This is what we know ...
Marcus Smart is going to be around for a while after signing a four-year contract extension.
The Celtics have a brand new head coach in Ime Udoka, who may or may not view Smart in the same light as his predecessor, Brad Stevens.
The Celtics need a point guard, with Smart, Payton Pritchard and newly-acquired Dennis Schröder are all in the mix.
So, all things considered, what does Smart's existence with the 2021-22 Celtics look like. Appearing during the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon, Udoka offered some insight.
"We're looking at a lot of different things," Udoka said regarding Smart when appearing on 'The Gresh and Keefe Show'. "He's obviously going to be called on to do a lot of things. But we haven't finalized our roster all the way yet, so depending on what we do there we can go certain different ways. But we've talked to him a ton about it and made it clear we want him to take another step in his career. And by giving him that extension we have full faith in him. He has done great things. The age, and the toughness and the attitude he brings to the team is invaluable. For him to take another step is to have the ball in his hands more and be a playmaker and just be a great decision-maker for the guys. He realizes who he's playing with and I think that will be a benefit with the new mentality that he has."
The 27-year-old Smart is coming off another up-and-down season, averaging a career-high 13.1 points per game while shooting 39 percent from the field. He continued to take a good amount of three-pointers, averaging about six per game. His three-point percentage, however, sat at just 33 percent.
Considering Smart's propensity to fire away, with the Celtics relying on one-and-down possessions for much of last season, it is worth getting Udoka's perspective on how he views this season's offensive approach.
"We are going to play to guys' strengths, and I always say knowing your weaknesses is a strength. So we talk to guys about roles," the coach said.
"The league, in general, is a green light league and you have probably subpar shooters that are taking shots like they're 40-45 percent three-point shooters. We don't want to take away from their strengths, and their confidence. So we want to build on those things. But at the same time, you have to realize who you are playing within different roles. Things change over the years. When you add guys like Marcus, Dennis ... Dennis has been a great starter and he has also come off the bench and done very well in Oklahoma City and other places. We want to build on everybody's strengths and be confident but at the same time know who you are playing with and know there is a pecking order within the team."