Marcus Smart to sign four-year extension with Celtics

Celtics guard Marcus Smart will sign a four-year, $77.1M maximum contract extension of his current deal with the team who drafted him, per Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Charania notes that the deal includes a trade kicker. Smart’s new contract is fully guaranteed through 2025-26. There is no player option. The new agreement will begin during the 2022-23 season, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Originally selected with the sixth pick in the 2014 draft out of Oklahoma State, Smart first re-signed with Boston on a four-year, $52M deal that will take him through the 2021-22 season. A two-time All-Defensive Team selection, the 27-year-old guard has proved to be a valuable addition for seven playoff-bound NBA seasons with the Celtics.

The 6’3″ Smart, operating mostly as a starter, averaged 13.1 PPG, 5.7 APG, 3.5 RPG and 0.5 BPG during the 2020/21 season.

Bobby Marks of ESPN details the full anticipated annual breakdown of Smart’s new deal (Twitter link). Smart’s extension will begin with a $17.2M salary in the 2022-23 season, 120% increase of his 2021-22 salary, the maximal value available for a contract extension. During the last year of the deal (2025-26), Smart will make $22.7M.

The Celtics’ backcourt underwent a major transition earlier during the 2021 offseason. Boston first traded oft-injured former All-Star starting point guard Kemba Walker to the Thunder, and more recently signed former Lakers point guard Dennis Schröder to a one-year, $5.89M taxpayer mid-level exception.