Marcus Smart signed a two-year, $11 million deal with the Los Angeles Lakers in July 2025 after a buyout from the Wizards, and the return on that contract has exceeded what the box score suggests. Smart is averaging 9.5 points and 2.9 assists, but the Lakers are 32-19 when he plays and his 3.8 deflections per game rank in the top five percent of all NBA guards.
In Tuesday’s 110-101 win over the Pelicans, he had 10 points, seven assists, and four steals — the kind of stat line that explains why Luka Dončić said Smart has been the key to nearly every win this season.
Smart has built the Lakers’ defensive identity around a physicality mantra that the roster has adopted as its own
Smart has repeated the same message since his first media sessions in Los Angeles: “The toughest team sets the rules. It essentially means the more physical team determines the way the game will go. Sometimes we do it and then we stop doing it… we just have to keep building.” That language has become the team’s unofficial identity, and the play on the court has backed it up. In back-to-back wins over Sacramento and New Orleans this week, Smart recorded nine steals and three blocks while hounding ball-handlers at the point of attack.
Before Smart arrived, the Lakers’ perimeter defense ranked in the bottom third of the league. His presence has stabilized that group, not because he is locking up opposing stars for 35 minutes a night, but because he sets a defensive tone that the rest of the rotation follows.
His 1.4 steals per game are the highest mark for a Lakers guard since 2021, and the deflection rate tells a similar story — he is disrupting passing lanes and forcing ball-handlers into decisions they do not want to make.
The partnership with Dončić works because Smart handles the defensive burden that allows LA’s leading scorer to conserve energy
Dončić is leading the league in scoring at 32.4 points per game, and the offensive load he carries is enormous. Smart’s value in that context is that he takes the toughest perimeter defensive assignment so Dončić does not have to expend energy on both ends before the fourth quarter. It is a simple division of labor, but it matters over 82 games with a 37-24 record on the line.
Dončić acknowledged the impact directly after Tuesday’s game. “I kind of knew what he brings to the table,” Dončić said. “But his leadership on the bench, in the game — it’s very big for us. He’s been the key to our wins almost every time.” Head coach JJ Redick added that Smart “gives the group life” during the moments when games get chaotic, which is as clear a description of a veteran floor general’s role as a coach can offer.
Smart’s name came up in trade deadline speculation but surviving it cemented his role in the Lakers’ closing lineups
The Lakers went through a mid-season slump in January and Smart’s name surfaced in trade discussions as the front office weighed its options. Smart handled it the way a veteran with his experience would — he acknowledged the uncertainty without letting it affect the locker room. “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,” Smart said in January. “It’s part of the business, unfortunately… but we’re all professionals.”
He was not moved, and the decision to keep him looks correct. Smart has gone from a buyout signing that most viewed as a depth add to a permanent fixture in Redick’s closing lineups. The Lakers are 37-24 overall and significantly better when Smart plays 25-plus minutes. His 80.7% free-throw shooting has also made him reliable in late-game situations, which removes one of the historical knocks on his offensive game. The $11 million contract looks like one of the better value signings in the league this season, and the Lakers’ defensive improvement since his arrival is the primary reason.