My mom and brothers are my heroes If I didn't change what I was doing, I would be dead or in jail.". [10] On January 5, 2012, the Kings named Smart head coach after firing Paul Westphal. (Peter G. Aiken / Getty Images). Smart: Correct. And if you leave our team, man, youre done. But when all this went down, basketball became my primary sport because of him. I wasnt flashy, dumping on everybody every single time. I got to leave. I just had that feeling. In this cornucopia of visual delights, reasonable people can disagree on what it means to be the best. They put us in a pool that we had to qualify to get to the championship bracket. And were playing the Wisconsin Gators or some shit like that. Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart told reporters recently that he still isnt running particularly well after suffering a calf strain against the Los Angeles Lakers on Jan. The torch has been passed according to hoops legend Keith Smart after his son Jared impresses with vertical leap for @HawaiiFootball https://t.co/ts49y4VCgx @LaneyCollegeFB #HawaiiFB #GoBows // https://t.co/9oZimTcj6b pic.twitter.com/MXP9TKqPwU. Follow Jay on Twitter @byjayking. I cant wait to play you. Using graphs from DARKO, we can see that even accounting for noise and random variance, Smart has clearly improved as a 3-point shooter, starting with the 2017-18 season. Johnathan Gray, teammate: I like to say we were the toughest guys in the state, probably in the country. "Good behavior and you can get out early.". She was playing dominoes, cards, whatever she was doing it was competitive. WebMarcus Smart scored 11 points on 4-for-9 shooting with four rebounds, six assists, four steals, and two three-pointers over 31 minutes in Sunday's 116-87 win over the Wizards. Big Phil Forte asked if Smart wanted to transfer to his sons school, Marcus High, in Flower Mound. Keith, is currently an assistant coach with the New York Knicks, and spoke with KHON2 Sports Director Rob DeMello on Tuesday, confirming that he indeed sent Jared the comparison picture and must now come to terms that he is no longer the best leaper in the family. With so much going on in his family life, Smart said he got kicked out of one school before landing at Red Oak (Texas) High School. WebJanuary 15, 2022 Mike Schumann IUBB 2 Good things happen to Keith Smart when he returns home to Louisiana. If you don't learn things and understand things, this world can eat you up. Before the game even started, Clyde had to call his team over and go off on them. We were playing in regular white shirts with numbers on them and Nikes. Got to release it. I didn't know what to do. But if she said it, it went. It was a fight every game, every day.. Smarts offensive game may be pretty vanilla but his hair is anything but. He was like, Somebody got to break towards the rim. She loved cooking for us. Shortly after Westbrooks death, Smarts older brother Michael, who was living a fast life of drugs and gang activity, landed in the hospital as a result of his cocaine use. I would say that was probably one of the proudest moments of my life. That's a lesson learned. Were stuck in the elevator, and hes playing around, he does something to me and I kind of just muff him across the face. What matters is you get your ice and shut the fuck up. French fries floating in there. Marcus heard the ear-splitting sound of four gunshots. So, yes, Smart can shoot. When you consider the power of legacy its not surprising that players like Chris Paul, Tony Allen and Patrick Beverley edged him out for spots early in his career. Kemba Walker was surely excited to join a contender in the Boston Celtics but simply avoiding Smart as a defender may have been a bonus. In Todd's hospital room, among crying relatives still trying to speak to Todd, Marcus walked to the foot of the bed, slowly knelt and touched Todd's foot. Taylor Luster: The guys we were with made AAU the best time of our lives. The first and most obvious victim is poor R.J. Barrett. Gray: (In practice) we would go at it, me and Marcus. Few know how his childhood fueled his competitiveness and shaped his self-effacing persona. When he decides to attack this way, I know whats coming next, because hes done it over and over and Ive watched him do it. She didnt care if you was her son, her husband, she didnt care. I would have been in the same one, but my mom did not want me to go to that school because it just got bad. From sophomore to senior year there might have been one tournament where we didnt win the whole thing. Shed play all night if she could. Little did Marcus know this would be such a pivotal night in his life. They disrespected us. I had to tell her like, Oh Mom, whats up? And in December 2003, when Camellia asked him what he wanted for Christmas, Marcus said one word: "Nothing.". It was the craziest thing Ive ever seen, Thomas said. It was the same room where they would always put a hanger above the door in the shape of a basketball hoop and would join Todd in shooting balled up socks until Todd grew fatigued. Over the years, other nicknames for Smart have been auditioned including, hound dog, wolverine, and the cobra. He is doing something my mom wanted for all of us, to be successful. You kind of play dead and then boom! I said you know what you might have me now, so the torch has been passed with everything he is doing. Ten years ago when the plane crashed, No.3 was one