As CelticsBlog’s Adam Taylor mentioned earlier this week, Marcus Smart’s campaign as Defensive Player of the Year harkens back to a former Celtic who also put the hard work and defense first ahead of flashy offensive numbers:
There’s always a torchbearer though, someone who paves the way for others to follow in their footsteps. A quick look around the league and you can see the remnants of Gary Payton’s game. Guys like Smart, Patrick Beverley, Mike Conley, Malik Beasley, and even Kyle Lowry all walk in The Glove’s footsteps to some degree. Sure, each of those guards has developed their own style and has their own brand of offense, but they heeded the lessons Payton displayed on the court.