The Boston Celtics know their first-round playoff matchup will be against the Atlanta Hawks. As preparation gets underway, there were still questions regarding the team’s health: key players were sidelined at the end of the season. All-Star Jaylen Brown has missed the last two games due to an off-the-court injury to his hand.
Brown reportedly cut his hand on a broken vase while he was watering his plants and needed five stitches. During a recent conversation with reporters (via CLNS Media) after practice, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla addressed the injury concerns for Brown and his team.
Buy Celtics Tickets“It’s getting better,” said Mazzulla. “He wasn’t able to practice today, but he was out there for everything, and still, no restrictions heading into Game 1.”
The update on guard and defensive leader Marcus Smart was also positive, as he’s been dealing with neck spasms. The 2022 NBA Defensive Player of the Year missed the last three games of the regular season, leading to some concern about his availability for the start of the series.
The Boston Celtics are ready to take another swing at hanging a banner in the 2023 NBA Playoffs, and they know who will be the first team standing in their way. https://t.co/hSaQmJ3a8p
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) April 12, 2023
“He’s good,” said Mazzulla. “He’s ramped up; he was great today in practice. Lively said he felt good, so he’ll be ready to go.”
The Celtics have relied on their roster’s depth for most of the season due to sporadic injuries to their core players. Muzzulla hasn’t been shy to switch things up and play deep into his bench if the matchup calls for it.
“It depends on the matchup; obviously, when we’re fully healthy, it’s a little bit different. But at the end of the day, one of the things this roster was built on was depth and the ability to play different ways.” Said Mazzulla, “So we all have to be prepared to play a role in a series. It could be long, and all those guys have to be ready to play a role.”
Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:
Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi
YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ
