Celtics Rumors

Thunder’s Daigneault, Celtics’ Mazzulla Named Coaches Of The Month

April 1st, 2025 at 4:41pm CST by Luke Adams

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault is the Western Conference’s Coach of the Month for March, with Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla claiming the award for the Eastern Conference, the NBA announced today (via Twitter).

Daigneault’s Thunder and Mazzulla’s Celtics have been the NBA’s two hottest teams in recent weeks.

Oklahoma City won 15 of 16 games in March en route to clinching the No. 1 seed in the West entering this year’s playoffs. The Celtics had 14 wins in 15 games, putting some pressure on the top-seeded Cavaliers and ensuring they’ll finish the regular season with one of the league’s top three best records.

While he’s not considered one of the frontrunners for Coach of the Year, Daigneault has now been named Coach of the Month in the West three times this season. He and Ime Udoka of the Rockets, who has won the award twice, are the only two Western Conference coaches to earn the monthly honor in 2024/25.

Udoka joins Chris Finch (Timberwolves), Steve Kerr (Warriors), and Tyronn Lue (Clippers) as the other Coach of the Month nominees for March in the West, per the NBA (Twitter link).

Kenny Atkinson of the Cavaliers, who was named the East’s Coach of the Month twice this season, and Rick Carlisle of the Pacers, who won the award in January, are among this month’s Eastern Conference nominees, along with Billy Donovan (Bulls), Quin Synder (Hawks), and Darko Rajakovic (Raptors).

Atlantic Notes: Tillman, Grimes, Sixers, Raptors

April 1st, 2025 at 8:13am CST by Luke Adams

Xavier Tillman has had the worst year of his NBA career in 2024/25 and has been out of the Celtics’ regular rotation since October. Entering Monday’s game in Memphis, he hadn’t seen any action at all since March 6. However, facing his former team, Tillman was given the opportunity to start by head coach Joe Mazzulla, who explained his decision after the game, as Jonah Dylan of The Memphis Commercial Appeal relays.

“He can still impact winning,” Mazzulla said of Tillman. “I just appreciate who he is as a person and I think you’ve got to validate the roster at times. I know that he can still help us, and there may be an opportunity where he does. I was grateful that we were able to give him that opportunity to be able to do that.”

Tillman spent the first three-and-a-half years of his career in Memphis before being traded to Boston at the 2024 deadline. He played a limited role down the stretch last season and has struggled mightily in his limited minutes this season, making just 12-of-51 (23.5%) of his total shots, including 5-of-32 (15.6%) of his three-point tries.

Tillman wasn’t especially effective on Monday either — he missed all five of his shot attempts and the Celtics were outscored by six points during his eight minutes on the floor. But Mazzulla praised the big man for getting a pair of quick fouls on Grizzlies center Zach Edey and Tillman spoke positively after the game about his experience in his first game back in Memphis since last year’s trade

“It’s crazy because I was more so focused on seeing my old teammates and checking on them,” Tillman said. “The fans, when I got here and even the staff members and security people, when I walked by, they showed me so much love. It’s pretty amazing.”

The Celtics defeated the Grizzlies to complete the first 6-0 road trip in franchise history and are now 32-7 on the road this season, putting them two wins away from tying the 2015/16 Warriors for the best single-season road record of all-time (34-7), as ESPN details.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Quentin Grimes has been a revelation since joining the Sixers, averaging 26.6 points per game on 50.4% shooting in 14 March outings as he proved he’s capable of scoring and playing strong perimeter defense, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. In the season’s final games, head coach Nick Nurse hopes to see how the restricted-free-agent-to-be handles more point guard responsibilities. “I’d like to start him at the point here, coming up in a little bit. I’d like to have him play it during the games, even if he doesn’t start it,” Nurse said. “I’m just curious — I mean, he’s not a point guard. But can he play a serviceable backup possibility in the NBA as a backup point guard? Can he get us into offense? Can you say, ‘See the pass, see the plays, get the offense started, handle the ball versus the pressure in the backcourt,’ all those kinds of things?”
The Sixers are putting on a “tanking masterclass” in the season’s final weeks as they attempt to do all they can to retain control of their top-six protected 2025 first-round pick, Pompey writes in another story for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Following Brooklyn’s win over Dallas on Monday, there’s now a 1.5-game gap between the Sixers and Nets, putting Philadelphia in a strong position to finish the season with the NBA’s fifth-worst record. That would give the team a 64% chance of hanging onto its protected first-rounder.
Given the fact that a significant portion of their revenue is in Canadian – rather than U.S. – dollars, how might the Raptors be impacted by the fact that the Canadian dollar has dipped in value in recent months? Eric Koreen of The Athletic explores that topic, speaking to several experts about how the Raptors may navigate the issue.

