He's a far healthier wing player than Smart currently is. The biggest difference is that Kuzma doesn't bring anywhere near the leadership intangibles that Smart brings on the court. However, on paper, the Grizzlies should improve with the trade. The Memphis Grizzlies have a very interesting situation when it comes to Marcus Smart. He's making $76 million but seems to be coming off the bench now for the team. With the price that Smart is getting paid, it's tough to justify the contract unless he's playing a significant role.

Combined with the fact that Smart hasn't been very available due to injury, it becomes even harder to justify. Through the last two seasons combined, Smart has only played 29 games; he played 20 games in 2024 and 9 games in 2025. With that in mind, some hypothetical trade ideas for Smart have already been created.