The Los Angeles Lakers are trying to upgrade their roster. One of their latest moves was to bring one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA like Marcus Smart. However, this is a business, which means collateral damage will happen at times. In this case, a player who was set to make $3 million was waived in order to make room for Smart.

This was reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania, who also stated that Shake Milton’s contract would have become fully guaranteed today. The Lakers will save that money by doing this last minute change. Smart will add more experience and is a former Defensive Player of the Year, so he is a more valuable assett than Milton.

Smart spent the last season playing on Memphis and Washington. He averaged 9.0 points per game, 3.2 assists, 2.1 rebounds and 1.1 steals. At 30 years old, Smart might be in the twilight of his career and his stats have declined a bit, but to be fair, no one in Washington was having a great year. It’s a chance at redemption for Smart and to prove he still belongs at a top level.

Smart’s defense and grind are his biggest strengths

For some moments, the Lakers’ biggest weakness was their defense. LeBron James is not a lockdown defender and Luka Doncic’s biggest flaw is also defending. Having Smart as part of the rotation will allow the Lakers to take care of the opponent’s biggest perimeter threat.

Marcus Smart #36 of the Washington Wizards handles the ball against the Milwaukee Bucks during the first half at Capital One Arena on February 21, 2025 in Washington

The defense and effort are not always measurable stats in the NBA. Of course, you can see rebounding and steals on the stat sheet, but there are intangibles that make Smart a much better player beyond what his stats say.

The Lakers are ring or bust

Having LeBron James will always put the spotlight on you. Pairing him with superstar Luka Doncic will set the highest expectation there is: you need to win the NBA championship.

Last year, the Lakers suffered an embarrassing elimination in the first round as the Minnesota Timberwolves beat them in 5 games. This is unacceptable for a team having two of the best players in the league. So now, Smart must help them fulfill its potential with a successful playoff run.