The Celtics already knew it was a long shot that Jayson Tatum would play in Game 3 against the Magic, but Boston’s injury situation could get even worse ahead of tip-off.
The C’s listed the superstar forward as doubtful on their injury report Thursday, not long after head coach Joe Mazzulla revealed Tatum’s right wrist bone bruise is “severe.” That sort of injury can take weeks to heal, and with Boston holding a 2-0 lead in the first-round series with Orlando, it wasn’t a shocking designation.
What was surprising and a little unsettling, if you’re a Celtics fan, was the addition made to the injury report Friday ahead of Game 3. The Celtics added Jaylen Brown to the list due to his nagging knee issue. Also on the injured list is guard Jrue Holiday, who was on the list Thursday.
Both Brown and Holiday were listed as questionable, while Tatum was still listed as doubtful as of Friday afternoon. The Celtics certainly dodged a bullet with Kristaps Porzingis’ head injury in Game 2 and could be looking at an even more daunting situation if his injury was more than just a cut to the forehead.
Despite the uncertainty about the trio of All-Stars, the Celtics are still 3.5-point favorites Friday night as the series shifts to central Florida. However, Boston is going to have a very difficult time defending its NBA title if any one of those three players misses a substantial amount of time. The Celtics could probably finish off the Magic, especially with a two-game cushion, if they were without all three for the rest of the series.
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That’s certainly not a risk they’re going to want to take once the playoffs progress. If Boston advances, it would take on the winner of the Knicks-Pistons series, which has been a throwback of sorts. It’s likely to expect that to be a physical battle regardless of the opponent, and if the Celtics are already compromised, that will make things more difficult, even against two teams that can’t come close to matching Boston’s talent level.
Featured image via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
