SAN FRANCISCO -- The Celtics felt in vital need of change with well under one month to go before the NBA trade deadline. Since the team's nightmarish collapse in New York dropped them to 18-21, they'd gotten revenge at home over the Knicks, won a pair of Jaylen Brown-led efforts over the Pacers and escaped a thriller with a short-handed Bulls team behind a pair of Robert Williams III free throws. The process, if nothing else, improved. Ime Udoka tweaked his rotation to implement more spacing. Yet fourth-quarter collapses followed against the Hornets and Trail Blazers as January came to a close.
Marcus Smart had missed six straight games, including those two losses, in COVID protocol and with a quad contusion, rejoining the team for a quick trip to Washington with the stakes rising and team governor Wyc Grousbeck noticeably present. Smart told all his teammates he loved them. The guard's intentions at the time weren't clear -- did he sense a trade coming? Did it mark a shift from his grinding leadership style toward a more forbearing approach?
Whatever the inspiration, the Celtics scored one of their most dominant wins all season, 116-87, and Boston's offense assisted on 26 of its 40 baskets, turning defense into offense and previewing the dominant brand of basketball they'd play the rest of the way led by the defensive player of the year and point guard. The Celtics returned to .500 that afternoon, and never fell below that mark again with a six-game win streak that inspired the team to buy at the trade deadline.
Al Horford recently called it the stretch where he started to believe, seeing the good habits and play string together even if it came against lower competition like Washington and a Kings team they'd lead by 50 points shortly after.
"It's just being me," Smart said on Wednesday in reply to a question from Boston Sports Journal. "When I told those guys I loved them, I meant it. We've all been through some things individually, Al, Jaylen, a couple of those guys that's been here with me. My mom passed and they flew all the way with me from Dallas to the funeral. So that was for real. It wasn't no tactic, it was nothing, that was me being who I am and it was being true.
"We have a special bond outside of basketball, and to be able to go to war with those guys makes that bond even stronger. Me just being me, and helping my teammates in any way I can. I know what it feels like to be going through something individually, and just be keeping it in or struggling with it. I just wanted to let them know that we can express it here, talk about it, whatever we need. We're brothers and that's what it is, so whatever I can do to help my teammates, I'm going to do it. If that's talking to them, sitting down. If that's chewing them out or getting on them for something that they know, we all know that they should not do, and vice-versa for me, and I think that's what makes our bond special."
While the Celtics would never split Jayson Tatum and Brown, even if the team's early-season lapses continued, it wouldn't have been surprising if Boston eventually moved on from Smart to shake up the roster, locker room dynamic and on-court production. Instead, the team bought into Smart's pass-heavy production, averaging 5.7 assists and 2.2 turnovers per game in his first nine games back from his ailments, only taking eight shots each night and converting 53%, while the Celtics won eight. They narrowly squandered the ninth to the Hawks, losing the game in the fourth quarter, but the process had already started trending in the right direction.
Brown later praised Smart's dedication to playing point. Derrick White arrived at the deadline, not as a Smart replacement, but as another layer to the facilitating-by-committee, pass-heavy offense that would assist on 65% of its playoff baskets through the NBA Finals. Boston almost wanted two Smarts on the floor.
Udoka first mentioned Smart desiring that opportunity to lead the offense at Summer League last year, saying that alongside improving Brown and Tatum's playmaking, the Celtics would try to put the ball in Smart's hands more often and take advantage of his passing. He started referring to the three players as pillars in the same sentence. Whatever the skill gap between the players, Smart wanted to fill the leadership void on the team after the departure of Isaiah Thomas, Kyrie Irving and Kemba Walker at his position. He waited his turn and asked to do more. Udoka would let him, even with the experience inevitably including a behind-the-back dribble drive layup in Game 1 of the Finals, knowing Smart would more often than not become an on-court extension of the coaching staff with the pace and ball movement they desired.
The benefit to Smart playing point came in the contrast visible between both Finals teams. While the Celtics hunted Steph Curry and took him out of the game by hunting that mismatch and forcing him to foul five times, Golden State couldn't do the same even when Payton Pritchard checked in. Boston has no weak links defensively, a defining difference between this team and almost every other since the Brad Stevens era began. Many of the teams boasting star lead guards have to protect that player on the other end. Smart-led lineups had always boasted better defensive metrics going back years.
The Nets, Bucks and Heat all had those exploitable rotation players who got rendered nearly unplayable or exhausted by the Celtics' offense. Udoka noted how the Celtics play as a team, not overly reliant on one player and capable of winning a game where Tatum shoots 3-for-17. He also noticed the Warriors, however rested, worn out trying to guard Boston's layers of attack.
It took time to develop that. Switching proved a pain for nearly a month until the team got it. Offensively, the first obvious example of Smart getting after his teammates came after the team's infamous early-season collapse, squandering a double-digit lead to lose by double digits in the fourth quarter against the Bulls. He quietly credited Brown and Tatum's efforts to improve as playmakers, but his challenge rang louder. Teams knew the duo would be attacking late in games, and played them to make passes they weren't always willing to make. The public criticism irked Stevens and Tatum alike, both preferring it remained private.
"Guys are who they are," Udoka said this week, reflecting on that moment. "Marcus is emotional as a player and in the things he says and the way he plays and wears it on his sleeves. He may go about it a different way than others, but he is who he and we encourage other guys to speak up. The thing about the Chicago game was that nothing said publicly had not been said privately. Although it may rub some people wrong because it was said publicly, it was something we were working on behind the scenes every day in film sessions, one-on-one sessions and we all understood the areas we needed to improve. That was what it was and we moved past it pretty quickly, but Marcus as well as the others, their leadership, being vocal, has been invaluable to the group. Him and Al are the more vocal two, but Jayson and Jaylen have really grown in that area and so we love them for who they are and let them be who they are, and I think that mix of leadership and different styles benefits our team."
Udoka knew early that his switching-heavy scheme would benefit Smart, who embraced the ability to communicate and call out actions now critical to beating the Warriors. He noticed the Celtics sagging behind on Golden State's screening action, it'd be hard not to, allowing Steph Curry to hit 6-of-7 from three in the first quarter. Smart told the team in a timeout they couldn't guard like they did in the Heat series, telling the big men to start high and chase into the paint and the Warriors fell to 12-for-32 (37.5%) from three the rest of the way after a 7-for-13 start.
Smart led huddles throughout this postseason, usually sharing his two cents while Udoka and the staff discuss their adjustments on the side before everyone comes together. He even did it while injured in Game 1 against the Heat, wearing his pink short set, and now playing through that same quad ailment stemming back to January, a sprained foot and ankle all on his right side. His return from the ankle sprain powered a comeback from down by 15 points to within one late against the Heat in Game 3, nearly inspiring an all-time memorable moment.
Instead, he provided all the good in Game 7, settling down the offense from a recent flood of turnovers and slipping into playmaking opportunities, before a late string of bad missed jump shots by Smart nearly allowed Miami to pull off an unthinkable last-minute win if Jimmy Butler hit his transition three-point attempt. The highs and lows make Smart a fun comparison to Draymond Green, who shot 2-for-12 in Game 1 against Boston and boasted about how the Warriors dominated after. Smart says the Celtics go as he does. Both teams wouldn't have it any other way.
"I think he really thinks the game, you can see it the way he plays. The way he teaches guys and how he's commanding attention in huddles and going through the Xs-and-Os," Green replied to BSJ on Steve Kerr comparing him and Smart. "You see it all. I think he does a great job of that. Marcus Smart, and I've been speaking on this a lot, his number one attribute or positive on him coming out of the draft was his leadership and that he's a winner and a true point guard. The qualities that he has, especially on that side of the ball, are those of a leader. When you see him with the Xs-and-Os and teaching, are those of a point guard. I think he's continued to grow into his leadership. There were times earlier in his career where most people wouldn't know how to handle it and so then you end up getting a bad rap and it's like this guy's doing too much of this, too much of that. He's continued to grow into the leader he's become and it's been good to watch."
