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Smart, 28, is the first guard to win DPOY since Hall of Famer Gary Payton.
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Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo won defensive player of the year in 2020. Celtics guard Marcus Smart has been named the 202122 NBA Defensive Player of the Year, the league announced Monday. He had a career-high 3.2 defensive rebounds per game. Smart, who started each of the 71 regular-season games he played, tied for fourth in loose balls recovered (75) and tied for 10th in deflections (106) and charges drawn (16). Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert, who had won the award in 2018, 20, finished third with 136 points and 12 first-place votes. Phoenix Suns forward Mikal Bridges finished second with 202 points and 22 first-place votes. Smart received 257 total points and earned 37 first-place votes from a panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters. View his overall, offense & defense attributes, badges, and compare him. The 28-year-old ranked seventh in the NBA in steals per game (1.68) and tied for sixth in total steals (119). Check out Current Boston Celtics player Marcus Smart and his rating on NBA 2K23. Smart helped the Celtics lead the NBA in defensive rating and scoring defense (104.6) while holding opponents to a league-low field-goal percentage (.434) and 3-point percentage (.339). Back when he was deciding where to go to college in 2011, top recruit and two-time Texas 5A champion Marcus. The last guard to win this honor was Seattle’s Gary Payton in 1995-96. Marcus Smart is slated to be the Boston Celtics point guard thi season. NBA officials announced the award on Monday. Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart wins his first career Defensive Player of the Year award, beating out Phoenixs Mikal Bridges and Utahs two-time award winner Rudy Gobert in a tight race. NEW YORK - Boston’s Marcus Smart is the first guard in over a quarter-century to win the NBA defensive player of the year award.