Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart has recently spoken out about his team's forgettable performance over the first half of the season. The veteran guard provided an honest assessment of why he believes the Celtics struggled over the first few months of the season.
According to Smart, who himself was forced to sit out a significant part of the first half of the campaign due to a calf strain, he thinks that one of the biggest factors that came into play for Boston were injuries:
“I think many factors went into our downfall, especially on the defensive end,” Smart said, via Taylor C. Snow of NBA.com. “Fatigue, for one. Not having all the players. I think for us, our starting group of me, Kemba [Walker], Jayson [Tatum], and Jaylen [Brown] only played, I think, 28 minutes together total over the course of the season. This season took a lot of bumps and bruises.
“There's a lot of factors into it, but there's no excuse for you to go out there and not give the effort. I think these guys know it. I think they feel it, they understand it.”
The last time Smart took the floor was on January 30, and he's missed a total of 18 games thus far. There has been some significant progress in the 27-year-old's road to recovery, and he is slated to return for Boston's first game after the break when they take on the mighty Brooklyn Nets on Thursday. This is certainly a welcome development for Boston, who is currently sitting at the fourth spot in the East with a 19-17 record.
It is worth noting that the Celtics entered the break on a high after logging four straight wins. With Smart back in the picture, Boston will look to carry on with their winning ways as they hope to make a more significant impact in the East the rest of the way.
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