BOSTON -- The act seemed so simple.
Ball gets stuck behind the backboard.
Marcus Smart grabs a broom handle, gives the ball a poke, ball comes down.
Game goes on.
But when it comes to Smart, the little things more times than not mean a lot more to him than you might think.
That’s because he has made a career out of doing the little things that often get overlooked and cast aside, but are vital to the overall vision coming into existence.
That’s why for all that the Boston Celtics have to be thankful for this season, having Marcus Smart around has to be at or near the top of the list.
And on Wednesday during Boston’s 121-110 win over Brooklyn, Smart was once again endearing himself to the fans by poking free a basketball stuck behind the backboard.
“That’s just Marcus,” quipped Celtics center Daniel Theis told NBC Sports Boston. “He does everything else for us, so he might as well do that too, right?”
And by “everything,” Theis is specifically speaking about Smart’s role as a do-it-all defender as well as an under-rated offensive force for Boston (13-4).
“He runs our offense, makes plays, makes shots — big shots,” Theis said. “And defensively … he guards everybody on the floor. And I mean that; everybody, one (point guards) through five (centers).”
But Smart has been around the NBA long enough to know that nights like Wednesday — when the Celtics came away with the win and he played an integral part in that success — have to be put in perspective.
His brand of basketball has not always been fully embraced by NBA fans, or Celtic ones for that matter.
He remembers the many games when he would hear the “don’t shoot, Marcus! Don’t shoot!” chants from Celtics fans at home.
Smart recalls — and to some extent still sees — defenders take a step back when he had the ball, all but double-dog daring him to take a shot.
“I haven’t forgotten about it; it’s definitely in the back of my head,” Smart told NBC Sports Boston. “My momma always said, ‘forgive but never forget.’ I haven’t forgotten.”
Using that as motivation has helped Smart evolve into one of the unspoken leaders of this team, along with statistically speaking delivering in a way few envisioned he could ever do.
Smart is averaging 12.4 points and 5.1 assists per game, both career highs, while also logging 32.4 minutes per game, which is also a career-best mark for the sixth-year guard.
And as much as the Celtics have lots of reasons to be thankful for Smart, he’s quick to tell you that all that he has experienced in Boston has been worth it.
The Boston-Marcus Smart relationship has been one filled with lots of ups and downs; one that has had both sides questioning the other and whether this was a relationship worth keeping alive.
But as time moved on, it became clearer that for both to be the best version of themselves they needed one another.
And we are seeing the fruits of that commitment blossom now with Boston, despite injuries and defections to key players from a year ago, continuing to thrive as an organization and Smart being one of the leaders.
Smart gets deflections, forces turnovers, gets the ball in the hands of teammates to score and will knock down a big shot or two when required.
He loves it.
And the fans?
They love the fact that on a night-in, night-out basis he leaves no doubt about giving all he has to the game regardless of what the task might be, like poking a ball free that’s stuck behind a backboard that drew a loud round of applause.
“I love this city, I love this team, I love this organization,” Smart said when asked about fans cheering him in that moment. “And that love is being reciprocated. That’s all you can ask for as a player, as a man.”
Get ready for Celtics-Nets on Friday with Celtics Pregame Live at 11:30 a.m., then Mike & Scal have the call at 12 p.m. on NBC Sports Boston, or you can stream them here through the MyTeams App.