Smart would join Green among the defensive player of the year award winners when the season concluded, whatever he lacked in stats made up for by his communication role, width of impact and strong reputation around the league. Players and coaches repeat the same lines about Smart, heart-and-soul, one of the best defenders and now D-P-O-Y. Smart says part of earning that respect, specifically from his teammates, is giving it.
That landed Smart on the bench for the start of the fourth quarter as Brown manned the ball on a 7-0 comeback charge, Payton Pritchard and White provided floor spacing and the Celtics started to thrive with Smart off the floor. Smart returned with 3:47 remaining and the Celtics ahead by six points, Udoka later praising Smart for amicably sitting out while his teammates cooked. He soon caught a kick-out from Horford following an offensive rebound and buried the second-chance three. Then, Tatum, as he had all game, fired a diagonal pass to Smart popping away from Tatum after setting a screen to send two defenders Tatum's way. Smart cashed in, and handed Tatum his 13th assist -- a Finals debut record.
"I think that we just all got comfortable with each other," Brown said, also cracking a smile at the memory of Smart's love you line. "Through experience, we've been playing together for so long you learn each other's tendencies and traits and how to talk and speak to each other and how to basically be a better teammate. I think that has probably been the biggest contribution. Over time you learn, you make mistakes, you argue, you fuss, you fight, but once you've been together for so long with a core group and you've been in the Celtics organization as long as Smart has been, you find different ways to be an example and I think that's what he's done."
Here's what else happened in the NBA this week...
Boston (lead 1-0 vs. Golden State): Three wins from their 18th championship after the biggest fourth-quarter swing in NBA Finals history, 27 points on a 17-0 run, stole home court from the Warriors and shellshocked their defense with passing and shooting. They're reaping the benefits of the Derrick White trade, getting him out of his massive shooting slump last round by putting him in the short roll against Miami, his floater getting him going in Game 1 against Golden State before he hit five three-pointers. He's a defensive force, able to shake screen and off-ball action to slow Steph Curry to 1-for-3 and two points in his six minutes guarding him. Between White and Al Horford, who scored 11 points in the fourth quarter, this series is already a feather in Brad Stevens' cap for his two signature moves in his first season as GM.
Golden State (down 0-1 vs. Boston): The Warriors drew a difficult matchup in the Celtics, a big, physical team that can pass the ball and occasionally shoot at Golden State's level. Boston is also the only defense head-and-shoulders above the Warriors' own unit, which held Jayson Tatum to 3-for-17 shooting, but generated 21 three-pointers through Derrick White, Al Horford and Marcus Smart.
Draymond Green shook off what he seemed to view as an aberration of a performance, saying the Warriors dominated most of Game 1, but Boston held Steph Curry to one three-pointer after his first-quarter outburst and inflicted five fouls on him, Green shot 2-for-12 and the Warriors trailed at halftime. Golden State may need to go all-in on scoring with its Jordan Poole lineup and force the Celtics to chase them for points, but they have to choose between Poole, sturdy interior presence Kevon Looney and bench defenders like Andre Iguodala and Gary Payton II, who did not play in Game 1 despite being available (elbow).
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Charlotte: The Hornets have reportedly boiled their head coaching search down to offensive masterminds Kenny Atkinson and Mike D'Antoni, perhaps not the perfect choices for a team that struggled mightily on the defensive end and had no trouble scoring, but two coaches who could potentially provide the structure to propel LaMelo Ball from an occasionally great player to a consistently great one. Atkinson, a Warriors assistant competing in the Finals, will reportedly meet with Hornets owner Michael Jordan after emerging as the frontrunner.
Chicago: Terrifying news for the Bulls beyond the impending Zach LaVine free agency: Lonzo Ball still isn't right after his left knee surgery in the winter and could potentially miss opening night next season if it requires further surgery. Ball still hadn't gotten on his feet when the Bulls' offseason began, shut down in his rehab as Chicago entered the postseason due to pain.
Cleveland: The Pistons, Pacers and Spurs have emerged as possible destinations for restricted free agent Collin Sexton, who could become the Cavaliers' most useful player to improve its roster through trade this summer. Lauri Markkanen, Cedi Osman and Isaac Okoro all have varying levels of value and provide matching salary opportunities, as does Cleveland legend Kevin Love entering the final year of his contract.
