The NBA has announced the finalists for its end-of-season awards for the 2021-22 season, and veteran Boston Celtics point guard Marcus Smart has officially made the cut as one of the three finalists for its Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) award according the league.
Per the NBA, Smart is one of a trio of finalists for the 2022 DPOY award along with perennial Utah Jazz big man candidate Rudy Gobert and Phoenix Suns wing Mikal Bridges. Smart has real momentum to become the first non-frontcourt player to win the award since fellow Celtics alum Gary Payton, Sr. did in 1996, a drought lasting a quarter of a century.
Among the categories listed (DPOY, Most Valuable Player, Most Improved Player, Sixth Man of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and Coach of the Year), no other Celtics were listed.
NBA announces its finalists for in-season award. Jordan Poole didn't make the cut for Most Improved Player award pic.twitter.com/HlPxlBoWew
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) April 17, 2022
And while the majority of those awards were rightly outside of the reach of the members of the Boston-based franchise, there was at least a solid case for Celtics head coach Ime Udoka to be in the mix for Coach of the Year.
Instead, that race has been trimmed down to Taylor Jenkins of the Memphis Grizzlies, Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat, and Monty Williams of the Phoenix Suns.
This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!
