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The Boston Celtics won the seventh of their last eight games after taking down the Atlanta Hawks, 109-106. However, the win came at the cost of Enes Kanter being listed as a game-time decision against the Chicago Bulls on Saturday.
Kanter needed stitches for the chin injury he sustained against the Hawks.
Per Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston, Kanter's chin was cut open during one of the plays in the Celtics' narrow triumph over the Hawks. Boston will be hoping that the injury heals in time, but there's the possibility that he could miss the second half of their back-to-back this week when they play the Bulls at the United Center.
Enes Kanter needed a few stitches to close gash under his chin. Said he’s a game-time decision vs Chicago.
— Chris Forsberg (@ChrisForsberg_) January 4, 2020
Kanter has become a solid wall of defense for the team recently. He stepped up his defensive effort in his bid to become one of the team's anchors. In fact, he played such incredible defense against the Charlotte Hornets that it forced the league to test him for performance-enhancing drugs.
For what it's worth, against the Hornets, Kanter became the first Boston reserve to score 13-plus points, grab 14-plus rebounds and have six-plus blocked shots in a single game. Entering Friday's game, Kanter is averaging 8.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.1 assist while shooting 58.4 percent from the field.
The Celtics should still be able to play good team basketball even in the absence of Enes Kanter. However, the defensive effort the Turkish star has shown recently is one that they will miss.
