Celtics guard Marcus Smart was named the 2021-22 NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
Smart, 28, is the first defender to win DPOY since Hall of Famer Gary Payton received the honor late in the 1995-96 season. The NBA legend dropped the award during Celtics training and was twice named to the All-Defensive First Team.
"You're the one who reminds me of myself. Everybody's asking me about it, it's you," Payton told Smart. "You play that D the way you should, you play it with the chips on your shoulder and some heart."
After a famous tweet in March stating that "only defenders without an initials GP are allowed to win DPOY", Smart is now joining elite companies as second PG and eighth outside player to earn the accolade. The 6-foot-3-tall two-legged defender is also the second Celtic to win DPOY since Kevin Garnett in 2008.
A tenacious defender who is often responsible for assigning opponents' best players, Smart has been the heart and soul of Boston's defense over the past few seasons. In the 2021-22 season, the Celtics ended the game with the league's highest defensive efficiency (106.2) and kept their opponents' shooting percentages and three-point shooting rates at the lowest in the NBA.
Smart was the sixth-pick rookie of 2014 and has been part of the starting line-up since the 2018-19 season. The Oklahoma State player made 216 appearances in his 259 games, averaging 11.5 points, five assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game during that time. Boston have ranked in the top six in defensive efficiency in three of the last four seasons.
Monday's historic news added even more heat to Smart's already thrilling 24 hours, recording the assist that led jason Tatum to a deadlock in his first game against the Nets. With Tuesday's second game approaching, Smart will soon be celebrating before refocusing on the task of locking in Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant – another testament to his impressive defensive prowess and versatility.