Boston Celtics: Why Danilo Gallinari injury could be a blessing in disguise

It was almost too good to be true.  The Boston Celtics needed an experienced scorer off the bench and Danilo Gallinari got to play for the team he grew up watching.  That’s what made the two-year deal inked by the C’s and the Italian swingman so exciting.

Depth, scoring, veteran leadership, Gallinari was bringing all these things to the table for a team just two wins away from capturing an NBA title.  With Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and the addition of Gallinari and Malcolm Brogdon, the Celtics were not only favorites in the East, but favorites to capture Banner 18.

While those odds are still in balance, the Celtics and Gallinari took a hit when the veteran sharpshooter suffered a torn ACL tear while playing for the Italian national team.  The injury will likely sideline Gallinari for potentially the entire 2022-23 NBA season before he even played a minute for the Celtics.

Boston Celtics take a hit with Danilo Gallinari injury, but here’s how it could open a door

With how excited, he was to play for his new team, the injury was both unfortunate and unlucky for Gallinari, who expressed his desire to get back on the court by the end of the season.

"“This has been a tough week for me as I have learned the extent of my injury,” Gallinari wrote in a social media post.  “This game means everything to me and not being able to be on the court with my Celtics teammates hurts.  I plan to give everything I can to the Celtics organization and my teammates as we hunt for a title.”"

Gallinari is not on the level that Gordon Hayward was when he signed with the Boston Celtics, but this situation is a reminder of what the team endured and went through in that 2017-18 NBA season.  Although with Hayward, the magnitude of the loss was much greater, losing Gallinari for the season changes the approach of the Celtics.

Still one of the top tier teams in the NBA with hopes that both Tatum and Brown take another step, the Celtics now must turn their attention to possible replacements for a player who was expected to be a valuable piece off the bench.  Do they turn their attention to a veteran free agent like Carmelo Anthony or do they turn internally?

While rumors are swaying towards Melo, the injury could open the door for a player already on the team like Sam Hauser, who has the same sharp-shooting capability as Gallinari although obviously not as experienced in the NBA.

Averaging just 2.5 points a game in his rookie season, Hauser was re-signed to a long-term deal with the hope of giving him more of an opportunity.  If we go back to the Hayward injury, his absence that season may have propelled the progression of Tatum and Brown as they were immediately ushered into the forefront.  Could Gallinari’s absence help with the progression of Hauser?

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That is where the injury could be a blessing in disguise for the Boston Celtics.  Will this now give the team more of an option to develop a player like Hauser or a two-way player like Mfiondu Kabenegele?

To conclude, the Danilo Gallinari loss is a big blow for Tatum, Brown and them boys, but when one door closes, ultimately another one opens and whether it’s the maturation of Hauser or providing an opportunity for a NBA veteran like Carmelo Anthony to have a shot at a ring, fate always has a way of becoming a factor in these situations.

Things happen for a reason.  How the season plays out will tell us what that reason was.

As for Gallinari, it gives him a chance to be a mentor for a player like Hauser and help the Boston Celtics in other ways off the court.