Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart is one of the primary reasons his team was on an eight-game winning streak heading into Tuesday’s outing against the conference-rival Philadelphia 76ers.
Questionable heading into the game due to an illness, Smart started out pretty strong. The defensive-minded veteran scored seven points on 2-of-3 shooting in his first 13 minutes, helping Boston outscore Philadelphia by 19 when he was on the court.
Unfortunately, Smart exited the game in the second quarter after suffering what was an ugly-looking leg injury while getting caught up with Joel Embiid inside. It was not a great scene at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
The veteran had to be helped off the court by his teammates and eventually headed to the locker room. Boston almost immediately ruled Smart out for the remainder of the game with an ankle sprain.
Related: Sportsnaut’s updated NBA power rankings
Impact of Marcus Smart on the Boston Celtics
It’s obviously too early to tell whether Smart suffered a serious injury outside of the ankle sprain. We’ll have further updates when they become available. The hope is that it looked much worse than it actually was.
- Marcus Smart stats (2021-22): 11.8 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 5.4 APG, 41% shooting, 31% three-point, 13.4 PER
As you can see, Smart is having himself a pretty solid season. He’s also been a major difference-maker on the defensive end of the court after calling out Boston’s performance earlier in the season.
With the Celtics in the midst of an eight-game winning streak, Smart is averaging 13.6 points and 6.3 assists on 47% shooting. Boston is also a ridiculous plus-119 with him on the court during this eight-game stretch. Overall, the team is plus-184 with Smart on the court over the past 11 games.