Marcus Smart and the Houston Rockets have agreed on a two-year, $13 million contract, league sources confirmed to The Athletic.
Smart, 32, is expected to provide a disruptive defensive presence and a veteran voice in the backcourt for Houston as he reunites with former head coach Ime Udoka, who coached him for one season with the Boston Celtics. The deal includes a player option for the second season, those sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been officially announced.
ESPN first reported the deal. Smart joins the Rockets after spending one season with the Los Angeles Lakers, highlighted by his stellar play in the Lakers’ first-round series against Houston. Despite playing without leading scorer Luka Dončić, Los Angeles won the series in six games.
In that matchup, Smart averaged 14.7 points, 5.5 assists and 2.7 steals while taking on a much larger playmaking role, showing he’s still capable of making a major impact on the biggest stage.
Smart signed a two-year, $11 million deal with the Lakers last summer but declined the second year of that contract, which would have paid him $5.4 million this season. Instead, he landed a larger payday and what could be a more significant role in Houston.
In his lone season with the Lakers, Smart appeared in 62 games and averaged 9.3 points, 3.0 assists and 1.4 steals.
One of the Rockets’ biggest weaknesses last season was their lack of experienced ballhandling after veteran point guard Fred VanVleet tore his right ACL in September and missed the entire season. It’s still unclear whether VanVleet will be ready for the start of the 2026-27 campaign, which almost certainly factored into Houston’s urgency to secure Smart early in free agency.
Adding Smart allows Houston to be more patient with VanVleet’s recovery while still giving the Rockets a reliable veteran to handle lead-guard duties when VanVleet isn’t available. Smart also strengthens a defense that ranked sixth and fifth in defensive rating over the past two seasons.
The reunion with Udoka is another significant part of the signing. Smart arguably enjoyed the best season of his career under Udoka in 2021-22, when he became Boston’s full-time point guard and helped lead the Celtics to the NBA Finals. He was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year that season, becoming the first guard to win the award since Gary Payton in 1996.
Smart is unlikely to have that same offensive responsibility in Houston, but his defensive instincts, leadership and feel for the game should make him a valuable addition as the Rockets look to remain among the Western Conference’s top contenders.
— Joe Vardon contributed to this story.