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Boston Celtics shooting guard Marcus Smart is one of the toughest players in the NBA. The rugged defender is never afraid to mix it up with opposing players and is always the first to dive onto the floor for a loose ball.
Smart has that old-school mentality, which is why he says he would fit in perfectly back in the old days of basketball when contact and tussles were the staples of the league:
“Back in the '60s, '70s, my mindset and the way I play would be perfect. They play like that every game,” Smart told Mirin Fader of Bleacher Report. “That's just what it is! Exactly! I think we kind of lost that in today's game. Everything's become real cute. Everybody's scared to go to the rim. Everybody's scared to get hit. Everybody's scared to touch.
“I thrive on the contact. Contact is in my nature.”
Marcus Smart has had dust-ups with DeMarcus Cousins, LeBron James and Jimmy Butler before. He's not scared of anyone. Kyrie Irving may be the best player on the Celtics, but you can make a case that Smart is the most important player since he brings energy and intangibles you can't teach.
In 57 games this season, Smart is averaging 8.3 points, 2.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists, but you can't judge his value based on numbers and reading box scores because a lot of what he does doesn't show up on the stat sheet. The only way you can see how valuable Smart is to the Celtics is by watching a game and seeing what he does on a nightly basis.