Dallas: Jalen Brunson's father, former NBA guard Rick Brunson, joined Tom Thibodeau's staff as an assistant coach, a sign of the team's long-forecasted pursuit of the free-agent guard. The Mavericks still hope to retain Brunson and may have final say if the guard is looking for the most money possible, since New York can only carve out roughly $20-million in cap space.
Detroit: The Pistons are the ascending team with money this offseason ready to make a splash, connected to Deandre Ayton, Collin Sexton and Mitchell Robinson so far, but signaling they won't break the bank for any of the free agents who will be closely watched by their own teams. Robinson is the only unrestricted free agent of the three, and perhaps the best value as New York looks to pursue Brunson.
Houston: As the NBA Draft nears, the most wide open top of the board in recent memory is eyeing Jaden Ivey of Purdue, originally thought outside of the class' elite top-three of Chet Holmgren, Paolo Banchero and Jabari Smith Jr. The Rockets are reportedly increasingly interested in adding Ivey to a backcourt already featuring Kevin Porter Jr. and Jalen Green. The Thunder, picking No. 2 before the Rockets, also signaled Ivey interest, an explosive guard with elite scoring skills and pedigree.
Miami (lost 3-4 vs. Boston): Fell just short of the NBA Finals, one shot short in fact, as Jimmy Butler missed a pull-up three for the win with the seconds ticking away following an 11-0 Heat run in the final three minutes. Butler received an east finals MVP vote in the loss, averaging 25.6 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 3.4 APG and 2.0 SPG on 47.7% shooting battling knee soreness with little help around him.
New Orleans: Entering a critical offseason for the franchise where they'll negotiate Zion Williamson's future after a lost third season, C.J. McCollum joined ESPN's NBA Finals coverage and confirmed he and teammates have been in touch with Williamson. He intends to join teammates like McCollum, Willy Hernángomez and Jaxson Hayes across a variety of locations to workout, including Europe.
New York: Jake Fischer outlined an increasingly unlikely pursuit by the Knicks to acquire Jalen Brunson that would require carving out Alec Burks and Nerlens Noel's contracts and hoping Brunson wants to come to New York and have his own situation enough to accept less money than the Mavericks can offer. The Knicks wouldn't turn toward Collin Sexton if they miss on Brunson, but they would make sense for D'Angelo Russell if the Timberwolves decide not to extend the star guard after his inconsistent postseason results.
Philadelphia: The NBA will review its All-NBA format, Adam Silver said before the NBA Finals on Thursday, after Joel Embiid missed All-NBA First Team status despite earning more votes than Jayson Tatum and finishing No. 2 in MVP voting behind fellow center Nikola Jokic. Although other top players have fallen to the second team in the past due to their positions, those have grown so fluid over the past 10-20 years that fitting a point center like Jokic into the same position as a low-post banger and shooter like Embiid feels antiquated. A new system isn't straightforward though, Silver noted, seeming especially committed to the media selecting the teams, though he'll assess that system too.
Portland: Nike founder Phil Knight submitted a $2-billion offer to buy the Trail Blazers from the Paul Allen trust of the team's late owner, which announced in the aftermath of its offer that the team is not for sale. Adam Silver seemed confused by the statement at his pre-Finals media availability, asserting that the Trail Blazers will be sold. He also asserted his preference that the franchise remain in Portland, where Damian Lillard has led a decade-long run of success driving heavy attendance in a city with one major sports team. Lillard remains committed to the franchise despite a murky rebuild ahead.
Utah: Reports finally surfaced roughly one month after Utah's season ended that Quin Snyder could end his eight-year run of success with the Jazz after a turbulent final few seasons. It's probably not the only change the franchise will see this offseason, with Jake Fischer's hypothetical that the Heat could offer Tyler Herro and a package of picks. It's a difficult deal to pull off with Herro on his rookie deal and Mitchell making max money, but the stars boast comparable stats and a James Harden-like package of future first-rounders could set the Jazz up well for a needed reset. Duncan Robinson would fill much of the salary needed, but any Heat-Jazz trade would need a third facilitator.
