Marcus Smart

Marcus Osmond Smart (born March 6, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

He played college basketball for the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

Marcus Osmond Smart was born on March 6, 1994, in Flower Mound, Texas, to Billy Frank Smart and Camellia Smart, who died of myelodysplastic syndrome on September 16, 2018.

He has three older brothers: Todd Westbrook (deceased), Jeff Westbrook, and Michael Smart.

Smart attended Edward S. Marcus High School in Flower Mound, Texas, along with one of his future Oklahoma State teammates, Phillip Forte.

During his senior year, Smart averaged 15.1 points, 9.2 rebounds and five assists.

In high school, he achieved a record of 115–6 through three seasons and was a two-time 5A state champion.

Smart was also named a McDonald's All-American and was an ESPNHS first team All-American.

He went on to set a new Team USA U18 record for steals over a five-game period when he grabbed 18 during the 2012 FIBA Americas U18 Championships in Brazil.

Smart played youth football until the sixth grade and continues to enjoy playing tennis in his spare time.

Considered a five-star recruit by ESPN.com, Smart was listed as the No. 1 shooting guard and the No. 10 player in the nation in 2012.

During his freshman year at Oklahoma State, Smart led the Cowboys to a 24–8 record and they finished in third place in the Big 12 behind Kansas and Kansas State.

Smart averaged 15.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game and led the Big 12 in steals, where he recorded 99 and averaged 3.0 per game.

Smart and the Cowboys earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament that year, clinching a #5 seed in the Midwest Region.

During the first round of the tournament though, the Cowboys were eliminated by the #12 seed Oregon.

On April 17, 2013, Smart held a press conference in the student union at OSU and announced that he would not declare for the NBA draft and instead, return to OSU for his sophomore season.

Smart's 99 steals set a freshman record in the Big 12.

On November 19, 2013, Smart tied an OSU single game scoring record with 39 points leading his #7 Oklahoma State Cowboys past #11 Memphis.

Smart was subsequently suspended for three games and the fan agreed not to attend any further Texas Tech games during the 2013–14 season.

Later that season, Smart was named one of the 30 finalists for the Naismith College Player of the Year.

Smart was drafted with the sixth overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics.

On February 8, 2014, during a game at Texas Tech, Smart shoved a fan in the stands after a verbal altercation in the closing minutes of the game, and received a technical foul.

Reports after the game stated that Smart claimed the fan yelled a racial slur at him.

At a press conference the following afternoon, Smart would not comment on that element of the altercation, and coach Travis Ford chose not to address it.

The fan denied using a racial slur and stated that he called Smart "a piece of crap."

Audio from the incident confirmed the fan's account.

In the first game of the 2014 NCAA tournament, the Cowboys lost to Gonzaga.

Smart finished with 23 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and six steals, becoming the first player in tournament history to record 20 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and five steals.

During his two seasons at Oklahoma State, Smart averaged 16.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 33.1 minutes per game.

On April 7, 2014, Smart declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his final two years of college eligibility.

On June 26, 2014, Smart was selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics.

He joined the Celtics for the 2014 NBA Summer League, and signed with the team on July 10.

In just his fifth NBA game, Smart sprained his left ankle during a 101–98 victory over the Indiana Pacers on November 7.

He underwent an MRI following the game and was ruled out for two to three weeks.

After missing 10 games with the injury, Smart returned to action on December 3 against the Detroit Pistons.

The next day, he was assigned to the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League.

He initially came off the bench for the Celtics before starting games regularly in 2018 and becoming the starting point guard in 2021.

Smart was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year for the 2021–22 season, becoming only the sixth guard in NBA history to win the award.

He has also been named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team thrice and is a three-time NBA Hustle Award winner, winning it in 2019, 2022, and 2023.

Smart helped the Celtics reach the NBA Finals in 2022 before being traded to the Grizzlies in 2023.