Surprisingly busy injury report gifts a golden opportunity to forgotten Celtic

Opportunities have come in short supply for Luka Garza since the Boston Celtics traded for Nikola Vucevic. He has played, but only when the game has already been decided. His place in the doghouse can make many forget how good he was, but he'll likely get the opportunity to show out again with Neemias Queta out in their upcoming game against the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Celtics revealed that Queta will not play in their back-to-back tonight against the Bucks due to rest, which opens up the opportunity for Garza to get some well-deserved minutes.

Queta had the game of his life last night, so he deserves a night off like tonight. The Bucks have been rolling lately, though they lost to the Chicago Bulls, and Giannis Antetokounmpo is slated to make his return to the team tonight after being out for over five weeks.

The Celtics trounced the Bucks the last time those two played, so Queta and Jaylen Brown's absences will make them depend on players like Garza even more than they would when he was in the rotation.

Don't be surprised if Garza starts against the Bucks

Throughout the season, and really throughout Joe Mazzulla's tenure as head coach, the Celtics have made an effort to ensure their rotation players stay in their spot no matter what injuries they are dealing with.

Remember the Celtics last two games without Jaylen Brown? Instead of elevating one of Hugo Gonzalez or Jordan Walsh, they insert Ron Harper Jr. into the starting lineup. When they had Malcolm Brogdon and Payton Pritchard in the respective seasons they won Sixth Man of the Year, they never elevated those two to starters when the team was undermanned.

Hence, don't be surprised if Vucevic stays on the bench as the Celtics' super sub while Garza gets the starting nod by reason of not messing with roster continuity. Garza has started four games this season already, so it's not like he's going to be in a completely new territory if and when he plays with the starters.

Garza will likely get more opportunities as the season winds down

This should be an interesting challenge though. Not only is he going up against Antetokounmpo, but he will also have to compete with the dual floor-spacing and shot-blocking Myles Turner. Garza isn't exactly the quickest player on the Celtics, but opponents who have underestimated him for that reason have come to regret it.

We're coming down the homestretch of the 2025-26 season, with about a month and a half left of the season. There's no telling where the Celtics will be come April, but if they know their place in the East, they'll startr esting their guys and let Garza take the wheel.

Garza was the most unfortunate casualty from what the Celtics did at the trade deadline, but luckily, he should get more chances to show the NBA world the kind of player he is.