Marcus Smart was shocked by trade, after Celtics told him he was safe
BOSTON -- Marcus Smart knows that the NBA is a business, one where moves must be made and feelings can't always be considered. Still, the veteran point guard didn't love the way his trade out Boston went down last week.
Speaking with The Boston Globe's Gary Washburn, Smart revealed that Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens had told him a week before the trade that he was "safe," thus making him believe he wouldn't have to worry about being traded this offseason. That changed quickly, with Malcolm Brogdon's injury situation derailing a three-team trade that was set to bring Kristaps Porzingis to Boston. The Celtics adjusted, trading away Smart instead to complete the deal.
"It was definitely shocking to find out that way. We was expecting [to stay]. But for me, I understand the business side of it. Anybody who knows me knows that I'm the first one to tell people, you can't put personal with business, it just doesn't mix. And if you do, you're going to get yourself hurt. I understand it's a business," Smart told Washburn. "But for me, it was just the [lack of] courtesy. They probably already knew they were thinking about trading me. They had this trade in their back pocket just in case something else didn't happen. And for me, it's just the simple fact, 'Hey, we're thinking about trading you, most likely we'll trade you, just letting you know.' Especially telling me [I'm safe] the week before and my house flooding. It was all a lot at once."
Smart told Washburn that his agent called his fiancee, who then woke him up from his sleep to tell him about the trade, which had already been reported in the media. Smart's complaints about the process didn't seem to come from a place of spite, with Smart matter-of-factly explaining that he would have appreciated Stevens and the Celtics had taken a more honest and open approach with him before shipping him away.
Outside of that, Smart expressed his gratitude to the organization and said that his only regret from his Celtics career is that he didn't deliver a championship.
"The only thing I regret is we didn't get [the championship] when we had our chance when I was here," he said. "But other than that I've enjoyed my run."
