DENVER — Jake LaRavia had a guru on the bench. Then a second-year Memphis Grizzlies forward, he listened closely to Marcus Smart – who had been voted the NBA Defensive Player of the Year two years earlier – as he tried to gain his footing in the league. LaRavia’s steals-per-game numbers, and his minutes, more than doubled as the Grizzlies in the bottom three of the Western Conference in 2023-2024. Smart, who played in just 25 games for the Grizzlies because of a foot sprain and a partial tear in his finger, spoke to his then-21-year-old teammate,...
