One of the biggest acquisitions the Lakers made this season was signing Marcus Smart.
It’s no secret that the Lakers had defensive struggles last season. Yes, a month after the Luka Dončić trade, the team had a 106.9 defensive rating, leading the NBA. However, their form dropped. They ended the season with a defensive rating of 113.8, placing them in the middle of the pack.
In the playoffs, they had trouble with Minnesota’s elite perimeter play and then lost Dorian Finney-Smith in free agency, arguably their best defender, so defensive upgrades were needed.
The Lakers certainly got that done by adding Smart, a former Defensive Player of the Year and a player with three First Team All-Defense honors.
Most importantly, though, his new teammates are thrilled to have him on their side. The Lakers are well aware of Smart’s defensive prowess, having faced him for many seasons now.
During media day, the three most important players on the Lakers — Luka, LeBron James and Austin Reaves — all talked about being happy that they don’t have to deal with the defensive irritant any longer.
“Obviously, against Marcus, I play him a lot and he was always guarding me,” Luka said in an interview with Spectrum SportsNet. “So I thank God I don’t have to do that anymore. Obviously, in practice, he’s going to guard me, but in the games, he doesn’t guard me anymore, so I’m excited.”
Luka had plenty of battles with Smart during Marcus’ Boston days when he was at his peak as a player. Given that Luka is the No. 1 offensive threat on any team he plays on, it’s no surprise that he noticed just how elite Smart was defensively.
Dončić not only has spoken fondly of Smart, but he was also part of the recruiting pitch that contributed to him choosing the Lakers over the Suns this summer.
Bron, entering Year 23, is also glad that Smart won’t be on the other side, making him work extra hard to get his shots off.
“Got tired of playing against Marcus Smart,” LeBron said to Spectrum SportsNet. “We got a lot of battles. We got a lot of battles, especially when we were in the Eastern Conference.”
LeBron wasn’t done showering Smart with praise.
“You bring in a championship-caliber player like Marcus Smart, who’s been in the thick of things, has been in big games throughout his career,” LeBron said. “We know all the years that he had in Boston and just having that winning mentality, doing whatever it takes, diving for loose balls, holding teammates accountable.”
With Bron, Luka and Austin all rejoicing having Smart on their side, it shows just how much they value him and how respected he is amongst the rest of the league.
Smart is one of those classic players you hate to play against, but love when he’s on your team.
Now the Lakers have Smart and can benefit from all the things that make him great.
Smart will likely be sharing the floor with the Lakers trio of Austin, Luka and LeBron a lot this season. We’ll get to see what it looks like when the Lakers have a lockdown defender roaming the perimeter, ready to shut things down.
And, most important to the Lakers’ stars, we’ll get to see him alongside them and not across from them.