Atlantic Notes: Wright, Maxey, Pritchard, Raptors

March 29th, 2025 at 2:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran guard Delon Wright had been glued to the Knicks‘ bench during his first month-and-a-half in New York after being acquired from Milwaukee in the Jericho Sims trade at February’s deadline. But with Jalen Brunson and Miles McBride both injured this week, Wright got the call from head coach Tom Thibodeau, entering the starting lineup for Friday’s game in Milwaukee.

While the Knicks were outscored by nine points during Wright’s 30 minutes on the floor, he held his own in just his second 30-minute game of the season, contributing 12 points, four assists, and three rebounds as New York registered a nine-point win. As Jared Schwartz of The New York Post writes, Thibodeau had the option of starting rookie Tyler Kolek at point guard, but opted for Wright’s experience and defensive ability over Kolek’s play-making.

“His defense you can always count on,” Thibodeau said of Wright. “That’s his strength, and he’s not afraid. He’s aggressive, and he knows how to play off people. I think he reads the game well. I think we got terrific point guard play. I was going back and forth on (who to start) and I was comfortable with both. A lot of it was based on I wasn’t quite sure who they were gonna start. Their size was a factor in it. But I was comfortable. And then you read the game like, ‘What do you need? What do you need more of?’ Both guys are really good players, they have different strengths, so you can adjust as the game goes.”

Wright, who entered the league in 2015/16, is averaging just 13.9 minutes per game in 34 outings this season and had logged only 37 total minutes in seven appearances for the Knicks before Friday. It’s his smallest role since his rookie year and he admitted this week that it’s difficult not knowing if or when he’ll play.

“It’s tough, I’m not going to lie. It’s easier said than done,” Wright said, per Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscription required). “I try to tell young guys that — just stay ready, stay ready. But when you’re going through it, it’s tough. Some days are harder than others. But you got to continue to get your conditioning, continue to lift, continue to try to stay as engaged as possible.”

We have more from around the Atlantic:

The Sixers aren’t yet shutting down injured guard Tyrese Maxey for the season, but he’ll miss at least two more games as a result of his sprained finger, head coach Nick Nurse said on Friday (story via ESPN). That means Maxey, out since March 3 due to back and finger ailments, will be unavailable on Saturday vs. Miami and Sunday vs. Toronto. Philadelphia has seven more games on its regular season scheduled after that, starting with Tuesday in New York.
Two years after requesting a trade out of Boston, Celtics guard Payton Pritchard is a fan favorite who appears headed for a Sixth Man of the Year award. Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston takes a closer look at why a trade never happened and how Pritchard emerged as a crucial contributor for the defending champions. The 27-year-old, who averaged just 13.4 minutes per game in 2022/23, tells Forsberg that he “didn’t see a future” for himself in Boston when he asked to be dealt, but admits, “It ended up working out.”
The Raptors have been one of the NBA’s least effective outside shooting teams this season, ranking 29th in three-pointers made per game (11.5) and 26th in three-point percentage (34.5%). Toronto would like to change that by surrounding Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl with more floor spacers, which is one reason why the team targeted Cole Swider for a 10-day contract. For his part, Swider hopes that 10-day deal leads to something more, as Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca relays. “They’ve had a great track record of having two-ways get converted to contracts and guys with contracts getting converted to bigger contracts,” he said after Friday’s win over Charlotte. “So super excited to be here. I think it could be a great opportunity.”

Celtics Rumors: Holiday, Porzingis, White, Horford, Ownership

March 28th, 2025 at 4:53pm CST by Luke Adams

While no one expects the Celtics to move on from Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown anytime soon, there are questions around the league about how long the club can carry one of the NBA’s highest payrolls, subjecting itself to significant luxury tax penalties and onerous second-apron restrictions, writes Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link).

The general consensus is that the Celtics might be willing to run it back again if they win another title this season. “You can’t break up a team that could be going for a three-peat,” one Western Conference executive told Fischer. But if Boston falls short of a championship? “They’re going to have to trade some guys at some point,” a team capologist said.

