The Washington Wizards made an intriguing move last trade deadline by bringing in a renowned league veteran.
In the midst of their full-scale rebuild, the franchise landed the service of Marcus Smart via a three-team deal that saw the departure of Kyle Kuzma.
Smart, 31, joined the Washington Wizards following a season and a half filled with ups and downs for the Memphis Grizzlies.
Plagued by injuries during his time in the Grind City, the former Defensive Player of the Year warmly embraced his brand-new beginnings of being in D.C.
The Wizards’ decision of acquiring Smart is matched with their goal of continued development for their young nucleus.
A seasoned player, Smart already witnessed plenty of highs and lows throughout his 11-year run in the NBA. He holds a solid experience of being on a winning situation, a core member of the Boston Celtics, helping the franchise establish itself as an Eastern Conference powerhouse.
Beyond Jordan Poole, no other Wizards player has seen the most out of Marcus Smart’s significance and arrival. At his 2024-25 season exit interview, the Washington star made it sure to give him his well-deserved flowers.
“There are not many people like Marcus that come around. And if you want to be a winning team, if you want to be a competitive team, if you want to be a team that establishes a culture, you need a guy like Marcus,” Poole said.
“A lot of people, a lot of players, have specific skill sets. Some people are athletic, some people can shoot. Some people can pass.
“Marcus’ energy, Marcus’ leadership, his impact on the game is an elite skill set that he has, and you could tell from day one that a lot of the guys, a lot of the coaches in the organization, were able to feed off his energy.”
After a challenging first campaign for them since his major departure from the Golden State Warriors, Poole managed to bounce back this season for the Wizards.
Averaging a career-best 20.5 points to go with 4.5 assists and 3.0 boards, Poole earned solid consideration to be an All-Star for this year.
As he aims to further elevate and finally be a bona fide star, Poole simply sees Smart’s steady guidance and voice as beneficial
“Something I thought was really dope is that the fans and the environment and the city also fed off of his energy as well, which is really good to collaborate with the young energy that we have going on now,” Poole added about Smart.
“I’m a big fan of Marcus, and I was glad to finally have him teach me how to guard as opposed to him, guarding me all game.”
With Washington vying to assure that their young, promising talents will head into the right direction, they certainly didn’t make a mistake by identifying Marcus Smart as a vital leader.
