The Boston Celtics either are playing Marcus Smart’s status close to the vest, or they really don’t know what his future holds.
Smart is sidelined with a sprained right thumb he suffered in Sunday’s loss to the Indiana Pacers, and there’s speculation he could miss the rest of the season. Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge addressed that speculation Thursday during his weekly radio spot on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Toucher & Rich.”
“I think there’s a chance he plays and a chance he’s done,” Ainge said, via USA TODAY’s Jared Weiss. “We’re all waiting to figure out what that’s gonna be. He’s in New York (Thursday) getting another opinion (from a) hand specialist there. I think we’ll talk it over, over the next few days.”
Tuesday’s blizzard in Boston reportedly delayed Smart’s visit to New York, and it sounds like the C’s aren’t making any decisions until the results of his meeting with the hand specialist. Either way, Ainge expects Smart to miss at least the next week.
“(He’ll) give it a week to sort of heal or at least calm down the injury to see if he can tape it and play or if it’s something that needs surgery,” Ainge said.
Ainge’s last comment offers some optimism that Smart could be play through the injury late in the season and in the playoffs. But the bottom line, it seems, is that they won’t have any more clarity on the 24-year-old’s status until after Thursday’s meeting.
The Celtics will be hoping for good news: Brad Stevens’ vastly undermanned club has lost two games in a row and now trails the Eastern Conference-leading Toronto Raptors by 4 1/2 games.
