Smart: ‘I leave everything on the floor’
ATLANTA >> On the first play of the second half in Sunday night’s Game 4, Marcus Smart flew in between De’andre Hunter and Clint Capela in an effort to grab an offensive rebound. But the Celtics point guard landed awkwardly on Capela’s shoe and rolled his right ankle, the same one he injured earlier this season that kept him out for 11 games.
Smart stayed on the ground for a few moments holding his ankle, but soon got up and hobbled to the other side of the court to play defense.
Before the playoffs began, Smart declared himself as healthy as he’s been at this stage of the season in years. But given the daring nature in which he plays, that wasn’t going to last for long. Late in Game 3, he suffered a lower back contusion after falling hard on his tailbone. He was questionable for Game 4, but played. Moments before he rolled his ankle, Smart walked out of the locker room with a heat pack on his back.
“I leave everything on the floor every night like it’s my last game and it just happens,” Smart said. “I’m just thankful it’s nothing too serious and I could bounce back.”
Smart went through a litany of tests prior to Game 4 to clear himself to play. His primary focus was to make sure he could withstand the contact on certain movements he would be making during the game.
“If I had any type of soreness where I really couldn’t withstand it I wouldn’t have played,” Smart said. “But everything I passed so I wanted to give it a shot.”
Smart said his back locked up a few times, but he was mostly OK. He was stretching and using heat packs throughout the game in an effort to keep the back as loose as possible. Then came the ankle tweak, but that wasn’t bad enough to stop him.
The Celtics continued to reap the benefits of their emotional leader playing through pain. Smart has been one of their best players on both ends throughout the series. After producing 24 points and eight assists in Game 3, Smart scored 19 points and added four assists in Game 4.
He was instrumental as the Celtics held off several runs from the Hawks. After Atlanta cut Boston’s lead to four late in the second quarter, Smart scored or assisted on all 12 Celtics points to finish the period, including a 3-pointer with seconds remaining to put them up 12 at halftime. Then he scored nine points in the third — including a dunk on the last play of the quarter — as he repeatedly came up with the right reads before Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown took over in the fourth.
“He’s the trigger for our offense as far as our early offense pace and space, recognizing cross matches,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “He did a great job of operating in space and when he plays with that level of control and pace it really helps our offense. I thought he did a good job of that.”
Just as importantly, Smart’s fearlessness and willingness to play through pain was an embodiment of the Celtics’ urgency in not only grabbing a victory in Game 4, but in their pursuit of a championship. A year after experiencing defeat in the Finals, they’re not taking another crack for granted, and doing whatever it takes to get back there.
“This could possibly be our last chance of having this opportunity,” Smart said. “Last year taught us that you don’t get blessed and lucky too many times and you’ve got to grab it and take full advantage of it and don’t leave anything on the court.”
Return of double bigs
When Al Horford found Robert Williams underneath for a three-point play in the second quarter, it put the Celtics up 14. It was a big moment, and Horford showed his excitement by screaming into Williams’ face after the play.
“You love those moments,” Williams said. “The high-energy moments.”
Horford and Williams had only played 20 minutes together through the first three games of this series, and not at all in Game
3. But after the Celtics were thoroughly dominated on the glass in Game 3, it became their focus in Game
4. Mazzulla went back to the double-big lineup that included Horford and Williams for 16 minutes in Game 4, and the two combined to grab 26 rebounds.
Horford didn’t score, but had 11 rebounds and five assists. He and Williams’ presence was clear as they kept the Hawks off the boards. They out-rebounded them, 49-42.
“We definitely played them together a little bit more,” Mazzulla said. “They were both tremendous tonight. I thought Al only got two shot attempts but he was a plus-17 and everything he gave us was instrumental. When those two guys are connected and playing really well, it really helps our physicality.”
Williams’ play was the biggest key to the Celtics’ victory as he finished with 13 points, 15 rebounds and two blocks in 29 minutes while dealing with foul trouble. He made several big plays and took accountability for reclaiming the glass and imposing physicality.
There were moments during the game that Mazzulla appeared to challenge Williams, as he continued to remind the talented big man how much of a gamechanger he is for the Celtics.
“Rob is the kind of guy where he has to realize he has a lot of gifts and he has a lot of ability,” Mazzulla said. “It goes back to what you guys always talk about, guys need to feel appreciated and feel empowered. Every conversation with
Rob is about when he’s at his best, we’re a different team so constantly reminding him of that.”
Williams embraces it. “He has kind of an even level of building you up and tearing you down at the same time,” Williams said. “Even though he encourages me, he challenges me. Even in the middle of games. He challenges me all the time. And I thrive with it.”
NBA suspends Dejounte Murray
Hawks guard Dejounte Murray has been suspended for Tuesday’s Game 5 against the Celtics for making inappropriate contact with and verbally abusing a game official at the conclusion of Game 4, the NBA announced on Monday.
As the clock expired on the Celtics victory, Murray approached referee Gediminas Petraitis to say something to him. He leaned close to him and made contact before walking away. He turned around and yelled some parting words in his direction on his way off the court.
Down 3-1, the Hawks already had only a slim chance of winning the series, but the suspension of Murray now makes the task nearly impossible. The guard was averaging 25.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game for the Hawks over the first four games of the series.