Before his trade to the Washington Wizards, Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart saw the writing on the wall throughout his final days with the Memphis Grizzlies. Minutes before the trade deadline, the Grizzlies moved Smart in a three-team deal. He finished the 2024-25 season with the Wizards before signing a two-year contract with the Lakers in free agency last summer. Smart, looking back on last season, watched Grizzlies GM Zach Kleiman fire coach Taylor Jenkins with nine games left in the regular season — very uncommon for a playoff team weeks before the postseason. It was a telltale sign of an organization in flux, but did it make Smart feel any better about his trade to the Wizards?
