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Marcus Smart Rumors: PG Would Consider Celtics Contract Extension Amid FA Buzz
July 10, 2018
Free-agent point guard Marcus Smart would consider a four-year contract offer the Boston Celtics had on the table last October, the Boston Herald's Mark Murphy reported Tuesday.
The Boston Globe's Adam Himmelsbach noted that Smart is "open to signing a multiyear deal for less than $15 million per season."
According to Himmelsbach, Smart met with two teams Monday and had another two meetings scheduled for Tuesday.
Smart's status as a restricted free agent is likely depressing his market somewhat. Teams don't want to make an offer they'd expect the Celtics to match, and at the same time, they'll want to avoid spending too much and getting saddled with a bad contract.
Himmelsbach floated the possibility of Smart signing a $6 million qualifying offer for 2018-19, which would then make him an unrestricted free agent next summer.
That strategy isn't without risk, though. Nerlens Noel turned down a four-year, $70 million deal with the Dallas Mavericks in order to bet on himself as an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
Following an underwhelming 2017-18 campaign, Noel got $3.7 million over two years from the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Smart has appeared in 70-plus games once in his first four seasons, and he's a career 29.3 percent shooter on three-pointers. While he may not suffer a Noel-like fall in terms of value, it's not hard to see a combination of factors hurting his leverage as a free agent again next year.
Himmelsbach reported Smart wants a multiyear deal rather than the qualifying offer. Assuming he's willing to wait, somebody—whether it's the Celtics or another team—should meet his asking price before the start of the regular season.