What’s going right for Boston? ‘We’re doing our job’ on defense, says Celtics’ Marcus Smart

Nine days after Boston Celtics veteran guard Marcus Smart inadvertently set off a minor firestorm with his criticism of his All-Star forward teammates Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, the Flower Mound native was asked about his thoughts on how the team has responded since then.

He was perhaps a bit more cautious with his words given the unexpected wave of negative attention they had created the last time he spoke with the press. Smart pointed towards the clear steps forward that the Celtics have since taken on both ends of the basketball court with impressive wins against the Miami Heat and Toronto Raptors under their belt.

“We had a great game,” he explained. “It’s a great game. First home win, so like I said, it was much needed. We’ve got another one on Friday (vs. the Milwaukee Bucks) to take care of.”

As to what’s made the difference, the Oklahoma State product did not have to dig especially deep given the stark contrasts on the court in terms of defense between the two games Boston has played Toronto at home.

“We’re doing our job,” Smart finished.

It is perhaps ironic that while Smart’s comments may have been both right and in the wrong venue regarding the team’s offensive tendencies focusing too much on those two All-Stars, it has been unequivocally the improvements on the defensive end driving team success in recent games.

But it also speaks to the resiliency of this iteration of the Celtics both in-game and throughout the season that this time around, the team stood up and moved forward where in the past they have crumbled and sulked.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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