Marcus Smart Sheds Light On Playing In Playoffs As Mother Battles Cancer

Marcus Smart is as tough as they come, but he’d likely tell you he’s not even the toughest person in his own family.

Smart’s mother, Camellia, has maintained her toughness as she battles a recent diagnosis of bone marrow cancer. The treatment process reached the chemotherapy stage Monday, one day after Smart and the Boston Celtics earned a Game 1 win in the Eastern Conference finals on Mother’s Day, no less.

Speaking with reporters prior to Tuesday’s Game 2 against the Cleveland Cavaliers at TD Garden, Smart revealed the toll his mother’s illness has taken on him amid Boston’s playoff run.

“It’s tough. I’m not going to lie, it is tough,” Smart said, per ESPN’s Chris Forsberg. “I’m professional; we have a job to do. And that’s something about my mom, she’s real big on, ‘I’m going to be OK, go handle what you gotta do. And I’m going to be all right.’ That gives me a little comfort to go out there and not really feel guilty of being here instead of there with her.

“But it is tough. It’s tough, but I have a great support (system) around me.”

Smart told Forsberg that his mother will undergo chemo treatments three times a week and that she’s “doing well.” But despite unfortunate circumstances, it appears she hasn’t stopped coaching her son.

“My biggest critic and my biggest fan, and I love her,” Smart told Forsberg.

Smart plays with an unmatched passion night in and night out, but now, it’s safe to say his motivation is at an all-time high.