Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.

“He’s going to be good,” said Houston Rockets guard James Harden, who shot 4 for 21 against the Celtics Jan. 30, mostly against Smart’s defense. “Good hands. Good feet. Starting to shoot the ball a lot better. He’s getting a lot better. I’m sure he works extremely hard. I saw him this past summer with USA Basketball and he looked really good.”

[…]“I think he’s good,” Wall said. “He’s one of the young guys that comes in and does it like [Celtics teammate] Avery Bradley. He comes in being a defensive-minded guy and when you show coaches you’re committed to that side of the ball first, you let your offensive game catch up and figure out the other things. But he’s doing it the right way, taking on the defensive challenges and not backing down from nobody.”

Globe: All Stars impressed with Marcus Smart

Those are just two quotes from the piece. Harden had a lot more to say, as did John Wall, Kyle Lowry, and Jeff Teague, all of whom had to deal with Smart’s hounding defense at some point this season.

There’s little doubt that Smart is going to be a pretty good player in the NBA. The best of the best recognize his talent, even if the people putting together the rising stars challenge did not. And while it would have been nice to see him in Brooklyn last night, it really doesn’t matter in the end.

Still, his snub is a bit confusing.

What the basic stat line can’t quite quantify is Smart’s impact on the Celtics as a whole when he’s been on the floor this season. Among Boston’s regulars this year, Smart owns the best net rating (the differential between the team’s offensive and defensive ratings) at plus-2.1 points per 100 possessions. Only second-year big man Kelly Olynyk — voted to the Rising Stars game, but not participating due to an ankle injury — owns a better plus/minus this season (Olynyk is a team-best plus-85 and Smart is second at plus-39 for a Boston team that’s minus-76 for the year).

And here’s what’s really been overlooked: Since returning from the ankle injury that wiped out most of his November, Smart has been riding an upward trajectory that culminated recently with his reinsertion into the starting lineup.

One thing that can’t be ignored about Smart is his willingness to take the big shot. I think Smart’s gone through too much in life to be worried about whether he makes or misses a shot in the end. Of all the things he’s lost in life a game will be pretty low on the list… so he’s not going to feel pressure in that situation. And to his credit, he makes a lot of those shots. For all the criticism I give him about his shot selection, he’s proven to be pretty clutch late in games.

I don’t know what’s going to happen next year… maybe he gets into that Rising Stars game, or maybe he’s on the big stage on Sunday night. Either way, it’s hard to believe that he’ll spend next All Star weekend in Texas rather than Toronto.

Page 2: The Suns would rather trade Isaiah Thomas

Word is Suns more apt to try to move IThomas before trade deadline, to restore last season’s roster balance, rather than surrender GDragic

— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) February 14, 2015

Having watched a million Thomas-for-Rondo trade rumors pop up over the past couple of years, I would not be shocked to hear the Celtics involved in rumors for Thomas now.  I’d be shocked if Boston isn’t involved in some way.

Related link: CSNNE: Suns’ All Star guard Thomas welcomes the break

And Finally…

Little League star Mo’ne Davis torches Kevin Hart with the spin move to embarrass Kevin Hart…

… yeah, yeah, yeah… it’s a celebrity game and all that crap, but this girl is 13 years old.

I repeat, that is a 13-year-old girl out there hanging with grown men. I don’t think we’ve heard the last of her.

The rest of the links

CSNNE: Could unhappy Jazz center Kanter be a C’s target  |  All Star preview: Where did all the Celtics go? |  Globe: Blake Griffin’s injury watched closely by Celtics  |  WEEI: Trades worth the Celtics’ while, part 7  |  MyFoxNY: Pros & Cons of AAU Basketball