According to Fischer, league figures are keeping a close eye on guard Jrue Holiday and big man Kristaps Porzingis as possible trade chips later this year or next. Fischer suggests that guard Derrick White would likely have more trade value than either Porzingis or Holiday if he were made available this summer, but says no one he talked to seems to believe Boston would consider moving White.

If the Celtics do consider trading one of their top five highest-paid players, Holiday could be the most obvious odd man out due to a handful of factors, including his contract (three years and $104.4MM after this season) and Boston’s loaded backcourt.

As Fischer writes, besides White, the Celtics’ depth chart includes Sixth Man of the Year frontrunner Payton Pritchard and rookie Baylor Scheierman, whose development over the course of this season has been viewed by the team as very promising.

Here’s more on the C’s:

Turning Al Horford‘s $9.5MM salary slot into a minimum-salary player next season would help the Celtics with their cap/tax situation, but the club likely wouldn’t welcome that possibility if it means losing Horford. Assuming the big man wants to continue his career, there are rival cap strategists who believe his market could start around the taxpayer mid-level exception ($5.7MM), Fischer writes.
Sixth Street Partners, a private equity firm, has committed more money to William Chisholm‘s ownership bid than Chisholm himself, reports Dan Primack of Axios. That’s not permitted by NBA rules, which allow private equity firms to hold up to a 20% stake in a team as long as their share is less than that of the controlling owner (which must be at least 15%).
In Primack’s view, Chisholm’s two options are to be granted some sort of waiver by the NBA to get around that rule or to bring in enough new investors that Sixth Street’s full check is no longer necessary and they’re contributing less to the bid than Chisholm. Silver said on Thursday that the option of a waiver isn’t being discussed, according to Fischer. “Not at all,” he said. “And while the deal in a preliminary fashion has just been presented to the league, at this time there’s no contemplation of changing our ownership rules.”
Fischer also asked Silver on Thursday about the reported arrangement between Chisholm and outgoing owner Wyc Grousbeck that would keep Grousbeck in the CEO and governor positions through 2028. As Fischer notes, it sounds similar to what Mark Cuban wanted when he sold the Mavericks, but in that instance it wasn’t put into writing and didn’t happen. “I think the Grousbeck family and the buyer are still working through those arrangements on exactly how that would work in terms of CEO roles and governor roles during some transition,” Silver said. “I think the situation was very different in Dallas. There was a clear change in control of the franchise to Patrick Dumont and his family. Any decision as to what Mark’s role would be in basketball operations was a function of an arrangement to be made between Mark Cuban and Patrick. The ultimate governance was absolutely clear, as presented to our board, that the last word on any basketball activities or any significant decision for the franchise would be made by Patrick.”
In his latest mailbag, Brian Robb of MassLive answers questions about Luke Kornet‘s upcoming free agency, the best first-round playoff opponent for the Celtics, and the ownership transition.

Adam Silver Talks Expansion, Wolves Sale, Tanking, RSNs

March 28th, 2025 at 3:10pm CST by Luke Adams

Asked at his Thursday press conference whether the NBA has looked any more at adding an expansion team or two, commissioner Adam Silver said the league is “still in the process of digesting the Celtics (sale)” and expects to explore expansion in a “more serious way” once that transaction is finalized, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN.

As Bontemps notes, ESPN has previously reported that the Celtics sale was viewed as a possible precursor to expansion, since it would provide a point of reference for how much the expansion fees for new teams could potentially be worth.

“I wish I could be more conclusive today and say, ‘Here it is, here’s the timeline,'” Silver said, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. “There are events that are clearly outside of my control. Part of it, as I said, is trying to assess value in a way that’s both fair, even to a potential owner, and fair to the existing owners in terms of what it means to add additional partners, different cities, divide up our current media pie with the 31st or 32nd share.

“And also, we want to make sure we put teams in a position, particularly as we’re setting the price, to be in a position to be competitive, economically successful and just as important for the other teams, successful on the floor.”

According to Bontemps, the widespread belief is that if the NBA expands, it would do so by two teams instead of one, with Seattle and Las Vegas considered the strong frontrunners for new teams.