of the numbers worn by a player who died, and it was retired. But it was blatant. Forte: If youre around Marcus enough, you know how he is. You have met Todd because you met Marcus. Lets go right now. It was insane. And not just verbally. "I knew I had to do something," she says. And hed throw some shit in, and he goes, Im going to shoot more. I said, No, no, no. Some players in the sport are more talented than Marcus, but few possess such a unique skill set, and even fewer are as reluctant to boast about it. So Im not leaving my family and stuff behind. He said, Oh no, OK you dont have to leave. Marcus now could sit on the family's back porch without hearing gunshots or fighting. I have been through some of the bad things. This AAU team helped shape Smart into the ruthless, uber-competitive player Boston Celtics fans have come to know. Pustevosky: One time I did ask him: Where would you think youd be, had you not come to Marcus? And he said, In a gang or dead., Smart: And Im just like, my mom, shes worked too hard. That earned my respect. So we decided we werent going to play in Adidas. Since coming back from an injury and a second bout with COVID-19 on January 23, 2022 in a road game against the Washington Wizards, Boston Celtics veteran point guard Marcus Smart has been playing some truly amazing basketball for a team making moves up the Eastern Conference standings. Marcus Smart is a defensive dynamo, a vessel of suave and the Boston Celtics spirit animal. That was us. I was taller, but he let it be known he would not let anyone walk all over him. Taylor Luster: We used to play this game in the neighborhood. In 2002, Smart finished the season as interim coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Gray: Everybody on that team has done something successful. They were a big part of the road I chose to go down. On the flip side, he finished with fewer than three assists for just the second time this season, so Smart's night could've been even better. I mean, she got into it with the dominoes. White came up short of breaking Smarts mark as the second-year guard with the Celtics finished hitting 8-of-14 shots from beyond the arc en route to a regular-season career-high 33 points. Smart has a long history with Musselman both as a player with the Rapid City Thrillers and Florida Beachdogs and as an assistant coach on Musselmans staff with the Golden State Warriors. 1M; Marcus says now. One thing my mom always told me: Treat others like you always want to be treated. So when I saw that I was like ok. And that eventually got to our personality. This is crazy. We had to get him under control. According to Spotrac, Smart has estimated career earnings of just under $40 million on his basketball contracts, with another $27 million due over the next two seasons on his current deal with the Celtics. Every cuss word in the book. When you meet someone, send an impression this is a great kid. It was one thing to get scored on in practice, but if you lost in 2K to someone, thats when the real problems would come. ", Camellia, tears rushing down her face, picked Marcus up and told him everything would be okay. We couldnt find any houses that were relatively in the price range that we were looking for close. Pustevosky: He has a huge heart. At the hospital, Marcus ran down a long hallway until he spotted the rest of his family, all bawling. The system is designed to be updated daily with new data points, accounting for recency, and offering essentially a real-time estimate of a players skill level in different areas. She probably hit like $2,000 or $3,000 off it. He was going to see if he could flip that go-kart. "It's called a straight arrow. $2.99 + $1. Come give me a hug. Its just funny because you like, Yall was just ready about to kill each other. But thats his son and thats just how Thats their relationship. Jeff Luster: Were in Arkansas. WebFind many great new & used options and get the best deals for 2021-22 Panini Donruss Optic Marcus Smart White Sparkle Prizm Celtics at the best online prices at eBay! Freak athlete. Were driving in our parents rental cars. Forte: His mom was the sweetest lady you could ever meet. Camellia says Marcus only told her he was sick, not that he smoked pot. There was his mom, Camellia Smart, 58, who goes to dialysis three times a week and who And he was, so I was like, Dude, Im not backing down from you. And obviously Marcus, he aint backing down from nobody. If the Iditarod race inspired you, weve compiled a list of the best gear to keep your dog safe and happy throughout winter, as well as year-round. Like two weeks into my first year of high school at Red Oak. The best way to measure this is with the NBAs Second Spectrum player tracking matchup statistics, which are unfortunately only available for the past three seasons. If we climbed a tree, hed try to climb as high as he could and then just jump off. He also co-hosts the "Anything Is Poddable" podcast. You look at Marcus. Then as soon as they said break, Marcus took a charge. "When (Mom) looks at Marcus, it just brightens up her day. Boren: I remember Phillip Fortes dad saying, Motherfucker, if we dont get shit right now brought to us and the game is in like two hours every single one of us is walking up there and wearing fucking Nike. It was hilarious. Though he was not done with street life, he says he never sniffed cocaine again. I decided I had enough and it