The Lakers scored a huge addition on Saturday as they were able to agree to terms with newly bought-out Marcus Smart. One interesting note in the reporting on the agreement was that Luka Doncic personally reached out to recruit Smart, and his impassioned pitch helped lure the veteran guard to LA.
For better or worse, Nikola Jokic has always opted to stay out of team-building operations with the Nuggets, taking the approach that it’s not his job and he should simply focus on playing. On the one hand, it’s refreshing to see a player let the front office do its job. We’ve seen star players get too involved, trying to play the role of GM, and more often than not, it ends in disaster.
But on the other hand, it’s clear that recruiting can make a difference, and for years, players have been able to help convince certain players to join certain teams. Whether they are his friends or not, with his pedigree and standing in the league as the undisputed best player in the world, one would think a personal pitch from Jokic might be enough to convince players to come to Denver.
It remains to be seen whether the Smart signing will work out for the Lakers, but given the price, it’s clearly a worthy gamble. Smart is just two seasons removed from winning the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year Award, but after being bought out by the Wizards, LA was able to sign him for just two years and $11 million.
Smart would have been great addition for Nuggets
There’s no indication that the Nuggets were in on Smart, but they should have been. He would be a perfect backup point guard that the team is currently lacking, and would immediately be the best perimeter defender on the team.
Those are arguably the team’s two biggest current needs, and Smart could have filled both at once. On top of that, the Nuggets had the means to sign Smart as well and could have offered him more money and a better chance to win. Perhaps he wouldn’t have gotten as large of a role as he would’ve on the Lakers, but we’ll never know.
It certainly would be interesting though, to have heard about Jokic reaching out to a player and recruiting them like this. Luka and Jokic are friends and seem to operate in similar ways. But now that Doncic has been traded to the Lakers, he may have a different approach. We’ll see if he stays loyal to LA and if this recruiting is just the beginning.
But either way, it’s notable that Jokic has been in Denver forever, but has never looked to meddle in roster matters. Maybe one day we’ll see a change, but for the most part, he has trusted the people in charge of making decisions, and for the most part, they haven’t led him astray.