BOSTON — Marcus Smart must struggle reciting the alphabet, because he pretty much refuses to say the letter “I” in any context.
Smart’s future with the Boston Celtics got a lot clearer Thursday when the team traded Rajon Rondo to the Dallas Mavericks. The starting point guard job is suddenly available, and the No. 6 pick in the 2014 NBA draft could be positioned to take it.
The 20-year-old doesn’t see that as a foregone conclusion, however.
“No, it’s still up for grabs,” Smart said. “There’s no definite position, who’s going to be playing that starting spot. That’s the least of our worries right now.”
Whereas some observers took Smart’s selection in June as a sign the Celtics trading Rondo was inevitable, head coach Brad Stevens and team president of basketball operations Danny Ainge insisted before Friday’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves that was not the case. Ainge’s primary directive was to acquire a secondary All-Star to pair with Rondo, but Ainge said he gradually changed his plans as it became clear that was a pipe dream.
“(Smart is)Â a terrific defensive player and he has some point guard skills, and I think he’s going to continue to improve, but no, just automatically drafting Marcus did not make this inevitable,” Ainge said. “Marcus can play with anybody. He’s a basketball player.”
On a practical note, Stevens noted that Smart can’t seize any position until he can stay on the court. The rookie is battling a strained Achilles after suffering a sprained ankle earlier this season.
“Marcus has to be healthy first,” Stevens said. “I think the No. 1 key is that he has to be available before he can be named a starting or heavy-minute point guard. Obviously, when he’s been healthy, he has been that, and he has been pretty good. How we’re going to go about that, I don’t know yet. It’s not set in stone.”
The backcourt cupboard isn’t exactly bare. Veteran Jameer Nelson, who came to Boston as part of the trade, presumably will get minutes once he’s up to speed on Stevens’ system. Evan Turner played point guard in the preseason while Rondo rehabbed his broken hand and started at the spot Friday. Second-year waterbug Phil Pressey always seems to do something positive when he gets on the court.
Smart will get his chances, though. He logged 27 minutes of playing time in Friday’s win, finishing with eight points and four assists.
Ask him whether he feels the Celtics organization showed confidence in him, individually, by trading away a franchise cornerstone, though, and he once again reveals his aversion to a certain vertical vowel.
“The confidence it has in these young players, including myself, is tremendous,” Smart said. “It was a big move from the guys upstairs, and it just shows how much they believe in these young guys and this new team that they have.”
There’s no “I” in Smart. The Celtics hope, eventually, that translates into lots of Ws.
Thumbnail photo via Sam Sharpe/USA TODAY Sports Images
