IT’s return creates Nuggets of excitement
Isaiah Thomas, his career put on hold because of hip surgery, stepped on an NBA floor last night for the first time in nearly a year.
Nowhere — maybe not even on the Denver Nuggets team that is getting him back just in time for the stretch run — is Thomas’ journey back to the floor better appreciated than with his former Celtics teammates.
“Everyone here knows what he’s all about — just from his actions,” Marcus Smart said before last night’s game against Detroit. “At least here, we all know what IT brings to the table and what he can do. To see him back on the court is something everyone has been anticipating.
“By far,” he said of the excitement for Thomas returning in time for the playoffs. “He’s gonna be ready, I’m sure of it. I’m excited to see him to well. I hit him up on his birthday the other day. He’s in good spirits and ready to get on the court.”
Smart can only imagine the wild mix of emotions his old teammate has felt in his 11 months away from the game.
“I’m sure it’s been frustrating, stressful, interesting, but at the same time joyful,” said Smart. “He’s been able to be with himself, take his time and do what he wants. No one’s telling him. He’s had time just to be human.”
Brad Stevens had his own IT plan last night with the Nuggets hosting the Sacramento Kings.
“To me, right after the game, when I go home, the DVR is set,” he said. “That’s what I’ll be doing after the game. I can’t wait to watch that game.”
Williams a no-go
Robert Williams, from a recurring bad back to a stomach bug — the latter keeping him out of last night’s game — hasn’t had much luck in terms of availability.
Detroit, with its size, would presumably have been the perfect occasion for a Williams appearance.
But Williams wasn’t alone. Terry Rozier also missed the game due to illness.
“So we have two guys out sick, Williams and Rozier, (Aron) Baynes continues to be out, and then Kyrie (Irving),” Stevens said of his other two shelved players. “The stomach bug that’s hit the rest of the world hit the Celtics in a flurry in the last 48 hours. That’s too bad.”
Horford manages
Al Horford played 35 minutes during Tuesday night’s win in Philadelphia, and despite the need for him again last night against Andre Drummond, he was in line for some time management because of the back-to-back grind.
“We’ll manage his minutes appropriately,” said Stevens. “Not necessarily in total, but probably will play shorter stints. It’s one game, then we have seven days off. Tomorrow we’ll be sore and that’s part of feeling good about yourself, if you’re sore and you’ve done well. Hopefully we leave it all out there.”
The All-Star break really couldn’t have come at a better time, except that it probably should have arrived sooner. Last night was the Celtics’ 58th game.
“It’s a good time for everybody,” said Stevens. “The one thing the NBA didn’t do when it adjusted its schedule forward, starting games on Oct. 17, was they didn’t move the All-Star break forward, so you’re playing more games the last two years than have ever been played in a row, and you can see it’s ultimately something people look forward to, but you don’t want to look ahead. We have a game to play . . . and if we can leave it on the court that’s what we hope to do.”