Boston Celtics All-Star point guard Kemba Walker is set to be given the night off on Wednesday, following the 27 minutes he played on Tuesday against the Miami Heat. The 30-year-old however, is expected to be back in action on Friday when the C's take on the Sacramento Kings.
This update comes straight from Boston head coach Brad Stevens, who confirmed that Walker will sit out Wednesday's contest against the Brooklyn Nets:
Stevens says that while Walker will sit out tomorrow because he does not go hard two days in a row right now, they will ramp up his minutes more on Friday. Stevens expects no minutes limit by start of playoffs.
— Jared Weiss (@JaredWeissNBA) August 5, 2020
On Tuesday, Kemba Walker saw his minutes limit increased as he approached 30 minutes of action. He finished with 15 points (on 4-of-9 shooting), four triples, one rebound, four assists, and one turnover, as the Celtics suffered a disappointing defeat to Miami, 112-106.
This was the most minutes Walker has played since the restart, with the 6-foot point guard playing 19 and 22 minutes in his team's first two contests, respectively. Clearly, Walker is not yet 100 percent, and his lingering knee issue still appears to be bothering him at this point. The Boston coaching staff are not yet prepared to let Walker play in back-to-back sets, which is why he will be asked to sit out Wednesday against Brooklyn.
Boston has now lost two out of their first three seeding games inside the bubble, and are now four and a half games behind the second-seeded Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference. For their part, the fourth-placed Heat were able to close the gap on the Celtics, as they now sit just a game and a half behind Boston. Needless to say, a loss to the Nets on Wednesday will loosen the C's grip on the third seed in the East.
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