Grizzlies guard name-drops Warriors’ Stephen Curry at Media Day
By Mark Nilon
Recently acquired guard Marcus Smart was in full Memphis Grizzlies garb during Monday’s Media Day festivities and was answering questions regarding his upcoming debut season in Grind City.
A highly respected defensive presence who boasts three All-Defensive team selections and was named the Defensive Player of the Year back in 2022, the 29-year-old has proven capable of covering virtually anyone out on the hardwood throughout his career.
However, even he has had his fair share of troubles and struggles when squaring off against some of the game’s biggest and brightest stars during his decade-long tenure in the association and, when asked during a Q&A hosted by Grind City Media about who, in particular, he considers “a tough cover,” Smart quickly name-dropped one of his newest direct rivals: Stephen Curry.
Grizzlies’ Marcus Smart tabs Stephen Curry as one of toughest assignments
"“I think [Stephen Curry]. We all know Steph is ridiculous,” Smart said. “I get to see a lot of Steph this year so it’s a challenge that I’m up for and that I’m going to take with pride and do everything I can to try to help stop that guy. He’s definitely one of the toughest players to guard in this league for sure.”"
“This isn’t the Heat series” 👀
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 4, 2022
Marcus Smart didn’t like how wide open they were leaving the Warriors pic.twitter.com/jZkNblFHcP
Throughout his career, Smart has squared off against Curry’s Warriors on 14 occasions. Interestingly enough, games played against Golden State seem to bring out some of his best productivity on the less glamorous side of the ball, as he sports the third-best defensive rating of his career (105) when compared to all other 28 teams across the association.
On top of this, Curry boasts the second-worst offensive rating of his career (110) when playing the guard’s former team, the Boston Celtics.
While basketball may be a team sport, Smart’s presence back in Beantown certainly played a factor in this advanced statistical metric — this is not just a coincidence.
Now, with the Grizzlies slated to see Curry’s Dubs on three separate occasions, all of which come during the final four-month stretch of the regular season, the franchise’s faithful followers are hoping the veteran can see his defensive expertise against the two-time MVP carry on over to his new employers in Memphis.
