BOSTON — Marcus Morris admitted he feared the worst as pain shot up his body from his backside as he was stretched out on the TD Garden parquet late in the third quarter of Wednesday’s victory against the Knicks.
“I honestly didn’t know how it was going to be,” said Morris, who crashed to the floor after being hit on a breakaway dunk and remained there for several minutes. “That fall was pretty hard. But it’s coming back easily. It actually wound up being better than what we expected.”
While Morris was forced to sit out Friday night's game against the Atlanta Hawks, and said he is questionable for Sunday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers, he said he expects to be back "for sure" for Tuesday night’s matchup of Eastern Conference leaders against the Raptors in Toronto.
“It’s just been 48 hours,” Morris said. “But it’s better. A lot better.”
The quick recovery timetable was a relief for the veteran forward, who had already missed 22 games earlier this season with recurring knee pain.
“The knee thing was just an unfortunate thing because I missed training camp,” he said. “I think it was just a defect that happened [related] to that.”
The latest Morris injury, combined with injuries to Kyrie Irving (right quad bruise), Shane Larkin (right knee soreness) and Marcus Smart (right hand laceration) left the Celtics with just 10 healthy players for Friday’s game.
Celtics coach Brad Stevens said the team could have Irving back on Sunday, and Boston is expected to soon get a boost from signing veteran big man Greg Monroe after he clears waivers as early as Saturday. But, for one night, the team was shorthanded.
“[Terry Rozier] might be in every five,” Stevens said before the game. “He might be in all 48 minutes in every five.”
Irving was with the team Friday night despite sitting out his second straight game.
“Kyrie feels a little bit better," Stevens said. "Would still be day-to-day.”
The coach said Larkin tried to give it a go in a workout earlier Friday, but his knee did not respond and he was declared out for the third straight game. He added that Smart had his hand re-evaluated and will be out at least another 10 days to two weeks while the cut heals. Stevens said there was no structural damage to Smart’s hand.
“Whether that means right before the All-Star break, or not, that’s more our timeline now,” Stevens said.
Stevens said Wednesday night that the team may consider additional internal discipline for Smart after he cut the hand while punching a picture frame on the wall of a Los Angeles hotel room last Wednesday.
Stevens would not comment on the forthcoming signing of Monroe because he had yet to clear waivers after reaching a buyout agreement with the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. But Morris gave the 6-foot-11, seventh-year veteran a vote of approval from his locker.
“I think that’s a great pickup for us,” Morris said of the deal that could become official as soon as Saturday. “Veteran player. Knows how to play the game, been around the league awhile. I think he will add to our size down low, scoring ability. It’s a good pickup.
“He’s a big body. Even if he’s not scoring, he’s carving space for other guys being able to drive. He’s well-respected around the league. That goes a long way.”
Monroe has career averages of 13.9 points and 8.7 rebounds in stints with the Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks and Suns.
Eagles fan
Stevens joked before the game that the real reason Morris was sitting out Friday night was his decision to wear a Philadelphia Eagles Alshon Jeffrey jersey to his postgame press conference after the Knicks game.
Morris, who is from Philadelphia, was back at it on Friday, arriving at TD Garden about 90 minutes before the game in a Randall Cunningham jersey. He said he’s been proudly wearing his Eagles gear around town all week.
“Every time I get out of the car I’ve got a whole lot of haters,” he said.
Morris said he intends to watch the game at home with assistant coach Jerome Allen, also from Pennsylvania and an avid Eagles fan, and their families.
“I don’t want to be around any Patriots fans,” he said. “I think that would be bad luck.”