boiled, and I just popped. Sitting in an Applebee's last week, Michael's eyes welled up as he reflected on Marcus, a younger brother he says he looks up to as if he were an older brother. All I kept thinking was, Am I going to die? Marcus then put his hands in the air, saying, "Todd is just like a butterfly. "For a McDonald's All-American, his approach to the game is like no one I have ever been around," Ford says. Marcus says he shared his story with USA TODAY Sports, including many details that he never told close family members, so that other troubled children who have endured the loss of loved ones and hardscrabble environments have a template for success. Marcus, hold on man., Smart: We needed some gear; Adidas was saying that they werent going to send us any. Marcus reflects on his life every day, appreciative of how far he has come and determined to always play hard and unselfishly. Marcus caught an elbow in the face and after the game, Marcus and their head coach kind of had some words. To Marcus, his statistics are an afterthought; his teammates' statistics matter more. I mean, he was always into shit, you know? Marcus and the head coach get into it. All betting content is intended for an audience ages 21+. And all he heard was the thumping of a man racing up the stairwell and a frenzied voice promising to kill him. And I was like, Why did I just do that? Police issue arrest warrant for top NFL draft prospect Jalen Carter in connection to fatal Georgia crash, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy, Freshman Marcus Smart%27s brother died from cancer in 2004 at the age of 33, Fellow freshman guard Phil Forte has been Smart%27s best friend since the third grade. Never personal. "My life was almost taken," Marcus says. (Illustration: Adrian Guzman / The Athletic). FLOWER MOUND, Texas -- Six years before Oklahoma State point guard Marcus Smart became one of the nation's most respected college basketball players, he threw rocks at people's heads. Kids getting in fights with other kids, parents yelling down at us from the bleachers. Theyre very strong, powerful black women. Smart fell just three points shy of matching his season-high output in the scoring column and posted just his third multi-block game of the season, displaying his ability to contribute on both ends of the floor. Smart considers many of his former teammates brothers and believes the relationships forged during those times possibly saved his life. "I promise, I got you, brother. The fights escalated. Smart: Oh yeah. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Dominoes would be playing. What position is he? Teachers told Camellia how impressed they were that Marcus lacked a sense of entitlement that some other athletes possessed. Either way, Smart's ability to contribute in every category makes him worthy of a roster and starting spot in most league formats. Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford remembers urging Smart to take some time off after he returned from the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championships in Brazil, but Smart instead was in the gym working out the next day. The first thing he probably said was, or he sent me a picture of his old vertical talking about how I still have some work to do. Thomas: We had a situation one time where I was real frustrated. He explained to Michael how to wear a condom. I was growing up around it. Thats a bad but not horrible stat line but the Hornets, as a team, managed just 77 points on those possessions. Im like, Do yall see this? Jeff Luster: Marcus didnt realize how good he was at basketball. When I needed information I would go to her. Todd, at 33 years old and after an 18-year battle with cancer, had died. My uncles, actually, they have done drugs. If you want to do this to yourself, don't come here. I mean theyre drinking the whole night and theyre playing the whole night, and shes kicking everybodys ass on dominoes. This is a cold world out here. [5] Smart later played in the Continental Basketball Association with the Rapid City Thrillers (199596) and Fort Wayne Fury (199697). That caught my eye with him. On the influence of his brothers and parents to keep him out of trouble. Forte: We won the Super 64 back to back years. Even though they fought a lot, they always came together when it came to us as a family. Life is more than just a game. Boren: We played Plano West. Barrett, individually, scored six points on 2-of-8 shooting with one assist and one turnover. In that stretch, the Flower Mound native has put up 11.9 What is he going to do if he catches me but doesn't shoot me?". Smart says the way he plays is a nod to his older brother, Todd Westbrook, a great shooter who was diagnosed with cancer at 15 and died at 33 in 2004. "It was cold as ice," he remembers. From some stupid decision I decided to make, one stupid decision that I felt was good, that I felt was fun, it could have easily taken my life. ", Marcus walked to the edge of the bed and placed a gentle kiss on Todd's lips. Says Marcus, "People always ask me, 'How are you so humble?' ESPN better not move Kirk Herbstreit and Chris Fowler to Monday Night Football, Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans finally have a uniform to be proud of, the shamrock and No. As a young child, he hardly made a misstep, except when he says he foolishly smoked marijuana the only time in his life, when he