Boston Celtics: Why Marcus Smart’s trade value is so tough to gauge

CLEVELAND, OH - MAY 23: Marcus Smart
CLEVELAND, OH - MAY 23: Marcus Smart
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Reason for Hope

The common thread? In every single one of these lineups, Smart shared the court with Al Horford and Jae Crowder. Conversely, Boston’s two worst over-50 minute lineups by offensive rating had Smart without either Horford or Crowder.

This isn’t much of a revelation; good players look better when surrounded by other good players, and worse when they aren’t. The key here is who those players are. Not every team has reliable three-point shooting on the wing, and very few have it at wing and center.  The Celtics have both, and because they did, the offense could function with Smart on the court.

Very few teams have Boston’s collection of assets, however. This is what makes gauging Smart’s trade value so difficult.