Marcus Smart’s return to TD Garden is certain to be emotional on Sunday, and even though the former Celtics guard won’t play due to a finger injury, Joe Mazzulla is still hoping he can make one of his old signature plays.
“Hopefully during a timeout, I don’t know if his hand still hurts, but he can dive on the floor for a loose ball and roll one out,” the Celtics coach said.
That’s obviously unlucky as Smart, now with the Grizzlies, continues to recover from the right finger injury he suffered last month. But Smart will be in the building on Sunday, and his presence will evoke emotions and happy memories of one of the most beloved players in recent Celtics history. A tribute video is expected and the reception will be special.
- After nine seasons with the Celtics that included endless hustle plays and iconic moments that endeared himself to the city, a Defensive Player of the Year award, an NBA Finals berth and all of the charity and community work that made him a fixture in Boston, Smart was shockingly traded to the Grizzlies just before midnight on June 21 in a deal that landed Kristaps Porzingis in Boston.Marcus Smart blindsided
The emotions were raw. His Celtics teammates shared in the shock. Payton Pritchard said Saturday it was “wild to see.” Brad Stevens – while making the move that signaled the Celtics’ trust in Derrick White as their starting point guard – said it was hard to do because of how much Smart meant to the organization and city.
Smart expressed some disappointment. In the wake of the trade, he said the Celtics had told him the week before they had no plans to trade him. He said he was blindsided by the news. He was asleep, and his agent called his fiancee, who woke him to tell him. But that didn’t take away his love from the city he grew up and became an adored figure in. And even though it was time for the Celtics to move on from him, he was irreplaceable in many ways.
