For an eighth straight game, the Celtics had to be without the player considered by many to be the heart and soul of their team, Marcus Smart.
Prior to the Celts' game against the Cavaliers at TD Garden Friday afternoon Brad Stevens offered an update on Smart, who last played Dec. due to a left eye infection. (For more on exactly what the guard has had to endure, click here.)
"He's making the right strides," the Celtics coach said. "He came in yesterday, did some full-court stuff, looked good. We'll be able to assess that tomorrow."
Smart did not travel with the Celtics for their Christmas Day game in Toronto and participated in a workout with coaches and teammates Thursday at the Auerbach Center. According to Stevens the biggest issue right now is conditioning.
"He really hasn't done anything until the 23rd or 24th in a couple of weeks so it's a matter of making sure his cardio is up but it probably wouldn't be best to start your playing again in a back-to-back," Stevens said. "Two days in a row would be tough. He went really hard yesterday to see how he would respond. There was a thought he could potentially play today. We think that it's best he is ready to go full-go. He'll get another full workout, he feels good and we'll see how he feels tomorrow."
The Celtics have gone 5-2 in Smart's absence.
