Marcus Smart out for tonight's opener versus the Brooklyn Nets

No Marcus Smart tonight.

Smart, who turned his ankle in the last preseason game of the year for the Celtics against the New York Knicks, believes he will be out for another week, including tonight’s opener against the Brooklyn Nets, and likely matchups with the Charlotte Hornets and Chicago Bulls in the coming week.

Smart, who turned the same ankle which gave him issues last year, is definitely frustrated, according to the Boston Herald’s Mark Murphy:

“It sucks. It does suck just because you work so hard and, especially with these guys out here, you've been in the battles in practice and the fighting, and preseason … I mean, the last game of preseason you get hurt, everything's going wrong for you. But I'm optimistic about it and this team is. I'm just waiting to come back and get on the court with those guys.”

Don’t expect Marcus to take a night off, though - according to Murphy’s article, Smart plans to be an active voice from the bench:

“I'm able to coach guys off the court, even if I'm not playing. That's one of the things that these coaches and my teammates love about me. It's just something unique that I think about myself. I'm able to stay engaged even though I'm not on the floor.”

Boston should be alright without Smart tonight - even versus the vaunted Nets - but expect him to be missed against a Bulls team trying to prove they aren’t a more expensive version of the Nets, and this weekend’s tilt with the Hornets, who look to be a playoff team.


Ultimately, though, these are more or less likely wins with or without Smart, and we’ll need his flexibility on defense (in more ways than one) to have a realistic chance against the Cleveland Cavaliers, and teams of similar stature later in the season. However long it takes, get healthy now, Marcus. We need you healthy this year, in a big way.



Smart photo via www.foxsports.com
Follow Justin at @justinquinnn

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