The Boston Celtics are wrapping up another 60-win season as they head to the playoffs as the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference. Once they finish out the regular season on Sunday against the Hornets, the Celtics will have almost a full week to rest and recover before their first-round matchup.
During that week, all eyes will be on Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown. He has been dealing with a bone bruise in his right knee, which reportedly got worse in recent weeks. He hasn't played over 30 minutes in a game since March 12 and sat out in Boston's last two games after not playing much in the second half and overtime against the Knicks on Tuesday.
ESPN's Ramona Shelburne provided an update on Brown's status heading into the playoffs.
"Celtics All-Star forward Jaylen Brown received pain management injections in his troublesome right knee this week in an effort to promote healing before Boston begins its title defense, league sources told ESPN."Ramona Shelburne, ESPN
Shelburne added that his knee has been causing Brown more pain recently. The fact that he had to resort to painkilling injections on his knee to deal with it is not a good sign for Brown or the Celtics.
Boston will begin its title defense, either starting on Saturday or Sunday as they will face either the Orlando Magic or the Atlanta Hawks. The winner of the Play-In Tournament game between Orlando and Atlanta on Tuesday will determine who the Celtics will face in the first round.
Fortunately for the Celtics, they can likely defeat either of those teams in the first round without Brown. If the All-Star wing had to rest for longer, the Celtics have the depth and talent necessary to overcome Brown's absence.
They will, however, need Brown healthy and playing well in the later rounds. Whether he will be able to return to his earlier form for the most crucial stretch of the season remains to be seen.