Lakers Officially Sign All-Defensive Guard to $11 Million Deal

Via a team press release, the Los Angeles Lakers have officially announced their decision to sign a key three-time All-Defensive Teamer using their $5.1 million biannual exception for 2025-26.

After negotiating a buyout with the Washington Wizards, former Boston Celtics Defensive Player of the Year guard Marcus Smart inked a two-season, $11 million deal with L.A. The Lakers cut guards Shake Milton and Jordan Goodwin to open up space under the NBA's first luxury tax apron and accommodate Smart.

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Longtime Lakers insider Jovan Buha shared L.A.'s full statement on the Smart deal via X:

The Lakers announce they have signed Marcus Smart. pic.twitter.com/d5ZjFqcbZ5
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) July 22, 2025

"Adding a player like Marcus Smart to our roster allows us to compete at the highest level," L.A. team president and general manager Rob Pelinka said in the presser. "Marcus epitomizes what it means to prioritize winning above all else — whether that's making huge plays on the defensive end or hitting critical shots in key moments of the most intense games."

Smart was a critical figure for several pre-championship Celtics clubs with All-Stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. During his most successful run with Boston, he saw the team advance to the 2022 NBA Finals, where it fell to the Golden State Warriors. The Celtics traded smart to the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2023 offseason.

The 6-foot-3 Oklahoma State product, 31, has struggled mightily with his health since the 2023-24 season. He has suited up for a combined 54 healthy games across the past two years, for a woeful average of 27 available contests between the Grizzlies and Washington Wizards.

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"He knows and understands playoff winning and will be a key leadership voice in our group," Pelinka added. "Surrounding our stars with two-way players like Marcus is critical to our overall vision of how we want to play and win next season. This is an exciting player acquisition, for sure."

Splitting last year between the Grizzlies and Wizards, Smart averaged 9.0 points on .393/.348/.761 shooting splits, 3.2 dimes, 2.1 boards, and 1.1 swipes a night in 34 bouts (seven starts). He may no longer quite be at his athletic peak, he can still hold his own as a perimeter defender in certain circumstances. Hopefully, he'll stabilize the Lakers on that end of the hardwood.

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