{
  "id": 13027971,
  "title": "Rockets' Marcus Smart gets real on reason why Lakers moved on from him after productive season",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/09/rockets-marcus-smart-gets-real-on-reason-why-lakers-moved-on-from-him",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-09T04:15:47.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/rockets-marcus-smart-gets-real-041547355.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Marcus Smart recently revealed his reasons for leaving the Los Angeles Lakers after a productive season. Initially, the Lakers offered him a deal that did not match his performance, and he was also not satisfied with the security they were willing to provide. When asked again about his decision to move on, Smart mentioned that the Lakers wanted to go younger, which led to his transfer to the Houston Rockets. The Lakers had decided to focus on incorporating younger talent into their roster, and Smart's contract situation ultimately played a role in his departure. Now playing alongside Kevin Durant and other star players, Smart is expected to thrive in Houston's defensive-heavy approach.",
  "summary": "The Los Angeles Lakers decided to part ways with Marcus Smart in free agency. It was a stunning decision considering Smart had a good year. Smart revealed what caused both sides to go separate ways.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}