Boston Celtics: Grading each player’s first half performance
By John Ryan
Marcus Smart
Grade: A-
Easily one of the more impressive NBA storylines over the past few seasons is Marcus Smart becoming a reliable 3-point shooter. Early in his career, he was one of the worst in the league, shooting 25 percent, 28 percent, and 30 percent from 2015 through 2018 respectively.
This year, Smart is up to 35 percent from beyond the arc and is doing it at a high volume with 6.5 attempts per game.
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Smart’s ability to shoot has opened up the floor and made it much easier to leave him on the floor during crunch time. Smart has always been an impact player down the stretch because of his defensive prowess, but in years past his inability to hit shots has made leaving him on the floor a risk. Now, he’s shown the ability to hit big shots on offense while constantly making winning plays on the defensive end.
Smart is the heart and soul of this Celtics team and he’s making a case to be the first Celtic named franchise captain since Rajon Rondo in 2014. He’s a defensive player of the year candidate and guards multiple positions well. His ability to switch onto bigs is invaluable to the defense Brad Stevens employs.
Evaluating the importance of a guy like Smart is really hard because he does all the little things so well. The way he plays is infectious and he can always be counted on to energize his teammates or the crowd. Watching him play basketball is truly an experience like no other.