Marcus Smart’s ankles could keep him sidelined against the 76ers
The Boston Celtics are already trying to figure out how to make things work without Gordon Hayward, and now there is uncertainty about Marcus Smart. Smart apparently rolled both his ankles against the Milwaukee Bucks, and Brad Stevens is doubtful that he will be able to suit up against the Philadelphia 76ers (Via Jay King).
The offense was put out of sorts by losing Hayward, and now the defensive approach will have to be transformed if Smart is not available. No one on the roster takes on more defensive responsibility and they do not have anything they can trust behind him.
The most important player in making up for Smart, if he misses time, is Terry Rozier. Fortunately, Rozier has been the most impressive player early on, and he should be able to take over the second unit, and make sure they are not a mess without Smart.
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He has also been good on defense. The problem is that he does not have the versatility, but Rozier will contribute to getting those extra defensive plays that are lost with Smart sidelined.
This does not sound too serious for Smart, but the Celtics are always patient and cautious when it comes to any injury. The Celtics desperately want to avoid going 0-3, but Stevens is not going to risk anything with Smart because of that.
The Celtics also have a nice three day break after this game. If Smart sits out, then that will mean he has a bit less than a week to make sure he is at full strength, and if he plays tonight that could set him back even further.
It would be unfortunate if the Celtics miss out on his defensive versatility against a team that has two bigs that can handle the ball, but that is where Jaylen Brown can shine, because he has the size, strength and speed to take on most of that responsibility.
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The Celtics would love to see Smart give it a go as they try and secure that first victory of the season, but that cannot be the top priority when deciding if he is going to play. Smart is far too important to the future of this team to risk doing more damage to his ankles in the third game of the season.