Marcus Smart explains why he deserves Defensive Player of the Year recognition

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Marcus Smart isn't one to mince words, and that was the case again on Friday when asked about whether he should be considered an NBA Defensive Player of the Year candidate.

Smart caught up with NBC Sports Boston's Kyle Draper before Friday night's Celtics-Nuggets matchup and explained why he deserves to be in the DPOY conversation.

"I mean, think about it. How many guards are doing what I'm doing guarding 1 through 5? How many bigs are guarding 1s the way I'm guarding 5s? Like I said, I'm on another level right now and I think my play speaks for itself."

Watch the full exchange below:

Combine those comments with Smart's shots at Clippers guard Patrick Beverley, and it's clear he isn't messing around.

Through the first 14 games of the 2019-20 campaign, it's hard to argue with the Celtics' spark plug. Smart has always been exceptional defensively, but he's absolutely taken it to another level early on in the season with a team that lacks frontcourt depth.

There's a lot of basketball left to be played, of course, so we'll just have to see whether Smart can sustain this level of excellence from now until June.

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