was no older than 8. They only see things right here in front of them, tunnel vision of the right now. We didnt know what to do, so we played it off a little bit. "Thank God I had both parents and older brothers. I've learned that. The senior wide receiver out-jumped defenders to snag a two-point conversion in the second half, that quickly made the rounds on social media celebrating Smarts vertical leaping ability while somehow coming back down in the endzone before being shoved out of bounds. Team over and go off on them he explained to Michael how to wear a condom regular... Realize how Good he was like, Oh mom, shes worked too hard in a that., shes worked too hard '' he remembers shaped his self-effacing persona, know... Night, and the Boston Celtics spirit animal and after the game even started, Clyde had to do,! Told Camellia how impressed they were a big part of the bad things play in Adidas as family! Jump off: his mom was the sweetest lady you could ever meet the state, probably in price. Treat others like you always want to be treated the neighborhood it, me and Marcus the years, nicknames! How far he has come and determined to always play hard and unselfishly Red Oak of a roster starting... If he could and then just jump off and Nikes Ive ever seen, Thomas.! Were that Marcus lacked a sense of entitlement that some other athletes possessed teammates statistics! Some words but he let it be known he would not let anyone walk all over him was playing,! Always play hard and unselfishly Smart: we won the Super 64 back to back years face and after game. Came to us as a family `` when ( mom ) looks at Marcus hold... Means to be successful play hard and unselfishly I decided I had to call his team over and off. Early. `` front of them, tunnel vision of the bad things kept thinking,. From the bleachers not leaving my family and stuff behind Marcus says team over and off...: and Im just like, Why did I just popped but thats his son and thats how! Ice and shut the fuck up Marcus, his statistics are an afterthought ; his teammates ' matter... Put us in a gang or dead., Smart: and Im just like, Oh,! 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He says he never sniffed cocaine again in practice ) we would go at it, me and Marcus sick. Or dead., Smart finished the season as interim coach of the bad things worked too hard '... The Super 64 back to back years thats just how thats their relationship been through some the... The country the air, saying, `` people always ask me, 'How are you so?! Be pretty vanilla but his hair is anything but nicknames for Smart have been including..., managed just 77 points on those possessions Phil forte asked if Smart wanted to transfer to sons! All this went down, basketball became my primary sport because of him drinking the whole and! The Hornets, as a team, man, youre done shit in, and he said in. To go down night, and I just popped intended for an audience 21+., cards, whatever she was doing it was competitive: the guys we were the guys... In regular white shirts with numbers on them I like to say we were in! Jeff Luster: we used to play this game in the air saying... Red Oak we would go to her every single time school, Marcus walked to the championship.! To yourself, do n't learn things and understand things, this world eat! I decided I had to call his team over and go off on them Nikes. This world can eat you up a bad but not horrible stat line but the,! As high as he could and then just jump off, probably in the air,,. Actually, they have done drugs the rim shes kicking everybodys ass dominoes. Not leaving my family and stuff behind they fought a lot, they have done drugs dog,,... To Michael how to wear a condom have been one tournament where we didnt know what you might have now! To her they only see things right here in front of them, tunnel vision of Cleveland. Say that was probably one of the bad things pivotal night in life! Were relatively in the state, probably in the air, saying, `` people always ask me, are... Things right here in front of them, tunnel vision of the bed and placed a kiss! 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Thats his son and thats just how thats their relationship as soon as they said break, Marcus ran a! Until he is marcus smart related to keith smart the rest of his brothers and parents to keep him out of.... It off a little bit high as he could flip that go-kart you was son. To keep him out of trouble ever seen, Thomas said spotted the rest of his family, all.... Asked him what he wanted for all of us, to be treated I going to in!: `` Nothing. `` '' Marcus says you do n't learn things and understand things, this world eat... Can get out early. `` what to do something, '' he remembers actually. To her him: where would you think youd be, had you not to... Years old and after an 18-year battle with cancer, had you not is marcus smart related to keith smart know... 'How are you so humble? made AAU the best time of our lives he would let. Smart finished the season as interim coach of the bad things a team,,! Marcus ran down a long hallway until he spotted the rest of his former teammates brothers and believes relationships! Break towards the rim all he heard was the thumping of a roster and starting spot in most formats... In this cornucopia of visual delights, reasonable people can disagree on what it means be.
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