The Celtics traded longtime veteran point guard Marcus Smart to the Grizzlies in a three-team blockbuster that includes Boston receiving star forward Kristaps Porzingis from the Wizards, according to multiple reports.
ESPN SportsCenter’s social media account posted a tweet shortly after the deal was reported that showed Smart in a photoshopped Memphis uniform with blue hair. NBA fans who know the history of Smart’s green hair with the Celtics know that he dyed his hair in memory of his late mother, who always wanted Smart to dye his hair green as a member of the Celtics.
“My mom, before she passed away, always loved my hair,” Smart said during the 2022 NBA finals. “The things I was doing with it, from the braids to letting it grow out and I started to dye it and she really liked that and she always said that she wanted to see me in green. But obviously, she passed away so she never got to see me [with it] so when we started this playoff run, for her, I was gonna dye it and see what it looks like. Everybody loved it, so now it’s kinda here.”
As such, NBA Twitter flamed ESPN for the insensitive and “disrespectful” photoshop of Smart that was posted early Thursday morning. Here’s the tweet:
MARCUS SMART IS HEADED TO MEMPHIS 🚨🐻
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 22, 2023
(via @wojespn) pic.twitter.com/m5VMTh9ZED
Here are some of the reactions to the tweet, crushing ESPN’s social media team for its decision to post the photoshopped picture of Smart.
Ngl if you know the reason to why Marcus Smart dyed his hair green this is absolutely disrespectful… media needs to do better https://t.co/rLRA9hCmxP
— Buhownz 🪼 (@Demar305) June 22, 2023
Changing the hair color to blue is nasty knowing the true meaning of why he dyed it in the first place https://t.co/O0faxLttSi
— I 😵💫‼️ (@Ibra_Goat) June 22, 2023
For those who don’t know, Marcus Smart dyed his hair green in memory of his mother, who passed away. So changing it to blue is a bit off putting.pic.twitter.com/QzHrmoirBL https://t.co/WV7absrcIL
— LegendOfWinning (@LegendOfWinning) June 22, 2023
