The NBA announced today that Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart has been chosen the 2021-22 NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
Smart wins his first NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award, becoming the first guard to do it since Gary Payton in the 1995-96 season. Smart is the Celtics’ second player to earn the award, following Kevin Garnett (2007-08).
A global panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters gave Smart 257 points (37 first-place votes). Mikal Bridges of the Phoenix Suns came in second with 202 points (22 first-place votes). Rudy Gobert, the Utah Jazz center and three-time Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year, finished third with 136 points (12 first-place votes). For each first-place vote, players received five points, three points for each second-place vote, and one point for each third-place vote.
Smart, who started all 71 of his regular-season games in 2021-22, was seventh in the NBA in thefts per game (1.68) and tied for sixth in total steals (119).
Smart, 28, tied for fourth in the NBA in loose ball recovery (75), and tied for tenth in both deflections (206) and charges drawn (16). In addition, he set a new career high for defensive rebounds per game (3.2).
The Celtics, led by Smart, topped the NBA in defensive rating (106.2) and points allowed per game (104.5), as well as holding opponents to the lowest field goal percentage (43.4) and three-point field goal percentage (33.3). (33.9). The Celtics’ excellent defense helped them earn a 51-31 record and the Eastern Conference’s second seed for the 2022 NBA Playoffs.
Smart has twice been named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team in his eight years in the league (2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons). For the 2018-19 season, he also received the NBA Hustle Award. Smart averaged 12.1 points, 5.9 assists, and 3.8 rebounds in 32.3 minutes per game this season.
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