Marcus Smart tells a great story about his irrepressible energy

BOSTON -- If there's one thing that's never been in question with Marcus Smart, it's been his energy. Whether it's guarding points guards and centers with the same dogged intensity, whether it's diving for loose balls, whether it's drawing charges, or whether it's anything else, rare is the game when Smart's presence is not noted by all.

In that regard, Smart was asked on Sunday about where, when and how he discovered that he possessed an inner motor unlike any other. His answer was classic.

"Well, for me was when I was a little kid, I had a lot of energy -- just constantly going, couldn't sit still. And my mom was just like, she put me in every sport," Smart said in San Francisco. "I played football, I played basketball, I played soccer, I played baseball, a little bit of everything just to try to wear me down for that. And then when she realized it's not working and I'm just still going like the Energizer Bunny, she was just like, 'Listen, there's nothing I can do.'"

Smart learned that reality along with his mother, and he learned to channel that energy into becoming the player that he's been for his whole career.

"And from then on for me it's something I adopted and really took on head-on for me," Smart said. "It's what I pride myself on, just being able to keep going."

Smart, who this year became the first guard to win Defensive Player of the Year since Gary Payton in 1996, was also asked about the ins and outs of his defensive mentality.

"The mentality is you've gotta keep going. Can't never give up, you know what I'm saying? You can't take breaks," Smart said. "You've gotta push yourself to the limit. You're playing against some of the greatest players and you have to have a high motor. You have to keep it going. And for me, I'm just telling myself constantly, no matter how hurt you are, no matter how tired you are, you gotta keep going. And that's the mentality you have to have to be a really good defender, let alone a great one."