Marcus Smart recorded his first triple-double in the Celtics' 117-103 win over the Suns Friday night in Boston; posting 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists in 32 minutes of play.
The game was an all-around and statistical comeback party for the guard, even though it was his 10th game back from a leg injury that sidelined him November 11 to December 27, as he saw some of his largest share of minutes and widest range of impact to date. He was attacking balls in the air, grabbing rebounds aggressively, and even spending time defending 6'9" Mirza Teletovic when called upon:
It feels good...much needed. We were in a slump and we came out with two victories at home. I'm still working myself back into a groove from injury and my teammates allow me to do that.
Despite the massive strides from the guard in his road back from a long absence, there's still some cause for concern at some of the regression in his shooting ability. He'd been shooting 28% from the field since his return coming into tonight and was 4-12 in the win:
You have to have patience, especially when you're not even practicing and playing back to back nights. You definitely have practice and not get frustrated with yourself and know it's going to come.
As always though, Smart is always able to make his impact felt, especially taking on challenging defensive tasks such as bigger offensive players like Teletovic:
Some of my teammates actually said they're trying to convert me to a forward. Just try to use my strength and my quickness against those guys and just slow them down...it's fun to play and makes you work harder.
Watch the video above for Marcus Smart's full presser with the media. Subscribe to the CLNS Radio Youtube channel for more Celtics video. The Garden Report is Hosted and Executive Produced by Jared Weiss and Produced by Jeremy Karpf for CLNS Radio.