Marcus Smart Reveals Truth About Nearly Joining Lakers Before Celtics

Marcus Smart shared a very unexpected story about almost joining the Lakers.

Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart (36) and Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) embrace after the game at Staples Center. The Lakers defeated the Celtics 117-102. Mandatory Credit: / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Before Marcus Smart joined the Memphis Grizzlies, he was often noted as the heart and soul of the Boston Celtics. However, before he even joined the Celtics, there was actually a very high chance that he was about to be a member of the greatest rival - the Los Angeles Lakers.

During an episode of Theo Pinson's Run Your Race podcast, Marcus Smart revealed a story about how it was a coin flip between getting drafted by the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers. This isn't an exaggeration either, it was quite literally decided by a coin flip.

"I knew it was between the Lakers and Celtics because those were the two I was meeting with and my agent kept saying that they was trying," Smart said. "But Boston, they were tied in that record that year, so Boston and them flipped for a coin - Boston won it, so they got sixth [draft pick]. So, I could have easily been in LA, easily been in LA. To go to the Celtics, was crazy. It's one of the most prolific organizations in sports, in general."

Marcus Smart was drafted sixth overall in the 2014 NBA Draft. If the Lakers had won that coin flip, he would have joined a roster of Kobe Bryant, Jordan Clarkson, Jeremy Lin, Nick Young, Jordan Hill, and a very rough Lakers squad that only won 21 games. However, it would have been Smart the chance to play with Kobe Bryant, which is something young every player dreamed of.

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