Smart has been incredible for the Lakers.
The Los Angeles Lakers weren't supposed to be here.
Missing Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, the fourth-seeded Lakers entered the playoffs as underdogs against a Houston Rockets team that finished 52-30 and had Kevin Durant back in the fold.
Two games later, the Lakers own a 2-0 series lead, and Marcus Smart has a lot to do with why.
Smart dropped 25 points on 8-of-13 shooting in Tuesday night's 101-94 Game 2 win at Crypto.com Arena, drilling five of his seven three-point attempts while adding seven assists and five steals.
He set the tone from the opening tip, pouring in 14 first-quarter points and making life miserable for Durant on the defensive end.
But what stood out most was what Smart said after the game about the role he's taken on behind the scenes.
Smart's Message to His Teammates
"I'm constantly talking to the staff to see what I can do to help," Smart said. "The coaches aren't out there and I try to be that quarterback out there for the coaches, relaying messages and getting everybody together. To be able to have JJ Redick trust me, and then to have this team and these guys trust me to be able to do that, it's something that I'm grateful for."
That trust has been building all season.
Smart averaged 9.3 points and 3.0 assists per game across 62 regular-season appearances, playing the steady veteran role the Lakers needed off the bench.
But when Doncic and Reaves both went down on April 2, the former Defensive Player of the Year stepped into the starting lineup and embraced a much bigger responsibility on both ends of the floor.
Why Nobody Saw This Coming
The Lakers finished 53-29 and claimed the Pacific Division title, but losing their two best scorers right before the playoffs felt like a death sentence.
Houston had one of the best defenses in the league and a young core led by Amen Thompson and Alperen Sengun that had been built for a deep playoff push.
Instead, the Rockets have struggled to shoot and execute, going just 7-for-29 from three in Game 2 while Durant finished with nine turnovers.
Meanwhile, the Lakers have gotten contributions from everywhere.
LeBron James put together 28 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists in Game 2 at 41 years old, continuing an absurd stretch of playoff brilliance that spans two decades.
Luke Kennard followed up his career-high 27-point Game 1 with another solid showing, and the collective defensive effort has suffocated Houston's offense through two games.
The Series Shifts to Houston
The series heads to Toyota Center on Friday for Game 3, and the Rockets desperately need a response at home.
For the Lakers, the formula has been pretty easy.
LeBron leads, the role players deliver, and Smart keeps everyone connected as the on-court quarterback JJ Redick never knew he needed.
If Houston cannot find answers soon, this series will be over before most expected it to really begin.