The Boston Celtics have had their fair share of struggles recently. In back-to-back games they’ve blown leads to the Brooklyn Nets and New York Knicks. Most importantly they are 1.5 games back from first place in the East. Tonight the Celtics are on the road in the second game of a back-to-back vs the Cavaliers. They will be without three starters tonight in Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, and Robert Williams.
Boston has are 6-4 in their last ten games, but have just one win in their last four played. That one win is against the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the Celtics will be heavily undermanned in their front-court rotation. Including their game tonight in Cleveland, the Celtics have 17 regular season games left in 2022-23.
Massachusetts Sports Betting sites have the Celtics at (+300) to win the Finals this season.
#NEBHInjuryReport vs. Cleveland:
Danilo Gallinari (left knee ACL repair) – OUT
Al Horford (low back stiffness) – OUT
Jayson Tatum (left knee contusion) – OUT
Robert Williams (left hamstring strain) – OUT— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 6, 2023
Celtics are without their starting SF, PF, and C tonight vs the Cavaliers
The only positive in this game for Boston is that Malcolm Brogdon will be returning to the lineup. That doesn’t help the fact that the Celtics will be without three of their top four rebounders tonight and that will hurt their presence on the glass.
Robert Williams is out with a hamstring injury and coach Joe Mazzulla said he’ll be out for the next 7-10 days. NBA veteran Al Horford (lower back stiffness) is out tonight along with Jayson Tatum who is simply listed as out. Role players are going to be relied upon a bit more heavily for Boston tonight.
Expect to see increased roles from Grant Williams, Luke Kornet, Blake Griffin, and even Mike Muscala tonight. The Cavaliers own a 2-1 season series advantage over the Celtics. Boston lost two games within a week of each other early in the season to Cleveland, but were able to secure a 117-113 win last Wednesday.
It will be a tough game on the road tonight for the Celtics as they come into the game undermanned. The games between Boston and Cleveland will start at 7:00pm EST.
