Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.

For weeks, Celtics coach Brad Stevens as well as Smart and his teammates felt his shots would start falling sooner rather than later.

In Boston’s last three games, Smart has shot 52.2 percent from the field and 41.7 percent on 3s. During that span he has also averaged 11.3 points, 5.3 assists and 3.3 rebounds along with 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocked shots.

But it was Smart’s shooting of late that has really stood out when you consider he shot just 14 percent from 3-point range in the month of March.

In the five games this month, Smart is connecting on 36.8 percent of his 3s, which if he maintains that percentage, would represent his best month of shooting 3s this season.

Smart maintains that his calling card remains being a lockdown defender, but he acknowledged following the Hawks loss that it felt good to see some of his shots go down.

“No doubt. I have to give credit to my teammates,” Smart told reporters. “They were driving the paint, driving the lane. They were finding me when I was open.”

And performances like the one he had on Saturday may result in fewer wide open looks for Smart who doesn’t register too high on the list of scoring concerns by opponents when putting their scouting report together on the Celtics.

CSNNE – Marcus Smart finding his shooting stroke

Just when you think your five-year-old nephew hucking up shots from the end of the driveway on a little-tikes, plastic hoop has a better chance of ripping it through nylon than a wide open, professional basketball playing Marcus Smart from behind the three-point line, the second year pro starts looking Allen-esque from beyond the arc.

Marcus Smart is a guy who seems to need consistency in playing time and the green light to just continue to let it rip. Give Brad Stevens a lot of credit — as has been discussed on this site and around Celtics nation, Marcus Smart is a valuable piece of this team regardless of whether or not he is shooting well. We all know about his defense, but he’s a steady, back-up ball-handler and watching him rebound on the defensive end is sneakily one of my favorite things about any player’s game on this team. Stevens clearly hasn’t told him to stop shooting, and thus Smart hasn’t seemed to be in his own head very much. It allows him to shoot his way out of his slump.

So what to make about Smart’s recent hot-stretch shooting the basketball? For one, it makes him incredibly dynamic at a very opportune time. With playoff positioning up for grabs, a sharp-shooting Smart becomes another player that the Hornets and Heat have to keep honest. I was amazed at just how open Smart was on many of his three-point attempts in Atlanta. On one of his makes, two players stuck to a rolling Amir Johnson as he dove to the paint, while Smart just sort of sauntered out to the top of the key undisturbed. Will teams continue to forget about Smart from long-range, or will they begin to adjust starting tonight?

For the long-term, if Smart can consistently shoot 3s in the mid-30 percent range, he becomes quite the all-around threat. For those who complained about his offense over the last few months, it’s amazing how just a modest uptick in his shooting numbers make him a heck of a player.

With playoff seeding in the balance, if Smart finds himself unguarded from deep, let’s hope he keeps letting them rip.

On page 2, where a Celtics-Hawks series is unlikely, but would surely be fun

The Hawks took sole possession of the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference from the C’s with Saturday’s win and finished with a 3-1 edge in the season series. Paul Millsap, whose monster performance in Atlanta included 31 points (five 3’s), 16 rebounds and five blocks, has proven especially problematic.

That doesn’t mean a Celtics-Hawks playoff series wouldn’t be exciting, or winnable.

“Every game has been close but one (the previous trip to Atlanta),” Thomas said. “Every other game came down to the last couple minutes of the fourth quarter. We’re not scared of anybody. It doesn’t matter who we play. Knowing this team in home games, I think they’re a little more aggressive on the defensive end. So we have to adjust to that if we do play them.”

Herald – Interesting matchup

Fans of ball-movement and stingy defense would clamor for a Celtics-Hawks first round match-up. For this to happen, however, one would be rooting for the Cs to drop their two remaining games to fall to the 6th seed. Atlanta’s experience, guard-depth (which tests the Celtics back-court as much as any in the league) and fake crowd noise (sorry, had to) would likely be too much for the Celtics to handle. I’d take the Hawks in 6 or 7, but there would be no shortage of entertaining games.

At this point, a match-up with the Hornets would seem most advantageous. Charlotte comes into Boston tonight struggling and looking far more like the team that was middling in lottery position in December and early January.

And finally, history made

The defending champs topped San Antonio on Sunday night by a 92-86 score, in San Antonio’s building, running its record to 72-9. With a win over a depleted Memphis squad on Wednesday night Golden State will finish its season at 73-9, setting an NBA record for wins in a season.

Yahoo – Golden State Warriors tie the record for wins in a season

What an incredible, incredible run for the Golden State Warriors. While the last two weeks have been a grind and the pressure has seemed palpable, Wednesday’s game in front of a delirious home crowd should prove to be nothing but a formality before entering into the history books.

If they can survive the Western Conference playoff gauntlet there will be no question as to the greatest team of all time.

the rest of the links: ESPNBoston – Rookie Terry Rozier leaping at his opportunity  | CSNNE – Crowder: ‘These next two games are critical for me’