Marcus Smart reacts to becoming the first guard to win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award since Gary Payton in 1996.
Marcus Smart's teammates have been campaigning for the Boston Celtics guard to win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award all season. Their wish came true on Monday.
Smart was named the 2021-22 Defensive Player of the Year to become the first guard to win the award since Seattle SuperSonics great Gary Payton in 1995-96. Payton presented Smart with the award in front of his teammates in what made for a memorable moment at Auerbach Center.
WATCH: Smart delivers message for C's teammates after winning DPOY
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SIGN UP HERE After celebrating with Smart, C's stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown took to Twitter with congratulatory messages for the longest-tenured Celtic.
Others to congratulate Smart on social media included former New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman and Smart's ex-Celtics teammate, Isaiah Thomas.
Smart (257 points) edged out Phoenix Suns forward Mikal Bridges (202 points) in the DPOY voting. Utah Jazz big man Rudy Gobert, who's won the award in three of the four previous seasons, placed third with 136 points. Bridges also was among those to congratulate Smart on Twitter.
It's a day worth celebrating for Smart and the C's, but don't expect the celebrating to last all that long. Boston's focus quickly will shift to Wednesday night's pivotal Game 2 matchup vs. the Brooklyn Nets.
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