The Lakers signed Marcus Smart in the off-season with the two sides agreeing to a two-year deal worth $11 million. 

Smart had been battling injury issues over the last two seasons in Memphis, which limited him to 29 games before he was traded to the Washington Wizards at the 2025 NBA trade deadline. He played just 15 games for the Wizards before agreeing to a buyout in the offseason. 

Joining the Lakers gave Smart the opportunity to settle into a role alongside LeBron James, Austin Reaves, and Luka Doncic where he could utilize his strengths on defense and be a secondary contributor on offense next to three strong playmakers and scorers. 

Smart has done exactly what's been asked of him, averaging 9.5 points, 2.9 assists, 1.4 steals, and nearly half a block a game. 

On Tuesday against the Pelicans, Smart had one of his most complete performances of the season, finishing with 10 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals, and 3 blocks. 

Speaking after the game, head coach JJ Redick said of Smart, "You guys like to talk about guys' roles and dividing plays among roles. A star player, their role is to be the star. Whatever way they star, their role is to be a star. Smart, has starred in his role.

"For what we need from him, consistently throughout the year, he's played great basketball for the last five to six weeks. That starts on the defensive end. He's been tremendous for us defensively. There were a couple of points there where you kind of felt the energy of the group starting to wane and he makes a big defensive play. We go out in transition and score. He gave us life tonight."

Smart was huge for the Lakers in the fourth quarter against the Pelicans, who led 78-76 going into the final frame. 

In the final six minutes, with the Lakers down 94-92, Smart knocked down two free throws, assisted on a Reaves three, came up with a steal, assisted on a LeBron layup, knocked down a three of his own, and came up with two blocks in the final two minutes. 

His plays in the fourth helped propel the Lakers to victory. 

With low leverage situations removed, the Lakers have a +6.2 net rating when Smart is on the floor compared to a -2.7 net rating when he's off, a nine point swing. 

As expected, the defensive side is where he has made the biggest difference. With him on the floor, they have a defensive rating of 113.7. That number jumps to 121.1 when Smart heads to the bench. 

Smart is years removed from winning Defensive Player of the Year in 2021-22, but he's still a smart and engaged defender who can make up for some of the shortcomings of the rest of the Lakers' defense.