Former Oklahoma State Star Expected to Stay in Memphis This Offseason
The NBA offseason is filled with surprises and big moves, but a former Oklahoma State star appears to be staying put.
Last offseason, former OSU guard Marcus Smart was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies. After back-to-back 50-win seasons, Memphis looked at Smart as a key piece for a contender in 2024. However, the Grizzlies’ injury-riddled season ended with only 27 wins as they missed the playoffs.
Smart was not immune to Memphis’ awful injury luck. He played only 20 games, averaging 14.5 points, 4.3 assists and 2.1 steals. Despite missing a career-high 62 games last season, Memphis is looking to bring him back in the 2024-25 season, as Yahoo’s Jake Fischer reported on Friday.
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Although he has not proven himself a great fit in Memphis yet, Smart was one of the best defenders in the league throughout his first nine years in Boston. With the Celtics, Smart won Defensive Player of the Year in 2022, becoming the first guard to win the award since Gary Payton in 1996.
He helped the Celtics reach the NBA Finals that season and also earned First-Team All-Defensive nods in 2019 and 2020. Smart also consistently improved as an offensive player in Boston, averaging a career-high 6.3 assists in his final season there.
Before going to Boston, Smart played two seasons in Stillwater, which helped him get drafted No. 6 overall in 2014. He helped the Cowboys to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances alongside future NBA guard Markel Brown.
In the 2012-13 season, Smart had one of the best freshman seasons in OSU history. Smart averaged 15.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists and three steals. Those numbers helped the Flower Mound native earn Big 12 Player of the Year and Big 12 All-Defense honors while being named a consensus All-American.
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IVAN WHITE
Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.