Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Sees Marcus Smart As A Championship Level Difference Maker originally appeared on Fadeaway World.

All Marcus Smart knew was playoff intensity in his first nine NBA seasons. Smart made the playoffs every year since getting drafted by the Celtics in 2014, so there was intimate knowledge about what the postseason is like from all angles.

“Jordan Goodwin was good last year, and they had to waive him to get Marcus Smart, who’s played like 40 games in the last two years,” Lowe said. “There is a universe, and I’m not saying that we’re going to live in this universe — the Lakers certainly don’t want to — where Jordan Goodwin is as good next season as Marcus Smart. He was good.”

Veteran guard Marcus Smart has officially cleared the NBA waiver wire after agreeing to a contract buyout with the Washington Wizards, per the RealGM transactions log.

The Los Angeles Lakers currently have 14 players under contract and are just under the first apron threshold, where they are hard-capped, after adding Marcus Smart and waiving both Shake Milton and Jordan Goodwin.

Luka Doncic reportedly helped recruit Smart to the Lakers. In addition, a clip from "The Old Man & the Three" podcast has been unearthed where Lakers coach JJ Redick had some glowing things to say about the former Defensive Player of the Year. In the clip, which is from 2020, Redick said that Smart is the type of player he would want on his team.