The Los Angeles Lakers signed 11-year veteran Marcus Smart to the bi-annual exception — two years, $11 million — this offseason after he came to a buyout agreement with the Washington Wizards. The team had to cut Shake Milton — who went to play in Europe — and fan favorite Jordan Goodwin, who was picked up by his former team, the Phoenix Suns, via waivers.
Smart is a profile of player that the Lakers badly needed; a savvy, hard-nosed on- and off-ball defender, decent shooter and playmaker who brings
leadership and experience at all levels, including deep playoff runs.
However, Smart’s playing style and doggedness are arguably a double-edged sword as he has an extensive injury record, which you can see here.
Obviously, the amount of injuries and time missed isn’t ideal. That being said, not all injuries are created equal when it comes to future risk so let’s take a closer look.
First, let's look at where the injuries occur.
What jumps out are his hand/finger injuries, listed 11 times, and also his ankle injuries, listed eight times. Smart’s hands and defensive timing are two of his strongest assets, so the hand injuries make sense to a degree and, positively, you’re at least still able to maintain some fitness levels as you rehab from them.
The repetitive ankle injuries are more concerning because they will impact his fitness levels more and have been non-contact injuries for the most part. However, his last ankle injury was over 18 months ago, which is a positive indicator.
Next, I’m looking at muscular injuries and how he recovered from them. Smart has had a few instances of thigh, calf and abdominal muscle injuries. That’s not a positive, obviously, but it does look like he was able to recover from them well and not have it turn into a vicious cycle that kept recurring, which can often happen during the season.
Last but not least, I’m looking at long-term absences. Outside of his latest finger injuries, his last extended injury came in 2023 when he was dealing with multiple injuries to his upper chest and neck. Prior to that, he was out for an extended period with a calf strain in 2021.
Overall, he’s a player who is going to miss some games. Part of that is his playing style and part of that is the wear and tear on him at this point in his career. The hope is you can just avoid those longer-term absences so he can continue to contribute and maintain his fitness, rhythm and cohesion with the team.
Smart has recently commented that he’s feeling nearly 100%. After spending multiple years on middling teams, his motivation levels may be topped back up to play alongside superstars like Luka Dončić and LeBron James. He’ll be joining a team that was a No. 3 seed last year, has added multiple pieces in key areas of weakness, has a year of continuity and growth with its coaching staff and finally some actual time to develop chemistry and rhythm with Luka.
The injury history on its face is a concern, but as I pointed out earlier, there are some nuanced positives. All in all, the value Smart could potentially add to this team is very high, making it a gamble worth taking on the risk/reward scale.
Dr. Rajpal Brar, DPT has a doctorate in physical therapy from Northern Arizona University, and runs his own in-person and online sports medicine and performance business, 3CB Performance, in West LA and Valencia, CA and combines his movement expertise and fitness training background to rehab & train elite athletes.
He also works at a hospital — giving him experience with patients in the immediate healthcare setting and neurological patients (post stroke, post brain injury) — and has been practicing for over 5 years. Brar is additionally training at UCLA’s mindful awareness research center (MARC), has a background in youth basketball coaching and analyzes the Lakers from a medical and skills perspective for Silver Screen and Roll and on his own YouTube Channel. You can follow him on Twitter at @3cbPerformance, on Instagram, and on his weekly Substack 3CB Quick HIITS
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