The Boston Celtics played arguably their most complete game on Monday night at Smoothie King Center, beating the New Orleans Pelicans by a score of 124-107. With no Jaylen Brown due to a lower back injury, Marcus Smart was inserted into the starting lineup and provided a much needed spark. He would finish with 8 points, 5 assists, and 2 rebounds, but Smart’s presence and defensive prowess allowed other starters like Kyrie Irving to take some of the pressure off of themselves.
“I think the unit that we had out there today, we really had that mindset going that we wanted to start off the game and have a defensive presence,” said Irving.