David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
The Boston Celtics have received some rather troublesome news as they prepare for their first-round playoff series against the Indiana Pacers, starting this coming weekend.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnorowski, starting guard Marcus Smart suffered an oblique tear and could miss the first two rounds of the playoffs.
Having finished up the regular year with a .500 mark over their final 28 games, the Celtics are going to miss Smart against a game Pacers squad.
The No. 6 overall pick of these Celtics back in 2014, Smart averaged 8.9 points and 4.0 assists per outing. Though, he’s known as one of the better perimeter defenders in the game.
That’s going to hurt against a Pacers squad that has multiple outside shooting options heading into their first-round playoff series.