One of the biggest changes that occurred during the NBA offseason was the Boston Celtics dealing former Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart to the Memphis Grizzlies in a three-team trade that sent former All-Star big man Kristaps Porzingis to Boston.

Smart now faces a new challenge in his career, as he will embark on a new season with a team not named the Celtics for the first time ever. The Grizzlies, a young and hungry team, will immediately be utilizing Smart given Ja Morant's 25-game suspension, but the former Celtics guard has yet to make his preseason debut with the team due to a core injury.

The veteran sat out of Memphis' preseason game on Tuesday night with head coach Taylor Jenkins claiming that his status was “day-to-day.” On Wednesday, Jenkins spoke to reporters about Smart and gave a slightly updated timetable for when he could be ready to make his Grizzlies debut.

According to Drew Hill from The Daily Memphian, the head coach claimed Smart would not be available for the team's third preseason game on Thursday, but that he anticipates their new addition being ready for the start of the regular season on October 25 against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Smart has been participating in on-court activities in practice, as well as weight training. The best news Jenkins gave was that Smart's abdominal pain is “dissipating,” meaning that he is getting closer to practicing at full capacity.

The Grizzlies finished the 2022-23 season with a 51-31 record, tied for the fifth-best record in the league. However, they went on to lose in the first-round of the playoffs for the second time in the last three seasons, which is why some type of change was inevitable for this franchise during the offseason.

The addition of Smart is huge for Memphis, especially since they now have the last two Defensive Player of the Year Award recipients on their roster with Jaren Jackson Jr. in the frontcourt. Aside from his defense, Smart has been known to be a strong playmaker and facilitator, averaging a career-high 6.3 assists per game a season ago.

While not quite ready to make his debut with the Grizzlies, it appears as if Marcus Smart is on the road to recovery from his injury and will be available when the season begins.