Celtics Notebook: Marcus Smart returns, Romeo Langford didn't (but was supposed to)

The Boston Celtics were tantalizingly close to a full squad as they hit the practice floor at the Auerbach Center Wednesday afternoon.

"It looked like we were going to be," Brad Stevens said. "I even said it on my radio interview this morning, which I immediately regretted because that just opened up something else to happen."

Marcus Smart, who missed all of February with a strained calf, was back. Romeo Langford, who has missed the entire season recovering from wrist surgery, was also cleared to practice today and play tomorrow, was not because he entered the NBA's COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

"We got word at about 10 a.m. that he wasn't going to be able to practice, and I would guess that he will not travel with us,” Stevens said. “He would have been able to play tomorrow.”

Langford's absence overshadowed the big news of Smart's return, simply because it's just another in a growing list of hard-luck reasons the second-year forward isn't able to play and give the Celtics a little extra help on the wing.

Smart was able to get some five-on-five scrimmage time in his return to practice, something the Celtics have rarely been able to do this season.

"Today was the first day to really get out there and play five-on-five and get contact and really press it to the limit to see. It felt really good," Smart said. "So they cleared me and said if today went well, I’m most likely going to play tomorrow unless something changed. But as of right now, I will be playing in the game tomorrow."

Basically, unless Smart wakes up to pain in the calf, he's suiting up against the Brooklyn Nets tomorrow night. But even though he'll play, he'll be on a minutes restriction.

"He'll be low for awhile," Stevens said. "I know Marcus just said he's playing, and I assumed he might, but I haven't talked to the training staff about any of that, or him. So we'll talk about that tonight and come up with a gameplan."

However many minutes he plays will be good for the Celtics. They survived the first half of the season and came out of it holding onto the fourth seed, but they spent much of last month looking too lackluster for too long. Smart plans on changing that.

"Just challenging them, anything I can to motivate them," he said. "As competitors, you hate when guys call you out ... hopefully that gives the motivation to go out there and try to lock down on the defensive end. We’re not saying that everybody’s going out there and be defensive player of the year, but we just want to see everybody go out there and give the effort to give us a chance."

Smart stayed as active as he could on the sidelines, being vocal and acting as a sort of player-coach. He says it gave him a unique view on what the Celtics were going through.

"Being able to sit over here, I have to look at it from a different perspective and when everyone is looking at the negatives, I’m looking at the positives," he said. "The things that we can control and fix that are very fixable and controllable and what I have to do to bring back that energy on the defensive end for us."

For Smart, his return is about looking forward to what the rest of the season can be, not stewing about what it hasn't been.

"I just want us to forget about the first half in the sense of 'forget how we played.' That's in the past, it's over," Smart said. "(This is) an opportunity to come out and start fresh with the defense and kind of re-invent ourselves identity-wise on the defensive end. I just want to see my guys play with the same intensity I have. I'm not seeing you have to go out there and play the exact way I do, just the same intensity. That's all I ask for and I think that's all the coaching staff asks for."

FINALLY, SOME PRACTICE TIME

The Celtics, like every NBA team, haven't had much time to practice this season. That makes this return from the All-Star break very valuable.

"These three practices that we'll have today, Friday, and Saturday, it'll be the last stretch of time you're really able to practice with this schedule being what it is," Stevens said. "So, everything else we’ll have to do the way that we've kind of done it here in the last two months with regard to a lot of individual work, a lot of group work, and a lot of film, walkthrough type preparation."

The guys were able to split up into teams and get some scrimmage time in against each other, another valuable tool that lets coaches correct some bad habits as they happen.

"These practices that you get a chance to get are important," Stevens said. "I wish we had an extra day before we played but I thought our guys had a good bounce in their step today and good energy. So tomorrow night will be a great litmus test to see kind of where we stand because I think they are clearly a team that is going to be very, very difficult for teams to beat.”

GETTING SOME REST

The scrimmage did not include Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown, who were given a little extra rest since they participated in the All-Star festivities on Sunday.

"Those guys didn't participate," Stevens said. "They're in good shape now... they feel pretty good. My concern was about the games building up through that first half, and now the hope is that we have more bodies available as the second half goes along and so you can choose opportunities to take. But there is nothing that will be, that we're concerned about with those guys in the near future."

Tatum led the NBA in minutes played since his return from fighting COVID-19 (763). He's been open about still feeling the effects of COVID-19, so it's in Stevens' best interests to find a way to dial back the burden on his star player.

"My biggest concern through the first 36 games... was not wearing down Jayson and Jaylen," Stevens said on 98.5's Zolak and Bertrand. "Knowing Kemba (Walker) was going to be out and then losing Marcus for a month-plus,  18 games, half our season so far, whatever it is, it put a huge burden on those guys. You saw it catch up with them on a few different occasions. And so I'm hopeful that we can maintain some good health."

KEMBA PLAN HOLDS STEADY

Do not get your hopes up for Walker increasing his workload and playing in some back-to-back games.

"I haven't even thought about it," Stevens said. "I guess I'm just going under the impression that he won't be. But that has not been a discussion we've had anytime soon. Maybe that changes in May, I don't know."

Here's one reason to keep Kemba out on the back-to-back. He's a monster with some extra rest.

Walker with one day rest this season: 17.7 ppg, 36.6% fg, 36.3% 3pt,
Walker with two days rest this season: 20.6 ppg, 43.2% fg, 40.3% 3pt

Give him the extra day if you can.

COVID ANNIVERSARY

One year ago, the Celtics were in Indiana facing the Pacers in the last game they'd play in a full arena. The next day, Rudy Gobert tested positive and the league shut down. Smart tested positive shortly after that.

"It's been a whirlwind, it's been a tornado type of year for us," he said. "Not knowing if we can get into the gym at a certain time because you have to test or your test didn't come back or waiting on tests or you can't get in because someone tested positive or somebody was around somebody in protocol. All the kinds of things that you have to worry about that in previous years you didn't have to worry about."

Fans are starting to return to arenas, and they will in Boston as well in two weeks,  but that still doesn't match the intensity of a full arena.

"I think I can speak for almost everybody, at least on this team and every player that’s playing in this league, the fans, we miss that fan interaction," Smart said. "Being able to go into a crowded arena, you feel that presence when you walk in and the jitters that you get, the excitement that you get from those fans being able to play in front of.

"We’ve gotten used to not playing with it. It’s tough. It really is. They try to bring in and do as much as they can to replicate things with the fake noise and automated electronic noise and things from the fans, but it’s just not the same. We have to get used to it this year and for us, it’s a big-time curveball. It’s something that we have to deal with, but the NBA has done a great job to try to protect us on and off the court and trying to keep us as normalized as we can. Definitely something that I think we would love to get back to with the fans, it’s something that we miss."

MARCUS SMART, NEW DOG DAD

Let's just end on some good news.

"I got a new puppy. A new dog dad," Marcus Smart revealed after practice. "I got two puppies as well."

No word on what kind of dog it is. He did get a labradoodle last year.