Celtics hit the road without Marcus Smart

The Celtics got off the plane in San Francisco and practiced Monday night without their defensive leader, and the drill was something they would have to get used to.

Marcus Smart, who suffered a grade 1 tear in his left calf during Saturday’s loss to the Lakers, is projected to be out two to three weeks, and in the short term won’t be available when the Celtics visit the Warriors, Kings, Clippers, Suns and Jazz on this eight-day road trip, and could miss as many as 11 games.

And yet, based on the sight of Smart being helped off the floor Saturday night, and the fact that he’s now on crutches, Brad Stevens understands that his point guard likely dodged a bullet.

“I think — I guess yes. I did think leaving on Saturday night that we were at least hopeful that it was what it was,” said the Celtics coach. “So that was encouraging but probably didn’t make it feel any better these first couple days. I know Marcus was really sore yesterday and he still was using crutches so we’ll see how long it takes. He did not come with us so obviously we’ll get more information throughout the week and next week again.”

Kemba Walker, who is still under a minutes restriction, won’t have his playing time ramped up despite the need for other players to absorb Smart’s role.

“Kemba’s still restricted. He’ll play pretty similarly to what he’s done in the last few games,” said Stevens. “Obviously, as far as rotating other guys and who gets those minutes, who has a chance to play, or hasn’t played as much who is going to play more, or play a little bit, those things will all be determined, really, based on opponent over the next five games that we’re on this trip.”

The Celtics also face the challenge of improving on their defensive performance without the one player who consistently sets that tone. Daniel Theis, who has been critical of the Celtics’ inconsistency in that part of the game, is now looking for a more cohesive group effort.

“Nobody does what Marcus does on the court. For us, like I said, it’s a collective, not just Marcus is out and one guy is going to take his role. For us, it’s a team,” said Theis. “He’s missing as a playmaker as well, so whoever steps on the court has got to do whatever he can to help us win. For us as a team, you gotta make the next step. We can’t go back and forth the whole season. Wins and losses, we want to just improve, hold it down until Marcus is back.

“It’s a challenge that our best defensive player is out,” he said. “So now everybody has to take the challenge and step up as a team and like you say, he’s missing but now other guys can show — basically everybody on our team, we’ve gotta prove to each other we are an excellent defensive team. We’ve been struggling with the defense all season, so now it’s time to show we can play defense and when Marcus comes back, we can get better on the defensive end.”

Time Lord’s timely work

Stevens hasn’t been one to lavish praise on Rob Williams, but in light of the young center’s recent work, including in tandem with Theis, the coach was particularly complimentary on Monday.

“You gotta look at your options both ways and determine how you can divvy up the minutes appropriately,” Stevens said of playing Williams and Theis together as a double-big combo. “I actually like Rob playing as a single big more than I like that group together even though it’s been good in a small sample.

“But Rob’s playing well. Rob’s doing a lot of good things and I think he likes that role when he comes in with that second stint with (Jayson) Tatum and our bench. But we’re going to have to ask him to continue to be flexible with playing with another big. But it’s encouraging. I think he’s really gotten better and very consistent.”

Payton Pritchard not quite ready

Payton Pritchard, recovering from a right knee sprain, is on the trip, though the rookie guard’s work is limited to side sessions.

“The goal is for him to do some of the stuff but anything live, no,” said Stevens.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/36Bc6IW