Celtics' Marcus Smart explains why he checked himself out of Game 1 vs. Wizards

Smart wasn't pleased with himself after a series of errors, so he yanked himself to the bench.

After a series of errors in Sunday's Game 1 against the Washington Wizards, Celtics guard Marcus Smart proved he has a quicker hook on himself than his own coach -- yanking himself out of the game because of his mistakes. 

"I just decided to take myself out. Things were going wrong and I was making a couple mistakes," Smart told ESPN after Boston's series-opening win. "Everyone else was playing good, so I decided to take myself out and let those guys keep going and really calm myself down and get ready to go back into the game to finish the game."

Although Boston fell behind by 17 points early in the game, it was Smart who helped lead the charge to an eventual double-digit victory. Smart finished with six points, four assists, three rebounds, three steals and three blocks and was all over the floor wreaking havoc. But when Smart is out of control, he says sometimes a quick breather will help him settle down. Call it selfish or quirky or whatever, but it isn't the first time he says he's done it.

"The turnovers and the silly fouls, I know I can't make those mistakes," Smart said. "I just wanted to take myself out, get myself together, and cheer my team on. Those dudes were rolling and keeping me going. I didn't want to mess up the groove. I just really regathered myself and got ready for when Brad called me back in.

"I think that was a selfless act to be able to understand, obviously, right now things aren't going well for you, but this guy, he's been playing really well. So why should he come out when he's playing really well and not you? So I decided to take myself out."