It’s not often that you see a team’s coach that is not court side for their games (Steve Kerr the exception because of back issues) but the Boston Celtics are going to have to find out what life without Brad Stevens is like for one game.
According to ESPN, Stevens has gone back to his hometown Indiana to visit a former player and it has been requested that the details of the situation remain private. In any case, in order for this to take Stevens away from the second of a back to back, you know that it is vitally important.
As for the game, it really will be a bit of a mystery. Stevens is running one of the most sporadic and inconsistent rotations in the league. He is trying to find which rotation will work the best and with all their depth there are many different options that need to be explored. Throw in that Marcus Smart is still gradually working his way back into the rotation and Stevens’ replacement, Jay Larranaga, will have to find something that works.
The Celtics are coming off of an unacceptable performance against the Detroit Pistons and things will be even tougher against the Chicago Bulls. You can expect Jay to go to a rotation that the Celtics have already used this year and look to recapture some of the chemistry already established this year.
Being without Avery Bradley yet again also won’t help. Having Kelly Olynyk on the starting unit has been solid for the offense of the starting unit but it has left the second unit ineffective. The Celtics do not have a trusted go to scorer or a player that can be trusted to run the offense with the second unit and the biggest part of the rotation will be finding a way to remain productive at all times. Marcus Smart has taken much of that responsibility and, despite the clear improvement, he still needs to be more reliable as the top offensive option.

There is no doubting that the Celtics will be missing Stevens. His out of timeout plays alone have an impact on every game but he has also done a solid job of adapting the lineups in order to be the most effective in that game. Without Stevens on the sidelines, the Celtics should expect a much more traditional type of rotation with no surprises and fewer in game adjustments. More so than ever, the Celtics will need to rely on their talent and execution.
These players have played together enough this year to have a certain degree of comfort and as long as Jay does not change too many things up they should be able to put things together. This, however, is going to be a situation where the Celtics’ lack of a veteran leader that is experienced with the team will hurt them.
David Lee is their biggest veteran but he has little experience with the Celtics and has seen his playing time completely disappear. The Celtics are going to have to lean on their youth and get everything they can out of the emotional leaders in Jae Crowder and Marcus Smart.
Stevens’ absence is certainly a temporary thing but the Celtics currently have a half game lead for the 8th seed in the eastern conference. The Bulls are a team they are chasing in the standings and these games are far too important for the Celtics to throw in the towel because they are without Stevens.
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The Celtics may not be as organized and may not adjust as well without Stevens but their energy should never be an issue. The Celtics will need to find that inspiration and they will have a good chance to get Stevens that victory while he is with his former Butler player, Andrew Smith.