Happy no major trades broke up the Celtics’ 2022…

Happy no major trades broke up the Celtics’ 2022 Finals core, Marcus Smart is itching to run it back

When you get to the door of the promised land only to have it slammed in your face, it can be hard to let it go. And for Boston Celtics veteran point guard Marcus Smart, not letting it go can be an important part of getting back to the NBA Finals again this season with hopefully better results — but it can still be a painful thorn in one’s side in the meantime nonetheless.

In an interview with The Athletic NBA Insider Jared Weiss, the Flower Mound native admits that there are some nights that he can’t get to sleep, and ends up re-watching clips from the 2022 NBA Finals.

“My girlfriend’s like, ‘Get off, it’s over, let it go.’ I can’t. That’s the beauty of us competitors,” related Smart.

“The season-ending knee injury Danilo Gallinari suffered with Italy last month is a dagger,” writes Stein. https://t.co/5kMocvQrpu

— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) September 14, 2022

Part of what went wrong for the Celtics in the Finals was simply too much playing time on the shoulders of too few players, a fact not lost on the Oklahoma State product.

“I think depth was one of the big things that hurt us,” he explained. “You had me, Jayson (Tatum), Jaylen (Brown), and our starters playing, clawing (up the standings) and we did it to ourselves.”

Kevin McHale, Jayson Tatum cited as Boston Celtics ‘traded NBA draft picks that turned into gold’ https://t.co/iVjv1k9GVV

— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) September 14, 2022

Trading for point guard Malcolm Brogdon ought to help address that issue this coming season, even if the lauded signing of veteran forward Danilo Gallinari won’t have an impact on the team’s fortunes before April at the very soonest with an ACL tear having derailed his availability for 2022-23.

That Boston managed to improve their roster without moving on from the core of players who got them to the Finals is not lost on Smart.

“I am glad to be able to say we have the team still together,” he added. “We made a run and we left a little bit on the table. We want to run it back.”