Smart (knee) active for Celtics against Knicks
BOSTON — Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart returned for Sunday’s tilt with the New York Knicks after missing 18 games with a knee injury.
Smart, sidelined since Nov. 20 because of a subluxation of the proximal tibiofibular joint, will come off the bench while shaking rust from his extended absence.
“We’ll probably throw him in, see how he looks,” Celtics coach Brad Stevens said. “He hasn’t played in a 5-on-5 game in a while. He’ll be on limited minutes, so [Smart will] come off the bench, and he’ll play short stints. There’s really not a number attached to that, but he hasn’t played in a while.”
Stevens said the team felt comfortable throwing Smart back into the fire despite the lack of activity since being cleared to return.
“Here’s the deal: Is it better to practice him and hold out until your next practice is scheduled? It just doesn’t allow for very many of those,” Stevens said. “And even when you do, you don’t go very hard up and down. That’s nine other guys that have to do something when maybe it’s not best for your team to do that. So he’s just going to have to play and get some of that through playing, and he’s going to have to impact the team the best way that he can by defending, by being tough and by being an energy player for the time being.”
The Celtics went 10-8 during Smart’s absence, and Smart said he is simply looking to keep the team’s momentum rolling. Boston entered Sunday’s game riding a three-game winning streak.
“For the most part, they’ve been playing very well, and hopefully I can just come in and keep the momentum going, winning the three games that we won and keep the momentum going and keep winning games,” Smart said.
When asked if he would eventually like to resume his starting role, Smart said that isn’t up to him and that he’s OK coming off the bench if the starting combo of Isaiah Thomas and Avery Bradley continues to perform at a high level.
“Those guys have been playing very well with Isaiah and Avery in the starting lineup, so I don’t want to mess anything up,” Smart said. “Keep the rhythm going, and, if it means I have to come off the bench for this team to keep winning games, then I’ll come off the bench.”
A second-year guard, Smart was averaging 9.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.8 steals over 29.1 minutes per game in nine appearances as the team’s starting point guard before the injury. Thomas was elevated to the starting role in his absence and has given Boston’s first-unit offense a jolt.
The Celtics have still missed Smart’s defensive intensity, even while ranking third in the league in defensive rating.
Smart said he knows not to expect too much too quickly.
“I’m going to be a little rusty out there, so I’m just going to try to take it slow and kind of get back in the groove of things,” he said.
Pressed whether it’s even possible for him to take things slow, he said, “I kind of have to now. My body can’t, even though I’m used to playing at one speed, this is an important time for me to just kind of gradually gain my confidence back on the floor and trust in my body again.”
Said Knicks coach Derek Fisher of Smart: “It’s another guy that defensively gets after you. He plays hard, he competes hard. He adds another element to their team and their roster. I’m sure he’ll be energized. He’ll be good to be back, and we’ll have to be ready to face him.”
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