Grizzlies' Marcus Smart (finger) out at least next 6 weeks
This season for Memphis, Marcus Smart is averaging a career-high of 14.5 points per game.
• NBA All-Star 2024: Vote here
The Memphis Grizzlies announced Thursday that guard Marcus Smart will miss the next six weeks with a right ring finger injury. Per the team, Smart’s injury is a rupture of the proximal interphalangeal joint central slip and he will be re-evaluated in six weeks.
Smart’s injury occurred in a 120-109 win against the Dallas Mavericks on Jan. 9.
What happened: Smart left that game with 7:38 left in the third quarter with a dislocated finger. After making a 3-pointer, Smart noticed that his finger was gruesomely out of place while extending his hand to celebrate.
That game was Memphis’ first since learning it would be without leading scorer and All-Star Ja Morant for the rest of the season (shoulder surgery).
Smart’s impact: Before his injury, Smart scored 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting as the Grizzlies beat the Mavs, who had won three straight and four of their last five.
In the offseason, the Grizzlies acquired Smart with the anticipation of pairing him with Morant to enhance Memphis’ backcourt with Morant’s scoring prowess and Smart’s defensive skills. Unfortunately, a league-enforced suspension caused Morant to miss the season’s first 25 games. He was only able to play alongside Smart for six games before his season was prematurely ended.
From a statistical perspective, Smart is achieving career-high averages with 14.5 points per game, in addition to contributing 2.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists and a career-high 2.1 steals per game. His absence exacerbates the existing difficulties in Memphis’ backcourt, which has already been dealing with Morant’s exit, and has missed the experience of Derrick Rose (hamstring) in the last three games.
With a 14-23 record, the Grizzlies are third from the bottom in the Western Conference, trailing the Houston Rockets by eight games for the tenth position. In six weeks time, Smart could potentially make a comeback, which may coincide with the Grizzlies’ return from the NBA All-Star break towards the end of February.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