We previously relayed Silver’s comments on Thursday about a new European league and the NBA’s All-Star format, but he also addressed several other topics during his New York presser. Here are some highlights:

Addressing the Timberwolves‘ ownership situation, Silver said longtime owner Glen Taylor is still considering whether to appeal an arbitration ruling in favor of prospective owners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez and that Taylor continues to communicate directly with Lore and Rodriguez, Bontemps writes. Silver referred to the situation as “on hold” while Taylor weighs his options.
Silver believes that the variety of tweaks made by the NBA in recent years – including new draft lottery odds, the introduction of the play-in tournament, and the implementation of the 65-game rule and player participation policy – have helped limit the impact of tanking, but admits that the league is still mulling ways to further address the issue. “It comes down to incentives,” Silver said, per Bontemps. “There’s no doubt that incentives change at the end of a season, especially when you have a draft that’s perceived not just with the top pick, but the top maybe few picks is an incredibly strong draft. That’s a way, a legitimate way of rebuilding in this league. So I’m not sitting here saying, ‘All right, here’s the new calibration to the draft lottery and that will solve it.’ We don’t have a new plan at the moment. I don’t have an answer sitting here today as to what we’re going to do other than to say that we recognize it’s an issue and it’s an issue for our fans. And so we’re paying attention to it.”
While Silver acknowledges the regional sports network landscape has become murky in recent years, he’s optimistic that the NBA will be able to “derive value from the situation,” Bontemps writes. “We think there’s tremendous opportunity there,” the commissioner said. “You have bankruptcies of RSNs, other RSNs that have shut down, and I think that’s created, for lack of a better term, a lot of transactional friction of people who would otherwise be interested. At the same time, well-known streaming services that only a year ago were saying they have no interest in live sports are now aggressively bidding on live sports. So we see no reason why the extent there’s that interest on a national basis or even a global basis there wouldn’t also be on a local basis.”

Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Brown, Sixers, Maxey, Payne, Robinson

March 27th, 2025 at 12:05pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Celtics didn’t have Jayson Tatum on Wednesday due to an ankle injury. It didn’t matter, as they blew out the Suns, 132-102, for their seventh straight victory.

Boston is rounding into playoff form at just the right time. The Celtics have won 14 of their last 15 road games with their only loss coming against the Pistons on Feb. 27.

Another encouraging sign, according to Brian Robb of MassLive.com, is that Jaylen Brown looks healthy, In his second game back after missing three with a knee injury, Brown had 24 points in 29 minutes.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

The Sixers are desperately trying to retain a top-six selection so that they don’t have to forward their first-round pick to the Thunder. That made Wednesday’s 119-114 loss to the woeful Wizards a key one, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. The Sixers have lost six straight and 23 of their last 27 games. They remain tied with the Nets for the league’s fifth-worst record with nine games remaining. Philadelphia has a home back-to-back against Miami and Toronto this weekend.
While Sixers coach Nick Nurse believes Tyrese Maxey will play again this season, Pompey argues that there’s no reason to bring him back under the current circumstances. Maxey hasn’t played since March 3 due to back and finger injuries.
The Knicks‘ point guard depth took another hit on Wednesday. Cameron Payne, who started with Jalen Brunson (ankle) and Miles McBride (groin) sidelined, rolled his ankle in the first half against the Clippers and did not return. Rookie Tyler Kolek played 19 scoreless minutes with seven assists but was exploited defensively, ESPN’s Chris Herring notes. “They kept coming at us with that high two-man game, and I’ve got to be better about defending that,” Kolek said.
Mitchell Robinson is hopeful he can play in both ends of a back-to-back before the end of the regular season. He has not yet been cleared by the Knicks medical staff to play in back-to-back games. Robinson didn’t play in Tuesday’s win over Dallas, then logged 13 minutes against the Clippers. Robinson told SNY’s Ian Begley that he’ll “probably” be cleared soon.

Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Embiid, Dowtin, Chisholm

March 26th, 2025 at 9:10pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

After facing a lot of high-level competition and working through a tough schedule early into the 2024/25 season, the Raptors have seen their slate during the year’s home stretch get significantly easier — just as they’ve been looking to stack up losses.

Toronto is hoping to cement its bid for the best possible lottery odds in this summer’s draft, but playing fellow rebuilding squads could complicate that plan, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.

To wit, Grange notes that the Raptors are still scheduled to play Charlotte and Brooklyn twice each, and have one more game against seemingly lottery-bound clubs in Philadelphia, San Antonio, Portland, Chicago and Dallas as the season winds down.

As of this writing, the 25-47 Raptors have the seventh-worst record in the league. They could conceivably overtake the 23-49 Nets and Sixers – and maybe even the 20-53 Pelicans – in the lottery order if they play their cards “right.”

