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The Rockets have missed Dillon Brooks' presence on the team since he was traded last summer and may be trying to replace him in the wrong way. This offseason, Houston brought in Marcus Smart to replace Brooks' role as a vocal leader on defense and bring intensity back to the team. However, the Grizzlies already proved that strategy unsuccessful in 2023 when they brought in Smart the same summer that Brooks left for the Rockets.

The Rockets aren't learning from others' mistakes

Brooks was a much-needed veteran presence that helped push the Rockets defense to absurd heights during his tenure. Because of his leadership, his impact went beyond the counting stats or even basic analytics. The Suns saw the same thing last season when they improved after essentially swapping Kevin Durant for Brooks.

The Rockets don't quite regret their trade to bring in Durant, but they do wish they had kept Brooks somehow. And their best approximation this offseason was the addition of 32-year-old Marcus Smart. The last time Smart joined a team to replace Brooks, the Grizzlies dropped 24 games from the prior season and missed the playoffs entirely.

Hopefully the Rockets won't see results quite as disastrous, but there's little reason to believe Smart will be a game-changer on Brooks' level. Since leaving Boston in 2023, Smart has seen a clear decline in both his play and durability. He had somewhat of a bounceback season for the Lakers last season, but still shot terribly. Unfortunately, the Rockets made him look like a resurgent defender during their first round series.

Smart has big shoes to fill

If the Rockets do hope to have Smart replace Brooks' role, they'll be asking a lot from him. Smart would need to show improvement as both a shooter and defender. More importantly, he will also need to be a leader for the Rockets and push his younger teammates to their highest potential. With that kind of force, Amen Thompson can reclaim his spot as a top defender in the league too.

Smart likely doesn't have the legs left to play defense at the same high level as Brooks anymore. His own Defensive Player of the Year season in 2022 is long in the rearview now. Fortunately, the Rockets should be able to rely on their younger wings to get stops.

But Smart still has an important role to play in terms of bringing toughness and intensity to the team. Houston surprisingly lacked that characteristic last season, despite it being such a key part of their core identity since Ime Udoka took over as head coach. Smart has a chance to correct his past mistakes by bringing intensity back to the Rockets, unlike his tenure with the Grizzlies.

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