According to reports, the Boston Celtics have re-signed restricted free agent guard Marcus Smart to a contract worth $52 million dollars over four years.

Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports broke the news earlier today:

Restricted free agent Marcus Smart has agreed to a four-year, $52M deal to return to the Boston Celtics, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 19, 2018

Boston Celtics Agree to Re-Sign Marcus Smart to Four-Year Contract

Smart will return to a loaded Celtics backcourt that features Kyrie Irving, Terry Rozier, and Gordon Hayward. Smart is a great perimeter defender, since his selection at 6th overall in the 2014 NBA Draft by the Celtics. He regularly utilizes his size and energy to make an impact on that end of the floor. However, his offensive game is still developing. Smart averaged 10.2 points per game while shooting only 36.7% from the field. He only shot 30% from the three-point line, as well. Marcus is underrated as a distributor. He averaged a career 4.8 assists last season, which is paired with a career-high assist percentage of 23.7%. Injuries to his hand limited him to appear in only 54 games last season. He is 24 years old and helps the Celtics contend for years to come.

Marcus Smart and his camp should be thrilled with this contract. There are few teams left in the league with cap space significant enough to make a competitive offer. With not a lot of money to go around, the market has also been brutal to a lot of players. Julius Randle only got $18 million over two years and DeMarcus Cousins signed for a little over $5 million. Boston seemed to have all the leverage and could of simply let the situation play out with Smart forced to accept the qualifying offer. However, the Celtics are able to keep him for four years instead of one. With Terry Rozier and Kyrie Irving set to hit free agency next summer, re-signing Marcus Smart to a multi-year contract provides Boston with some much-needed insurance at point guard.

Main Image:
lBoston Celtic guard Marcus Smart (L) fights for the ball with Emporio Armani Milano guard Krunoslav Simon during their NBA Global Games match Emporio Armani Milano VS Boston Celtic on October 6, 2015 at the Mediolanum Forum in Assago. AFP PHOTO / GIUSEPPE CACACE (Photo credit should read GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP/Getty Images)