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Sixers coach Nick Nurse said today that injured former MVP center Joel Embiid has finished consulting various specialists about his lingering knee inflammation, and Philadelphia intends to make a decision on next steps “soon-ish,” per Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports (Twitter link).
Sixers guard Jeff Dowtin is rapidly approaching the 50-contest active game limit for two-way players. According to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (subscriber link), the Rhode Island alum has just two games left before Philadelphia faces a decision on his fate. If the Sixers want to give the 27-year-old any more run in 2024/25 beyond those two games, the front office will need to promote Dowtin to its standard roster. Through 38 games this year (he has been a DNP-CD in 10), the 6’3″ guard boasts averages of 6.4 PPG, 1.8 APG, 1.6 RPG and 0.5 SPG in 14.1 minutes per night.
Incoming Celtics owner Bill Chisholm spoke with All-Star forwards Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown and team president Brad Stevens ahead of the club’s recent tilt in Sacramento, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (subscriber link). “It’s the most incredible feeling to think that maybe I can just play a tiny little part in the future,” Chisholm said, “and now I’ll just let these guys do what they’re doing, let Brad do his thing. If I can help in any way, that’s amazing to think about.”
Stevens himself spoke about the Celtics‘ impending new ownership situation too, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. “My only thing is just asking to be kept in the loop on everything I need to know from the standpoint of making decisions here and now and moving forward,” Stevens said. “As we get to spend more time with Bill, with [current team governor Wyc Grousbeck] and Bill, then we’ll have more clarity on how we are going to do things.

Injury/Health Notes: Lillard, Tatum, Jokic, Sheppard

March 26th, 2025 at 7:55am CST by Luke Adams

After initially being listed as out last week due to calf soreness, Damian Lillard was experiencing discomfort and pain inconsistent with a typical calf strain, according to Eric Nehm and Sam Amick of The Athletic, who hear from a source that the Bucks guard sought clarity on the cause.

That prompted a “rigorous discovery process” that ultimately involved Lillard meeting with five of the country’s top hematologists, either in person or via Zoom, with each of those specialists receiving his MRIs and sonograms. Lillard, who was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his calf, began taking blood thinners last Friday, per The Athletic’s source, and the early indications are that the treatment is working well.

In a separate story for The Athletic, Nehm explores how the Bucks will get by without Lillard, noting that leaning on defense is probably their best path forward. That effort begins with having a strong perimeter defender like Ryan Rollins starting in place of Lillard.

“Obviously, nobody is going to be Dame but Dame,” Bucks center Brook Lopez said earlier this week. “But (Rollins) has done a great job coming in, being himself and finding a niche, that like Dame, only he can do. It’s specifically Ryan. He comes out there and he makes a difference in his way. He gets into guys, defends them full-court, picks up 94 feet.”

Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:

The Celtics‘ injury report for Wednesday’s game in Phoenix is another sign that Jayson Tatum‘s ankle injury isn’t significant. Tatum isn’t expected to play vs. the Suns, but he hasn’t officially been ruled out yet — he’s listed as doubtful (Twitter link).
Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who has missed the team’s past five games, has been upgraded to doubtful for Wednesday’s matchup with Milwaukee (Twitter link via DNVR Sports). Jokic’s initial injury report designation last week indicated he was dealing with both a right elbow contusion and a left ankle impingement, but only the ankle issue is still listed, which suggests the elbow is no longer a problem.
Rockets rookie Reed Sheppard, out since March 6 with a fracture in his right thumb, had a scan on Sunday that showed good calcification around the fractured bone, according to head coach Ime Udoka, who said on Tuesday that Sheppard would be reevaluated in four or five days. Sheppard is still wearing a splint on the thumb part-time, but he takes it off when he works out, per Danielle Lerner of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).

Celtics Sale Notes: Chisholm, Financing, Valuation, More

March 25th, 2025 at 10:22am CST by Luke Adams

Although William Chisholm has reached a tentative agreement to buy a controlling stake in the Celtics, the NBA’s Board of Governors vote to approve the sale isn’t expected to happen until June, according to Dan Primack of Axios (hat tip to Brian Robb of MassLive.com).

That will give Chisholm some time to recruit additional investors, since his bid for the franchise isn’t fully financed, Primack writes. A report from Kerry A. Dolan of Forbes seems to corroborate this point, noting that Chisholm offered another billionaire an opportunity to buy a stake in the Celtics last Thursday.

