虎扑体育网

Greg Monroe answers Celtics’ Moose callGreg Monroe walked into the Celtic dressing quarters, a place in which he hadn’t stepped foot since last May 27.He stood against the north wall and looked back at some familiar media faces. “So what are you doing back here?” he was asked.“I don’t know,” Monroe said, letting out a hearty laugh after signing a 10-day contract here. “Nah, it’s good to be back, man.”The man who even refers to himself as Moose last wore this uniform when the Celtics were getting eliminated by Cleveland in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals. He left as a free agent for Toronto and was traded last month to the Nets, who promptly waived him.That’s when the Celts first called.“Well, they were having conversations right after the [February trade] deadline,” he said, “but things didn’t get real serious until about like last week. It happened really fast, pretty quickly.”Monroe told the Herald he has no firm commitment from the Celtics about a second 10-day deal or being kept on through the playoffs, but with the recent injury issues of Al Horford, Aron Baynes and now Robert Williams, his broad 6-foot-11 frame may come in handy.“I mean, definitely that was a part of it,” Monroe said before scoring four points in 3:22 of mop-up duty in the Celts’ 115-96 loss to the Spurs. “Obviously those guys have been having a few little injuries, been missing a few games. So it’s definitely about helping them out and getting them ready for the playoffs. So that’s what it’s about, trying to get those guys fully healthy to make a run.”Having lost four straight games after their defeat to San Antonio Sunday night, the Celts are still stuck in the No. 5 seed. Monroe was asked if he’s surprised they’ve struggled.“Ummm, struggled?” the 28-year-old veteran replied. “I don’t know if they’ve struggled. You know, obviously after last year the expectations were really high, especially when you get two guys like Gordon [Hayward] and Kyrie [Irving] back. It’s just growing pains. It happens to everybody. Everything takes time when you add in people like that. Kyrie played, but a guy like G [Hayward], it takes time. I think that’s what happened. I wouldn’t call it struggling, personally.”But Monroe did have a few struggles from being set adrift by the Raptors, for whom he averaged 4.8 points in 11.1 minutes over 38 appearances (he averaged 10.2 points in 19.1 minutes over 26 games for the Celts after being signed last Feb. 8).“It was really tough,” he said. “I mean, that’s the first time I haven’t been on a basketball team since I was like 5 years old, so it’s definitely tough. But it’s part of the game. I’m not the first guy it’s happened to. You just have to be mentally tough, just stay focused. I know I belong in this league. I feel that way. I’ll always feel that way, and I continue to believe in my work.“I was just at home working out, trying to stay ready. That was really it. That’s all you can do. Things always turn around quickly in this league. You never know what can happen. All it takes is one play and you’re back in it, so I was just at home trying to stay in the best shape I can. You can’t mimic an NBA game, but I was just trying to stay in the best shape I can, make sure I stayed in the gym.”Now he’s back in a familiar gym, and the re-orientation period was smooth Sunday afternoon.“It was easy,” Monroe said. “I learned a whole new playbook in Toronto obviously, but as soon as I started talking to some of the [Celtics] coaches, running through some things, looking at it on film, it all came back kind of quickly. So I definitely feel comfortable with the stuff that they tried to put in really quickly for me. And it’s mostly the same stuff. They haven’t changed much, so I definitely still remember and still understand the plays and everything like that.”He also understands his role, and he’s more than willing to be a large insurance policy.