The Boston Celtics have begun their longest road trip this season. It's a stretch of five games away from the comforts of TD Garden. It started on a positive note. They earned a 140-122 victory vs. the Indiana Pacers. Now, they head to the West Coast.
The Celtics' trip to the other side of the country begins with a visit to the Pacific Northwest. There, they will face the Portland Trail Blazers. Boston will be without Chris Boucher in that matchup.
The ninth-year veteran did not play against the Pacers, either. The Celtics list him on their latest injury report as out due to personal reasons.
Boucher has only appeared in eight games with Boston this season. He is averaging 2.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, and nearly 1.0 blocks in 11.4 minutes of playing time.
The only other player listed on the visitors' initial injury report before their game against the Trail Blazers is Jayson Tatum.
As the six-time All-Star rehabs from a torn Achilles tendon, former second overall pick James Wiseman, who has returned from the same injury, recently shared his advice to Tatum during his road to recovery.
The trip to Portland has significance for two Celtics
For Payton Pritchard, when the Celtics travel to face the Trail Blazers, it's a return to his roots. For Anfernee Simons, it also represents a homecoming of sorts.
Before arriving in Boston in the deal that sent Jrue Holiday to Portland, the veteran guard spent the first seven years of his NBA career with the Trail Blazers.
After spending the last two seasons as Portland's primary option on offense, Simons is acclimating to the role of sixth man. He is averaging 12.8 points, 2.3 assists, and 2.1 rebounds per game in his first year with the Celtics.
"We talk about depth, we talk about guys sacrificing and all that, I mean, there's no one that's done that more than him over the transition, and I thought he's handled it really well," voiced Joe Mazzulla after Boston's 103-95 win over the Indiana Pacers before departing for this five-game road trip. "I think when he's aggressive for us, it makes us a little bit of a different team and those second units."
Simons arrived in Boston eager for the chance to showcase his talent in a major market. He also wanted to prove that he could contribute to a winning team.
What he's experiencing is defying the expectations that many placed on the Celtics entering a projected gap year. They're currently riding a four-game winning streak. Boston sits third in the Eastern Conference standings.
And if Tatum returns this season, with the East wide open, who knows how far the Celtics might go when the playoffs arrive.