The Phoenix Suns have been chasing a familiar path of late, looking to add a veteran point guard to bolster the position. Shams Charania recently broke the news of Marcus Smart signing with the Los Angeles Lakers. Upon completion of his buyout from the Washington Wizards, Smart intends to join the Lakers on a two-year, $11 million dollar deal.
New Report Reveals Key Reason Why Marcus Smart Chose the Lakers over the Suns originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The Phoenix Suns have been chasing a familiar path of late, looking to add a veteran point guard to bolster the position. That is surely something they are very familiar with over the past couple of seasons. Unfortunately, one key name opted against joining them recently.
Shams Charania recently broke the news of Marcus Smart signing with the Los Angeles Lakers. Upon completion of his buyout from the Washington Wizards, Smart intends to join the Lakers on a two-year, $11 million dollar deal.
Charania even mentioned, "The Lakers, Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks all seriously pursued Smart, with positive conversations with personnel from all three teams after he and his agent Jason Glushon received permission to explore options from the Wizards, sources said."
However, another NBA insider stepped in on Sunday to up the ante. The Suns were reportedly really hunting down this failed addition.
Ultimately, one big thing really held a lot of weight as to why Smart chose the Lakers over the Suns. Marc Stein revealed it in his rumor mill roundup on Sunday.
Stein wrote, "I'm told that the recent [Luka] Doncic pitch ... particularly resonated with Smart and helped lead the former Defensive Player of the Year to choose the Lakers over a determined push by the Suns to land the former Celtic."
In their reshaping of the roster, the Suns will have to look elsewhere for a stabilizing force at the point guard spot. In all fairness, Smart would have been a considerable gamble.
The veteran guard has only played 54 games over the last two campaigns with the Wizards and Memphis Grizzlies. Injuries have taken their toll on the former Boston Celtics fan favorite. The Suns would have likely been forced to navigate that risk factor all season.
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 21, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: Basketball
