Marcus Smart Opens Up About Luka Doncic's Lakers Recruitment: 'Meant a Lot'

Veteran guard Marcus Smart is the newest Los Angeles Laker after (1) the Washington Wizards bought out his contract, and (2) Lakers superstar Luka Doncic pushed to get him over to La La Land and into the Purple and Gold.

As the story goes, Doncic reached out to Smart and told the 31-year-old he'd love to play together. Well, Doncic's dream came true, and the pair are now officially teammates.

Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, Smart shared a bit more about those recruitment efforts and what they meant to him, as well as his and Doncic's relationship prior to the signing.

"When you get a guy like Luka calling, referencing, checking on you, trying to see where you at, to see if you wanted to come and join something special that he's trying to cook up over here ... that meant a lot," Smart said, per a video shared by ESPN's Dave McMenamin. "Played against Luka a lot. Been on a lot of opposing ends of 'Luka magic,' and to be able to come out and be on his side at this time means a lot."

The guard also offered a glimpse into how it all went down.

"I'm working out and I get a call from my agent saying, 'Luka's reached out.' And I'm like, 'Yeah, whatever,'" Smart added, seeming to signal he had disbelief or doubt that anything would actually happen. "And then another day, same thing. Luka reached out again. And now it's real. It's no longer what ifs. It's real and it's something we need to talk about. That was a great feeling, like I said, and that's kind of what got things going for me to be here, and I'm excited to be here."

As for their relationship before this, Smart said it was one of "mutual understanding and respect for each other," where "after every game, playing, it was always flowers. 'Way to go, keep going, keep those guys going,' and vice versa."

Watch that below:

Marcus Smart talks about Luka Doncic’s efforts to recruit him to L.A. He said prior to this summer, they didn’t have a relationship beyond mutual respect as competitors: “It was always flowers” pic.twitter.com/4k4KPi3tQu
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) July 22, 2025

Smart, the 2022 Defensive Player of the Year, averaged nine points, 2.1 rebounds, and 3.2 assists last season, during which he played for both the Wizards and the Grizzlies. He appeared in just 34 games, having been limited with an injury.

To make room to bring Smart aboard, the Lakers on Sunday waived guards Shake Milton and Jordan Goodwin.