Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens has confirmed that new recruit Evan Fournier will be out of action for at least a couple of games as the 28-year-old enters the league's health and safety protocols. Fournier joins a long list of Celtics players that have missed significant time this season due to COVID-19-related issues.
Coach Stevens did not provide the details on Fournier's current situation, but he confirmed that the 6-foot-7 guard/forward will now be forced to spend some time on the shelf (h/t Tim Bontemps of ESPN):
Brad Stevens says he won't get into Evan Fournier's absence due to the COVID protocols but that he should be expected to be out at least for the rest of this week.
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) April 6, 2021
This recent development only accentuates the fact that among any other team in the NBA, it's the Celtics that have been hit the hardest by COVID-19. Marcus Smart was one of the first players who tested positive for the virus. Jayson Tatum also battled the disease and has since revealed that he feels he has yet to fully recover after his COVID-19 bout. Jaylen Brown, Tristan Thompson, and Romeo Langford have all missed time as well due to the league's stringent health and safety measures.
Boston's health concerns have translated to their overall play as a unit. They have had a stop-and-go campaign for pretty much the entire year. Entering Tuesday's marquee matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, the Celtics sit at the seventh spot in the East with a 25-25 record. The Cs are still well within the playoffs race in the conference, but there's no denying that losing Fournier at this point in the season will only make life more difficult for Boston.
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