The best defense at the peak, why no one wants it?

After the free agent market opened, the Wizards have actually been working hard to trade Smart, but so far, no team's next company has much interest in this veteran. According to the current market reaction, it is likely that Smart will enter the vision of these teams until the second half of the market is waiting for some teams to strengthen and lag behind.

We turned the clock back to the 2021-22 season. At that time, Smart was still a core player who was competitive enough, playing for the favorite Celtics, averaging 12.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.7 steals per game, which not only helped the Celtics reach the finals, but also was elected as the best defensive player of the season.

For the defender, it is not easy to win the award for Best Defensive Player. Before Smart, the last defender to win DPOY was Gary Wedding in 1996, and the previous one was Michael Jordan in 1988. Whether it is Gary Wear or Jordan, they are all super players at the NBA's all-time level.

But for Smart, his situation is a little different. A year after winning DPOY, Smart was abandoned by the Celtics. In the 2023 tripartite transaction, Smart went to the Grizzlies, while the Celtics won the championship puzzle Porzingis, and the Wizards made a difference in it, winning players such as Thales Jones, Gallinari and Muscala.

In the same year, the Celtics also got Holiday in another deal. They are also a defender who is good at defense. It is embarrassing that Smart of the Best Defense failed to help the Celtics win the championship, but Holiday, who joined the team halfway through, did it.

Afterward, Smart's situation is not very good.

In the 2023-24 season, Smart played 20 games for the Grizzlies, averaging 14.3 points, 2.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.1 steals per game, shooting percentage of 43.0% and three-point shooting percentage of 32.2%. Judging from the original intention of trading Smart, the Grizzlies' idea is not difficult to understand, which is to form an internal and external defense line around Smart and Jaren Jerry. But unfortunately, the Grizzlies not only encountered the ban on Morant during the season, but the team was also troubled by injuries. The Grizzlies only won 27 wins throughout the season.

Later to the 2024-25 season, the Grizzlies gradually recovered from the previous year's injury wave and made it to the playoffs, but all this has nothing to do with Smart. Due to the impact of ankle injury, Smart has only played 19 games throughout the season, starting in 6 of which, with an average of only 8.7 points, 2.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game, shooting percentage of 35.8%, three-point shooting percentage of 32.2%, and real shooting percentage of only 50.4%.

In addition to poor performance on the court and injuries affecting attendance, the Grizzlies have also found a more suitable replacement than Smart: Scott Pippen Jr. Compared with the former, Pippen Jr. is younger and can play a more stable role in the outside threat on the offensive end. And Smart naturally had no chance. In a three-party transaction, Smart went to the Wizards.

Looking back at the transaction content at that time, the Grizzlies got Marvin Bagley and Johnny Davis, with two future second rounds attached; while the Wizards got Smart, Ryan, Kobe Jones, and the first round of 2025 from the Grizzlies; and the Kings got Jack Laravia as a third party.

Summary: The Grizzlies spent two first rounds to get Smart, and when they sent Smart away, they took another first round. In less than two years, the Grizzlies spent three first rounds on Smart. Judging from the trading market conditions this season, the three first rounds are already quite valuable bargaining chips.

Since joining the Wizards, Smart's performance has remained sluggish. He has only played in 15 games in total, and has entered the starting lineup in only 1 game. His average data is only 9.3 points, 1.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game, and his average playing time is even less than 20 minutes. From a realistic perspective, Smart's current performance in weak teams like the Wizards has become a water dispenser on the edge of rotation.

Looking back at Smart, his advantage lies in his defense, he is good at creating offensive fouls from his opponents, and he can also face multiple positions in screen replacement, but he is a small defender after all, and his defensive influence is limited, so it is naturally difficult to support the team's entire defensive system like the core of the inside.

Even when I won the best defensive player back then, it was largely due to the Celtics' top defensive system. Although Smart has been selected for defense for three times, to put it bluntly, this is not his own credit.

And in addition to defense, Smart's flaw is quite obvious on the offensive end. He is unable to organize the ball, nor is he able to end stably, and he lacks the stable shooting required by the team. His career three-point shooting percentage is only 32.4%. Although he is inefficient in offense, he often has high profile in the game. During the Celtics, we often see him ignore the double-Tanhua and choose to take the ball on his own. Such results often end with the team's defeat.

Another point is that after leaving the Celtics, Smart's professional attitude and desire to play seem to be gradually declining. The most obvious thing is the change in body shape. Of course, this may be related to the environment of different teams. If he can switch to a team with winning genes, the situation may be different.

As personal performance declined, Smart's contract evaluation also began to change. Three years ago, he was elected the best defensive player. The four-year contract of 76.5 million was an absolute value contract. Now his annual salary has reached a premium of 20 million. The Grizzlies even took advantage of the first round to send him away. And now it may be quite difficult for the Wizard to deal with him painlessly.

As a player in 1994, Smart is still at his peak at the age of 31 this year, but his strength is no longer as good as before.. From the role of the team spirit during the Celtics era to the fact that no one cares about it in the market today, this situation is really a bit sad.

Of course, from a league perspective, this is also the trend in today's NBA. After all, basketball is a sport that scores more than who scores more points. Even if it is excellent in one aspect, if there are obvious shortcomings, it is really difficult to gain a foothold in the league. Even the best defensive player is still to be given up.