After playing six of their last seven games away from the comforts of TD Garden, the Boston Celtics will now enjoy four straight matchups at home. They return from splitting contests against the Brooklyn Nets and Chicago Bulls to host the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.
When they do, it could mark the return of Josh Minott. The Celtics list him as questionable on their latest injury report. The fourth-year wing has missed 11 straight games while dealing with a left ankle sprain. Between that and falling out of the rotation right before his injury, he has not appeared in 15 of Boston's last 16 tilts.
The former Minnesota Timberwolf is averaging 6.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, and nearly 1.0 steals per contest in his first season in green. He is also converting on over 50 percent of his field goal attempts.
Who else is on the Celtics' injury report?
A day before Monday's matchup against the Trail Blazers, the hosts also list Neemias Queta as questionable. Their starting center is dealing with a non-COVID illness.
The Lisbon, Portugal, native nearly missed Boston's 114-111 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Saturday. Joe Mazzulla started Amari Williams that night. He went to Luka Garza off the bench before Queta. However, after Garza hurt his ankle, Boston stuck with its traditional starter.
The fifth-year center is averaging 10.2 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks this season. Queta is thriving in his opportunity in the first unit.
The only other player on the Celtics' injury report is Jayson Tatum, as the six-time All-Star continues to rehab a torn Achilles tendon. It's an encouraging sign that Garza is not even listed. He finished with four points, two rebounds, and one block in 14 minutes in Boston's loss in Chicago.
Not seeing Jaylen Brown's name on there is commendable. The MVP candidate shared after his team's 130-126 double-overtime victory in Brooklyn, "I've been dealing with some hamstring tightness, so I didn't have my burst today. They were switching the five on to me, with [Nic] Claxton. And he's, in my opinion, way too far out. I should be able to blow by him and do what I do, but I just didn't have that acceleration tonight. And sometimes that can mess with your head a little bit, but find other ways to be effective. Trusting my teammates, rebounded the ball, and things like that, and it led to a win."
The five-time All-Star logged 46 minutes that night. He played 37 a day later against the Bulls. While the Celtics must be careful and manage his workload, their initial injury report for Monday's game against the Trail Blazers suggests he will be in the lineup.