The Celtics are looking to string together a win streak and they got some slightly surprising news on the injury report. Three players are listed as questionable for the Hawks game Saturday: Jayson Tatum (left shoulder strain), Al Horford (left big toe sprain) and Kristaps Porzingis (return from injury management).
Tatum being on the injury report is a new development. He dropped 30 points on the Magic in their Friday win in the first game of the back-to-back. It’s unclear how serious the injury is, but he often plays through the questionable designation on the injury report.
The more interesting news, though, is how both Horford and Porzingis are questionable. Both big men don’t play the second game of back-to-backs for rest purposes. But the fact they’re both questionable is noteworthy. One or both could still sit Saturday’s game, but they’re at least not automatically out.
Porzingis said postgame Friday he would like to play Saturday, but it was out of his hands. If Porzingis is healthy enough to play, that’s positive news for the Celtics in the long-term. But the C’s are going to be cautious with their big man considering he’s been injury prone throughout his career.
The Celtics have struggled, but they got back on track in their blowout win over the Magic. They’ve scuffled over the past 15 games, posting an 8-7 record. So while the huge win over Orlando was a good step, they’ll look for some consistency going forward.
The Hawks bring in a 21-19 record into Saturday’s game. They’ve already defeated the Celtics in Boston earlier this season in a narrow win during NBA Cup play. So the C’s can’t take it easy as they look to string some wins together.
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