The Boston Celtics had a lot to look forward to with the return of Jayson Tatum to the lineup for Friday night's game against the Dallas Mavericks. But as the team gained their superstar forward, they lost their valuable NBA trade deadline acquisition.
Nikola Vucevic came off the Celtics bench Friday night and played just two minutes without recording a single stat before suffering an injury. Late in the first quarter, Vucevic was attempting to post up Mavs center Moussa Cisse when he suddenly grabbed at his right hand upon receiving the ball.
Vucevic then continued to grab at the same hand multiple times and appeared to be in pain over the next couple of possessions, prompting a timeout from Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla.
Celtics reporter Bobby Manning appeared to find the exact spot that Vucevic suffered the injury.
https://x.com/RealBobManning/status/2030084774170177771
The Celtics announced early in the second quarter that Vucevic would be out for the remainder of the game with a fracture of the right ring finger.
Nikola Vucevic was acquired by the Boston Celtics from the Chicago Bulls at the 2026 NBA Trade Deadline. In the deal, the Celtics traded guard Anfernee Simons and a 2026 second round pick to the Bulls for Vucevic and a 2027 second round pick.
In 11 games with the Celtics thus far, Vucevic has been averaging 11.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 2.0 assists while shooting 44.5 percent from the field and 35.1 percent from three.
