Celtics will be down four key players vs. Heat on Tuesday night
BOSTON -- The Celtics will be shorthanded Tuesday night against the Heat. The C's will be down three starters and their first guy off the bench as they look to bounce back from Monday night's loss in Orlando.
Boston announced Tuesday afternoon that Jaylen Brown (adductor injury management), Malcolm Brogdon (personal reasons), Al Horford (low back stiffness), and Marcus Smart (sprained ankle) will all miss the team's clash with the Heat in South Beach. Brogdon and Smart both missed Monday night's loss as well, so their absences on Tuesday are not too surprising.
Nor is Horford's, as he's been sitting out the second leg of back-to-backs this season to help preserve the 36-year-old for the postseason. Brown recently missed a week with his adductor injury, but averaged 40 minutes over the last three games.
At least Robert Williams will return after he sat out Monday. But Boston's four absences will leave Joe Mazzulla with just nine of his regulars, plus two-way players in JD Davison and Mfiondu Kabengele, for Tuesday's tilt.
Here is Boston's depth chart heading into the final game of the team's three-game road trip:
Guards: Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, Davidson
Wings: Jayson Tatum, Sam Hauser, Justin Jackson
Bigs: Robert Williams, Grant Williams, Luke Kornet, Blake Griffin, Kabengele
We could see a lot of small-ball lineups from Boston on Tuesday night as they look to match up with a versatile Heat team. White and Pritchard should see plenty of minutes in Miami.
The Celtics are currently an NBA-best 35-13 on the season, with Monday night's loss snapping a nine-game winning streak. Boston has won two of its three matchups with Miami this season.
