Agreed. Year in and year out the Celtics publicly backed Smart and called him part of the core. They gave him the freedom to manage the responsibility and each year he'd show you just enough flashes of a consistent, smart passing, elite 3rd option, and then he'd go ahead and straight up tank a few games for you where now everything is out of sync.Roger Murdock wrote:I get the love for Marcus Smart. I do. He's tough as nails, he's a culture builder, nobody plays harder, he's a leader.
But ultimately Marcus Smart was the point guard for a team that always loses in the playoffs due to poor passing, ballhandling, decision making, and shot selection. Basically the point guard responsibilities are what's let the Celtics down time and again. While the Celtics might lose some grit and tenacity, what they actually need as a team is control and intelligence which Smart always lacked.
If the Celtics needed Marcus Smarts locker room leadership, and guys like Brown and Tatum and White can't pick that part up, then they were always screwed anyway.
I understood the trade overall even though I didn't like it that much. I thought Tyus made a ton of sense for them and wish they got him 1:1 for Smart and addressed big man depth elsewhere.
They gave him a fair shot, just like Raptors with DeRozan. Sometimes you can't just keep asking for another shot to be what's needed.
