Celtics' Marcus Smart Named 2021-22 NBA Defensive Player of the Year

The NBA's Defensive Player of the Year is going back to the perimeter for the first time since 1996.

Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart was named the league's top defender for the 2021-22 campaign and became the first guard to win the award since Gary Payton did so for the Seattle SuperSonics.

The league shared the voting breakdown with Smart taking home 37 first-place votes and defeating fellow finalists Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz and Mikal Bridges of the Phoenix Suns:

Bridges offered his congratulations:

Anyone but Gobert winning the award has become something of a surprise of late considering the Utah Jazz big man is in the middle of an individual defensive dynasty.

He won the award during the 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2020-21 seasons and is a five-time All-Defensive selection who anchors Utah on that end of the floor.

Yet Smart broke a long run of big men that also included Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo winning it in 2019-20.

He also had some defensive royalty on hand to present him with the award:      

Smart has been best-known for his defense since the Celtics selected him with the No. 6 overall pick of the 2014 NBA draft. The two-time All-Defensive selection averaged 1.7 steals per game this season and consistently guards the opponent's best ball-handler or wing threat on a nightly basis.

That takes some of the pressure off Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who have more offensive responsibilities on their shoulders.

Opponents shot 2.9 percent worse than their normal averages from three-point range when Smart guarded them this season, per NBA.com, underscoring his ability to challenge outside looks and quickly rotate when needed.

He also posted a career-best 3.7 defensive wins share total, per Basketball Reference.

Smart can now add a Defensive Player of the Year to his resume as he looks to help guide the Celtics past the Brooklyn Nets in the first round and toward a deep playoff run as the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.