Primack suggests that Chisholm’s best route to secure additional financing may be to reach out to the other three groups who were involved in the bidding process. Those groups are headed by Dan Friedkin, Stan Middleman, and current Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca.

However, according to Primack, Friedkin may already be moving on to pursuing an NHL expansion team in Houston. As for Pagliuca, his group’s bid was fully financed, so he may prefer to hold firm as a potential Plan B if Chisholm’s bid falls through rather than joining Chisholm’s group himself.

Primack also notes that Middleman’s offer came in below Chisholm’s but above Pagliuca’s. There has been no indication that offer was fully financed.

Here’s more on the Celtics’ impending sale:

While the initial valuation of the franchise is said to be $6.1 billion for the controlling stake, the agreement calls for the valuation to rise to about $7.3 billion by the time Chisholm’s group buys out the remaining shares in 2028, according to Primack, who adds that the weighted price would work out to approximately $6.7 billion.
Wyc Grousbeck‘s desire to remain in place as the Celtics’ CEO and governor until 2028 was dropped as a mandatory requirement at some point during the sale process, but Chisholm “smartly recognized” the value of agreeing to that condition when he made his offer, writes Primack. According to Axios, the terms of Pagliuca’s fully financed bid didn’t include Grousbeck retaining his CEO position.
Primack suggests that the high price tag for the Celtics may reduce the likelihood of the NBA expanding to cities like Seattle or Las Vegas in the near future. As he explains, with the Celtics sale resetting the market for franchise valuations, other team owners may be able to get an influx of cash by selling small stakes in their teams rather than relying on expansion fees. Adding one or more expansion franchises to the league would result in a substantial one-time payment for existing teams, but would dilute each club’s share of media rights revenue going forward.

Jayson Tatum Appears To Have Avoided Significant Ankle Injury

March 25th, 2025 at 7:36am CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics experienced a major injury scare in the third quarter of Monday’s win over Sacramento when star forward Jayson Tatum came down on Domantas Sabonis‘ foot after attempting a three-point shot, turning his left ankle as he landed (Twitter video link).

Tatum, who appeared to be in a great deal of pain as he grimaced and grabbed his ankle on the floor, exited the game after shooting a pair of free throws and didn’t return. However, as Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe and ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne report, there were indications in the locker room later in the night that the injury wasn’t a serious one.

According to Himmelsbach, Tatum wasn’t in a walking boot or using crutches, and he barely exhibited a limp when he eventually left the arena to board the team bus. The six-time All-Star was laughing and joking with teammates and didn’t receive any additional medical treatment while sitting at his locker for nearly an hour after the game, Himmelsbach adds.

Tatum declined to conduct a post-game media session, but told Shelburne that his ankle was “just sore,” acknowledging that the team is “going to be cautious.” Head coach Joe Mazzulla said the veteran forward “seems to be doing OK,” while teammate Kristaps Porzingis echoed that view, per Himmelsbach.

“I’m glad it’s nothing too bad, hopefully,” Porzingis said. “It’s a tough situation, tough to see him like that. You could tell he was in a lot of pain, but I’m glad he’s OK.”

The Celtics’ bench initially directed some ire toward Sabonis, who was assessed with a flagrant 1 foul for sliding under Tatum on his jump shot. The Kings star, who has dealt with a series of injuries in recent weeks and was playing in his first game back from a sprained ankle of his own, expressed remorse after the game.

“I feel horrible,” he said. “I’ve had a crazy month myself, personally, and you never want that to happen, so I apologize.”

Boston can afford to play it safe with Tatum, since there are just 10 games left in the season and the team is likely locked into its playoff position. The 53-19 Celtics remain 4.5 games behind the No. 1 Cavaliers and have an eight-game cushion on the No. 3 Knicks in the Eastern Conference standings.

Tatum’s injury occurred on the same night that the Celtics’ other star forward, Jaylen Brown, returned after missing three contests due to a bone bruise in his right knee. Brown, who also missed a pair of games earlier this month as a result of his knee issue, said he met with specialists, but his injury is believed to just be a result of wear and tear, according to Himmelsbach.

“It felt fine,” Brown said after scoring nine points on 4-of-8 shooting in 26 minutes. “I was being a little conservative. When you’ve been out for a while it’s a mental aspect, too, where you just try to keep your feet underneath you. As I gained more confidence I started extending out, being more athletic, and things I’m used to normally doing. Tonight was a good step though.”

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