Marcus Smart makes his return to the Boston Celtics Sunday after missing the last 18 games with a knee subluxation.

BOSTON – With the knee subluxation injury in the past and a month of recovery and rehab behind him, Marcus Smart returns to the floor for the Celtics Sunday night against the New York Knicks. Smart missed the last 18 games with a subluxation of the proximal tibfib joint, with the Celtics going 10-8 in that span.

The engine of the Celtics’ defense will make a gradual return, coming off the bench in short stints with an unofficial minutes restriction.

We’ll probably throw him in and see how he looks,” coach Brad Stevens said pregame. “He hasn’t played a five-on-five game in aw while. He’ll be on limited minutes. So he’ll come off the bench and we’ll play [him] short stints. There’s really not a number attached to that, but he hasn’t played in awhile and this will be his first five-on-five action in quite a bit.”

Smart will have to learn to take things slow, something that is definitely not in his nature.

“I kind of have to [take it slow] now. My body can’t; I can’t, even though I’m used to playing at one speed. This is an important time for me to just kind of really gradually gain my confidence back on the floor and trust that my body is in.”

Smart has been working hard to return before the new year, but this will be his first five-on-five experience since the injury. It’s gonna take a lot of rust-shaking to get back to being a crucial rotation...[READ MORE]

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