The Boston Celtics continue to win while shorthanded
The Boston Celtics have been fighting through some of the most devastating injuries imaginable to start the season. Gordon Hayward is the most brutal blow this year, and both Kyrie Irving and Al Horford have had their issues too. It doesn’t stop with the top three players, because everyone else has been taking turns fighting some sort of injury.
Obviously the Dallas Mavericks are not the most challenging opponent, but they once again were shorthanded with Marcus Morris being held out because of his knee, and Jaylen Brown sidelined because of his eye.
The Celtics were down a starter and down their most important bench scorer, but once again enough players stepped up to make up for the problems. The Celtics have been getting contributions from almost any player that hits the court, and there are a lot of guys on that bench that are responsible for wins this season.
Amazingly, this was not the first time that Shane Larkin has come out of no where and brought a huge boost, this time with 11 points in 14 minutes. We are now starting to get used to seeing Terry Rozier and Daniel Theis have the kind of impact they did, combining for 19 points and 20 rebounds.
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The Celtics do not always know who it is, but they are finding players to step up whenever it is needed. There have been times where it is making up for the starters, and times when players further down the bench have been needed to step up. The common thing is that every single time the Celtics are finding what they need, and they have the best record in the league to back it up. The best part has been how ready everyone is. When the injuries come in like this, the Celtics are using players who normally only play garbage time, then they are constantly proving how ready they are at any moment.
The Celtics have gone through enough injuries now that they know nothing should faze them. They know that they cannot use injuries as an excuse, because they have proven that they can win through literally any of them.
Having all of this happen so early is preparing the Celtics to be able to get through things when it matters most. Injuries are almost always a part of any team, and very few get out of the playoffs unscathed. The Celtics are at a point where they feel confident in their depth and Brad Stevens’ ability to adapt to the players he has.
Nobody ever invites injuries, but the worst thing that can happen is getting caught off guard, with no idea how to adjust when someone goes down. For the Celtics, it has been seamless. The wins may not be quite as impressive, but Stevens is figuring out what is necessary, and they are giving what is necessary to win more than any other team in the league.
Who knows what the injury situation will be like when the playoffs come around, but the Celtics have proven more than any other team in the league this season that they will not let any injury get in their way of winning.
The Celtics have a long season ahead of them, and it is hard to imagine them being more successful than they have been so far. They are winning at a near unsustainable pace, but there have been enough obstacles during this start, to believe the Celtics can still be one of the most improved teams throughout the season.
The Celtics had a nice stretch of good health because Morris and Brown were sidelined, and we were starting to see things come together in a great way. They were finding balance, with top 10 offensive and defensive ratings.
We have seen how good the Celtics can be at full strength, and anything less than that will not be enough to get them to the finals. For the regular season, on the other hand, the Celtics are proving that nothing is going to stop them from winning.
Next: Celtics Stay Cautious With Morris
LeBron James has proven he does not need home court to win, but the Celtics are going to want every single edge they can possibly get. If the injuries the Celtics have already sustained has not slowed them down from winning, then they will always have confidence that they control their destiny when it comes to getting that extra advantage of home court throughout the playoffs.