Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens does not only have tricks – he’s also got jokes.
Under Stevens’ genius command, the Celtics have been able to survive the loss of Gordon Hayward for an entire season after Boston’s prized offseason acquisition suffered a gruesome lower-body injury right in the very first game of the 2017-18 campaign.
When asked about the progress of Hayward’s recovery from the said injury, Stevens mentioned that the Celtics are “trying to get him [Hayward] ready for Friday's game”, according to Celtics reporter Marc D’Amico.
Asked about Gordon Hayward's rehab status, Brad Stevens says, "We're just trying to get him ready for Friday's game."
Deadpanned it. #Haywatch
— Marc D'Amico (@Marc_DAmico) April 17, 2018
Obviously, this was just Brad Stevens messing with reporters, as Hayward is far from being healthy enough to play competitive basketball. Although Hayward is now able to jog unassisted, the Celtics are going to need to see a whole lot more than that before deeming the forward safe to get back into action.
While there is no definite date yet for Hayward’s return, it’s very unlikely that the Celtics will have him back at any point in these playoffs even if Boston makes it all the way into the Finals.
Apart from Gordon Hayward, Boston is also missing guard Kyrie Irving and Marcus Smart. Irving is out for the remainder of the 2017-18 season after undergoing a knee surgery earlier this month. Smart, on the other hand, is expected to rejoin the Celtics’ active lineup later in the first-round series with the Milwaukee Bucks (assuming it gets extended to six or seven games) after going under the knife to repair a thumb injury back in March.
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