Marcus Smart Rumors

LeBron James, Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, Maxi Kleber and Jaxson Hayes are in the final year of their contracts. Austin Reaves has a player option for next season, but he’s expected to see what he can earn in free agency. The Lakers can offer him the most — up to five years and $241 million. Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart also have player options. When a team is going through some struggles — much like the Lakers, who are just 7-8 since Reaves went down with a calf injury on Christmas — playing time and points can become major issues for players looking for new contracts. “I’ve been here for four seasons now and every year it’s almost the same but it’s different,” Rui Hachimura said. “You have to survive too, so I get it, I understand it. I think we talked about before the season winning is going to help. So, we got to focus on that and everything is going to come out.”

Los Angeles Times

They’re two games into an eight-game trip, with their next game Saturday night in Dallas. It means they have to compartmentalize the business of the NBA and the games they are paid to play. “It is tough. I mean, you got guys fighting for contracts, fighting to stay on the team and you got other guys who are secure and got theirs and kind of understand where they are,” Marcus Smart said. “But at the same time, we’re all professionals and we got to come out and do our jobs no matter what. So, the human element does come into play sometimes and you just got to be able to snap out of it quicker than what we are doing.”

Los Angeles Times

Dave McMenamin: “It's difficult. Because you just don't know, you build a relationship with the guy to the left and to the right, and then he could possibly be gone. Or you could possibly be gone.” - Marcus Smart on the long road trip leading right up to the trade deadline

x.com

Rush: Marcus Smart tosses an errant lob to LeBron that lands in the stands, and then he says, "My bad, GOAT." Robert Horry found it amusing, lol. #NBA Threads

bsky.app

After the game, Marcus Smart made it clear that needs to stop, even if they have a case. “It definitely doesn’t help. [When] you think you got fouled or a call that should’ve been called, instead of getting back, we’re talking to the officials a lot. That definitely doesn’t help,” Smart said. “I don’t think that has anything on why we are losing. We do a good job of getting to the free throw line. Obviously, you want to get there more, but that’s just how the game has been called. We have to be able to adapt to it and understand that we’re just not getting there. The calls aren’t being called for us, that’s OK. We got to play on it then onto the next round.”

Lakers Nation

In the end, the Hornets kept the momentum they stole from the Lakers, rolling to a 135-117 win at Crypto.com Arena. The Lakers’ defense couldn’t slow down LaMelo Ball in the second half and it was unable to stop the Hornets from scoring 20 three-pointers. As a result, the Lakers (24-15) lost for the fourth time in five games. ‘I mean, it doesn’t matter who it is. Doesn’t matter the team, doesn’t matter the player,” Marcus Smart said. “If they were shooting 20% [before], they’re shooting 50%. And it’s unfortunate, but that’s part of the game. It’s tough. We got to figure it out. We got to play with a little bit more urgency on that end, especially, and kind of impose our will.’

Los Angeles Times

Following the Lakers’ loss to the Hornets, Marcus Smart affirmed his belief that the team already has what they need to turn things around and finish out the month strong. “For us, the schedule is a little bit chaotic right now. Everybody’s going to go through it at some point in the season,” Smart said after the loss to the Hornets. “We got to figure it out. Nobody is gonna come save us, but we don’t need anybody to come save us. We got enough of what we got here. We just got to dig down. . .and try to play our game.”

Clutch Points

What do you make of the team’s ups and downs? Marcus Smart: “That’s part of it. That’s part of the game and part of life that we live and the sport that we play. That’s no different than living life. There are going to be ups and downs. So it’s just about making sure that we don’t get too high on the highs or too low on the lows.”

essentiallysports.com

What is your comfort level with where the team is headed? Marcus Smart: “It’s pretty comfortable. We know we have some things to work on. We’re still working. But we’re starting to get it. There are times that it doesn’t look great. But we’re starting to get it. You’re starting to see that we are picking up on it.”

essentiallysports.com

What are the main things to work on? Marcus Smart: “For us, it’s about personnel. We got a lot of guys out here figuring it out and being able to understand the chemistry with certain guys. It’s about knowing what they like to do on both ends. It’s not just about offense. It’s also about defense. It’s about knowing guys’ strengths and weaknesses, and trying to put them in the right position to help the team and help them succeed as well.”

essentiallysports.com

What’s the LeBron-Luka teammate experience been like so far? Marcus Smart: “It’s refreshing. It takes a lot off my plate to try to guard those guys, let alone having to guard both. But now they’re on one team. So that definitely feels good to be on the other end of it when they’re making a basket. It’s just great. Their IQs are high, especially on the offensive end. Defensively, we’re still working. But it’s there. We’re just trying to figure it out. But they’ve been great. You can definitely see why they are the players that they are in this league. It’s for a reason.”

essentiallysports.com

Dave McMenamin: The Lakers came back to win in Nola, 111-103, for their third straight victory. LeBron 30 pts 8 reb 8 ast 2 stl; Luka 30 pts 10 ast 2 reb 2 stl; Ayton 18 pts 11 reb 3 ast; Smart 13 pts 6 reb 4 ast. LAL heads to San Antonio tomorrow for 2nd night of b2b.

x.com

Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart’s passion for defense stems from what he has defended against during the dark days of his youth. Today, the 2022 NBA Defensive Player of the Year is defending the league’s best guards while using his foundation to help cancer victims and aid troubled inner-city youth. “As a defender, you’re always at a disadvantage when it comes to the game and sport of basketball. It was the same for me in the game of life,” Smart, 31, told Andscape. “It’s always been a challenge. It’s always been difficult. I’m the youngest of four boys. I’ve always had to fight for what I want. I lost my brother at a young age. I lost a couple family members. I lost some friends. And at a young age, I had to deal with and see things that you probably shouldn’t see. “And that is what defense is. Defense is a disadvantage. The mentality has to be that you can’t take s— from anybody. You have to be able to adapt when things are thrown at you. There are going to be a lot of obstacles coming your way.”

Andscape

The 12-year NBA veteran’s platform has also afforded the opportunity to help the less fortunate through his YounGameChanger Foundation. The mission of Smart’s wide-ranging foundation is to empower inner-city youth through education, sports, STEM education and mentoring. Moreover, YounGameChanger Foundation’s offers inspiration and relief to pediatric cancer patients and their families by offering support, fun distractions, opportunities and life-changing experiences. “The YounGameChanger Foundation is a foundation helping to find a cure for cancer and it’s also helping to mentor inner-city kids,’’ Smart said. “I’m the youngest of four boys. My youngest brother was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 15. He battled up with it until he was 33 years old where he succumbed to it. All my experiences and resources were put to youth into trying to help my brother get better and cope with what he was dealing with. And then when I get older my mom got sick. So, I wanted to start something to help. “My brother was the originator for me to start it. It’s really just to help families, mom, dads and people who are indirectly affected by it and spending a lot of time with people affected by it.”

Andscape