The Athletic’s Jay King. “Although we didn’t win a championship in the big scheme of things I don’t consider my time there a failure. I helped rebuild that team at the time when I came in. And I left it better. So I’m very ecstatic with my time there but I’m excited for the future and what it holds.”
Memphis Grizzlies wanted to land Marcus Smart from the Boston Celtics for a while
As gut-wrenching as the news of the trade was for many Boston Celtics fans — myself included — it’s a bit calming to know that he’ll be going to a team that has coveted him for quite some time. During the introductory presser, Grizzlies GM Zach Kleiman revealed that Memphis had been eyeing the longtime Celtic for quite a while.
“When we started to put names up on the board, there was no one higher than Marcus,” Kleiman told reporters. “And this is, early on, this is the pie in the sky if there happens to be a way that Boston would engage on this. And obviously, there was a transaction that didn’t happen earlier in the day before the trade was agreed to with Boston. And you never know what could have happened if that possibility didn’t come together, but we had expressed a very high level of interest and Boston knew that Marcus is someone that we have felt passionately about being able to bring into our group.”
Smart spent nine seasons with the Celtics since being drafted in 2014. No. 36 appeared in 581 games for Boston, starting in 360 of them. Smart averaged 10.6 points, 4.6 assists, and 1.6 steals per game, while shooting 38.6% from the field and 32.3% from beyond the arc. Of course, his impact was felt on the defensive end of the floor, as he covered all five positions throughout his tenure.
The Celtics made several deep playoff runs with the 29-year-old on the roster — reaching five Eastern Conference Finals and one NBA Finals, all while never missing the postseason.
Had they gotten over the hump and won the franchise’s 18th championship, it’s not outrageous to believe Smart’s No. 36 would’ve been raised to the rafters.
For more on Smart’s Grizzlies introductions, check out the latest episode of the How ‘Bout them Celtics podcast where CelticsBlog’s Jack Simone and I break it down.