Bitcoin is more flexible than it looks like at first. For example, USDT was formerly a Bitcoin Token until a few months ago, when they move basically all stash to ethereum/tron network (you can still some usdt transactions in BTC chain here)
DeFi has some interesting implementations like Uniswap, a decentralized exchange. I would love to see some innovations similar to that in bitcoin network, although I don't know if that is possible. Maybe in a few years, with the lightning network.
Defi as the term most used now, probably not,,, I mean as you say there were already smart contract use and even tokens built on Bitcoin network years ago, even before most smart contract platforms did it. But they did not ever call this defi.
The defi now of lending staking farming nft and whatever they come up with, that is not what the "real" decentralized finance is just all about, so in that sense, for sure Bitcoin again will put out new paths.