Ja Morant’s message was subtle.
Memphis Grizzlies guard Marcus Smart was doing a postgame interview with FanDuel Sports Network after his best performance of the season. It was a performance that came after Smart’s season had been interrupted twice by injuries and included a new role coming off the bench.
There began to be questions about Smart’s effectiveness. He and Morant both heard the noise.
Morant walked up to Smart during his postgame interview and placed his left hand on the 11-year NBA veteran’s shoulder.
“Man put some respect on my dog name man and end the (conversation) right there,” Morant said.
A smile flashed across Smart’s face. He agreed with Morant’s message.
“Shoutout Ja, man,” Smart said.
Wednesday was a night to celebrate Smart. He finished with a season-high 25 points and made seven 3-pointers in the Grizzlies’ 131-111 win over the Detroit Pistons.
And about that respect.
Smart admits that through his early season struggles, he does feel that people have undervalued what he brings. Whether it was steals, assists or scoring, Smart had the full arsenal working against Detroit.
“I love when people disrespect me and kind of lose sight of me and what I can do,” Smart said. “And then you see nights like that that kind of bring them back to their senses in a sense. I love it. Keep doing and hopefully we’ll see more nights like this.”
The tone setter
The Grizzlies were struggling and in danger of building Detroit’s confidence. The Pistons started the game shooting 12-for-16.
Smart didn’t check into the game until it was 3:05 left in the first quarter. Memphis was down nine points and searching for a spark. After the Pistons lead grew to 11, Smart made his first 3-pointer of the night.
Through assists and scoring, Smart was responsible for the final 12 Grizzlies points of the quarter. Memphis trailed by one at the end of the first quarter. By the time Smart checked out the game with 7:01 left in the second quarter, Memphis had gone from trailing by nine to leading by 11.
“Unbelievable boost from Marcus tonight,” Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said. “…You just look up and down the box score and some things that don’t even show up in the box — his on-ball defense, disrupting their offense, his playmaking.”
One of Smart’s most noticeable impact plays came with 1:10 left in the first quarter. The savvy veteran noticed Detroit’s Ron Holland was fumbling the ball.
While retreating on defense, Smart turned towards Holland and poked the ball away. Pistons forward Simone Fontecchio looked to be in position to gather the loose ball, but Smart fully extended his body and dive on the floor to pull it away before throwing an assist to Santi Aldama.
Smart’s play brought the entire Grizzlies bench to its feet.
“It was exciting to watch,” Jaylen Wells said. “. . .When I’m on the bench watching that, it kind of inspires me.”
Heat check time
It didn’t take Smart long to realize Wednesday was his night. He knocked down his first 3-pointer and realized a good shooting performance could be in store.
So Smart kept shooting, and he kept making. He pulled a transition 3-pointer in the face of a Pistons player in the first half. That looked like it was his heat check shit, but he knocked an even more improbable one in the second.
Smart was in danger of losing the ball and had a Pistons defender draped over him. He quickly recovered the ball and heaved a heavily contested 3-pointer.
Swish.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Desmond Bane said.
“That one was wild,” Santi Aldama added.
Seeing Smart have this type of performance wasn’t just meaningful to Morant. Several Grizzlies players compliment Smart’s veteran presence, and the way he’s handled the early part of the season is an example of that.
Despite a role change, shooting struggles and a recent bout with food poisoning, Smart knows he can still be an impactful player.
“When you come from a place, from a different team, you’ve been starting for majority of your career, and then you go to the bench, people talk, and they’re trying to figure out what’s what,” Smart said. “For me, I can’t control what other people are thinking and saying. I can control what I can do. And that’s just go out there, be me, be professional. Take what the defense gives me, hone in onthe opportunity that I have in front of me.”
