Brad Stevens returned to coach the Celtics on Sunday against the Grizzlies after leaving Thursday to be with one of his former Butler players, Andrew Smith.
Smith, 25, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in January 2014. The disease later moved into his blood stream, and his wife Samantha wrote in a blog post Sunday that Smith's death is "imminent." Stevens left the Celtics to visit him in the hospital and missed Thursday's loss to the Bulls.
"It was not an easy decision, certainly, but it was the right one," Stevens said before Sunday's game, via Sean Grande, voice of the Celtics. "No question it was the right one. And I just think you make the right decision and you live with whatever you live with. But I’m just thankful [this team] understands the impact of a world outside of basketball.
"We’re fortunate to be doing what we’re doing. We use words like 'adversity,' we use words like 'toughness' and 'grit' and 'warrior' but this is a game when it’s all said and done. But it’s a meaningful game because it impacts the way people feel. And I think that’s you realise when you’re in Indy for the reason I was, that sports do matter and sports do bring out emotions. And the people that play them bring out emotions. The way Andrew has for the fans at Butler and in Indianapolis.
"Our guys should just enjoy getting a chance to compete and being representatives of the sport.”
Stevens' Celtics eventually fell to the Grizzlies, 101-98.