March 18, 2026, 7:00 a.m. PT

When the Los Angeles Lakers signed Marcus Smart to a two-year, $11 million contract this past summer, plenty of people were skeptical that the veteran guard would help the team. He was 31 years of age at the time and was coming off two dismal, injury-riddled seasons, and he was presumed to be a shadow of the player who had won the 2022 NBA Defensive Player of the Year award.

But Smart has been integral to the Lakers’ success this season, especially in recent days as they have rolled off six wins in a row and risen to third place in the Western Conference. His defense, both on and off the ball, has been invaluable, and he has even been big offensively at times.

A recent ESPN article revealed a big problem Smart admitted he had been dealing with for years, and it is one he only recently overcame. It all started one night after he suffered a tough loss to the Lakers as a member of the Boston Celtics.

“It was Jan. 23, 2018, and the Celtics, then the No. 1 team in the East, were on the road to play the Lakers, then the No. 11 team in the West,” Dave McMenamin.

“Former Lakers guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had gone to the line with 5.7 seconds remaining and L.A. up by one and missed both free throws, with the second clanking off the rim and into Smart’s hands.

“Smart, who already had 22 points in the game, took the rebound and dribbled frantically up the court until he got to the 3-point line, where he pulled up for 3 at the buzzer.

“His shot hit the front iron and rimmed out, and the Celtics lost the game 108-107.

“Later that night, at the team hotel, he replayed the shot in his mind and frustration boiled over.

“He punched at a picture frame in his room and, this time, he didn’t miss, shattering the glass and leaving a 5-inch shard wedged inside the flesh of his palm.

“‘I got rushed to the ER and lost a lot of blood,’ Smart told ESPN. ‘I passed out. … That’s how much I lost.’

“When he regained consciousness, after receiving 20 stitches, Smart realized the severity of his wound.

“‘The doctor looked at me in my eye and told me, “I don’t know how you still have use of your right hand,”‘ Smart said. “You should honestly be thanking God every day.”‘ The piece of glass that had sliced into his hand was just millimeters from severing its use entirely. ‘They said it laid perfectly in between every tendon in my hand without damaging anything,’ Smart said. ‘And they had to leave the extra piece in, because they said it will cause more damage if we go get it out.'”

Later on, Smart sustained more injuries to that same right hand, and he admitted how lucky he is to still have a functioning right hand.

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“‘I’ve had two dislocations with torn ligaments in two of the fingers,’ Smart said. ‘I’ve had glass in my hand. I’ve torn ligaments on my right thumb and had surgery there. I dislocated four out of my five fingers in total … my whole right hand just has been through a lot. So to be honest, I’m blessed to even have my right hand.

“‘For six years after the incident with the glass, I still had glass in my hand and I played with it. And there would be times where because of that, my hand would go numb. A lot of times, a lot of games, I couldn’t control it. I had to play and there were a lot of times when I’m shooting the ball and just, I had no feeling in the arm, the hand.'”

During the 2023-24 season, Smart averaged a career-high 3.1 turnovers a game and appeared in just 20 contests. But this season, while his shooting efficiency hasn’t been outstanding — he’s always been below-average when it comes to overall shooting accuracy and 3-point accuracy — he has shown signs of improvement.

Since Jan. 2, he has made 37.5% of his 4.6 3-point attempts a game, which is above average. In the Lakers’ last 10 games, of which they have won nine, he has attempted 5.9 treys a game and made 41.5% of them.

In recent days, he has helped harass Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks, the Minnesota Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards and the Denver Nuggets’ Jamal Murray into poor shooting performances. He has drawn 20 charges this season, which is second in the NBA behind Brunson. He has given L.A. an effective, gritty backcourt defender, something it hasn’t had in a few years.

“He brings a grittiness and a point-of-attack defender that maybe they didn’t have a year ago,” said Wolves coach Chris Finch. “A guy that can mark somebody all by himself, without a ton of help. Which really is huge, particularly in the playoffs.”

Last season, the Lakers lost to the Wolves in the first round of the playoffs in five games. If the playoffs ended now, they would face Minnesota again in the first round of the playoffs, and this time, with Smart, as well as center Deandre Ayton, on the roster, the outcome could be very different.