Marcus Smart made sure Monday night carried a little extra edge.
In the Houston Rockets’ 109-93 win over the Boston Celtics at Toyota Center, Smart delivered the kind of sequence that can flip a game and stir up a crowd. Early in the fourth quarter, he buried back-to-back 3-pointers to help Houston open things up, then responded with the double birds.
Smart later explained that the gesture was not just about the shot-making.
“Just a lot of pent-up, I guess you can call it, emotions,” Smart said, via the Rockets. “And plus certain guys on the bench was talking.
Didn’t know who. So I just heard them say something.
So I let him hear right back.”
The reaction made a little more sense considering the opponent. Smart spent his first nine NBA seasons with Boston before the Celtics sent him to the Memphis Grizzlies in June 2023 as part of the three-team deal that brought Kristaps Porzingis to Boston. Then the Celtics won the NBA title in 2024, which likely hasn’t sat especially well with him.
Add in some chatter from the Celtics bench, and Smart’s response fit the moment. He may also be looking at a fine.
On the floor, the night started rough for Smart. He missed his first seven shots before finally knocking down those two threes that helped put the game away. He finished with eight points on 2-10 shooting, plus four rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
That stat line looked a lot like a Marcus Smart game: not always pretty, but full of hustle, physicality, and winning plays. When asked afterward if he had extra energy against Boston, he didn’t hide it.
“For sure,” Smart said. “You always want to do good against your former team and show them that you still can go out there and do what you do, right?
So definitely felt good, energy was there. They know what I can do, and reminded them again tonight.”
Boston knows that well. The Celtics took Smart with the No. 6 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, and he became a favorite in the city for the way he threw himself into every possession.
Houston, meanwhile, keeps rolling. The win pushed the Rockets to 7-1, good for the joint-best record in the NBA right now.
The Rockets are back at Toyota Center on Wednesday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves at 8:30 p.m. ET.
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