Boston Celtics expect Marcus Smart back around New Year's Day
Marcus Smart has been sidelined since November 22 with a leg injury that was only supposed to keep him out a couple weeks. Instead he'll wind up missing well over a month.
But the good news is Smart has resumed on-court activity with his team, and Celtics President Danny Ainge thinks the second-year point guard will return to game action by New Year's Day.
Here's what he recently told a Boston radio station, per CBS Boston:
Smart didn't jump out of the gates this season, but the sample size is small. He only played in nine games before suffering the injury, and in them only scored in double figures three times.
An efficient 26-point performance against Oklahoma City and Russell Westbrook gave the team hope that Smart can be a star on both ends, but the injury set him back a bit.
It'll be interesting to see if Boston inserts Smart back in their starting lineup or push him to the bench. The Celtics are rolling with their backcourt rotation as is.
“Marcus had a really good day yesterday,” Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge told 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher & Rich on Thursday morning. “He was on the court for the first time, was running around and felt good. Barring any setbacks, [his return is] looking closer to the end of the this month to the beginning of the new year. He looked good and we’re excited that we’ll have him back soon.”
