Smart, Celts agree: award or no, there’s no better defender in the NBA

Among the Boston Celtics, the sentiment is unanimous — there is no better defender in the NBA than Marcus Smart.

While veteran Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart might not often be among a game’s high scorers, few players on his or any team impact winning in the way that he does, and that was the case yet again in Boston’s Game 3 win against the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.

Now up a commanding three-game lead over their Eastern Conference rivals ahead of their Sunday appointment for Game 4, the Celtics owe Smart in no small part once again for the win.

Celtics Head Coach Brad Stevens agreed, singing his praises of the Oklahoma State product after the Friday night win.

“[Smart] was amazing,” said Stevens.

“The rebounds, reading the pass on the one trap, stealing it [and] leading the break for us. He just made a lot of winning plays, he still hasn’t seen the ball go through the net like he’s used to, but doesn’t even affect him. The guy’s all about one thing, and that’s winning.”

“He was great again tonight,” added the Celtics coach.

“Man, [Smart is] so special,” agreed four-time All-Star point guard Kemba Walker, also speaking after the Game 3 win.

“Defensively, he’s just he’s a monster, and he’s willing to take on any challenge, he’s willing to do anything it takes to win a basketball game.”

“He doesn’t care, and you just need a guy like that. He’s our glue guy, whenever he’s playing like that. Man, he’s just special man. It’s really kind of unbelievable. That man can literally guard anyone in the world, and I just can’t see how he’s not in Defensive Player of the Year consideration, man. I just can’t see it.”

“He’s unbelievable,” raved the UConn product, who has himself been picking up the slack left by the absence of teammate Gordon Hayward, out for four weeks or more with a badly-sprained ankle.

Night in and night out, if there’s one thing in this life that’s as dependable as death and taxes, it’s winning plays in basketball games by Boston’s Marcus Smart.

“This is what I do,” explained the man himself.

“I’m able to make plays without the ball in my hand, without scoring. But I can scoop the ball when I need to, when the team needs me to. We’ve got guys that get their own, so it doesn’t require me to do a lot of scoring. So, I find other ways to help the team, and that’s me just being me, the best defensive player in this league that I know I am, to my teammates know I am, and opponents know.”

So, when I come into this game I’ve got to do that every single night,” added the defensive specialist.

And while it’s true the Texan has been on a bit of an offensive slump, it’s in part due to the offensive explosion of teammates Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown — and Smart learning from his earlier-career mistakes.

Earlier iterations of Smart would have tried shooting their way out of the funk; this version picks his spots and waits for the game to come to him — and if the offense isn’t falling, he has plenty of ways to impact winning.

Not that that’s news to anyone who follows this team.

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