WALTHAM, Mass. -- Boston Celtics rookie guard Marcus Smart's left ankle swelled so bad after he stepped awkwardly on an opponent's foot on Friday night that team doctors had to cut off his shoe before they could begin tests to check the severity of the injury.
That sight did little to calm Smart, who tried to steady his nerves in the aftermath of being stretchered off the court, all while nervous family members, including his mother, Camellia, phoned repeatedly trying to get an update on his condition.
Smart could hardly believe the diagnosis when results came back. He emerged with only a severely sprained left ankle and some bone bruising. Team doctors suggested he could be back on the court in 2-3 weeks.
"It's a night that I don't wish upon my worst enemy. No one should go through that," said Smart, talking to reporters Thursday for the first time since the injury. "I just thank God it came out and it's nothing worse than what it is."
Smart reflected on how his mother, back in Flower Mound, Texas, had already begun pricing flights from Dallas to come check on him.
"She said she was screaming at the TV, trying to catch a flight out here, and I told her, 'No, it's OK. Just calm down,'" said Smart. "That's what moms do and that's why you love them."