Danilo Gallinari walked off the court early Wednesday afternoon at the Auerbach Center following a hard workout, his practice jersey soaked with sweat. The Celtics forward was asked how he’s doing.
“I’m cooked,” Gallinari said.
Gallinari was tired. But he was also happy and encouraged. As he continues to rehab from the torn ACL he suffered in his left knee last August, this is part of the process.
After his Celtics teammates wrapped up shootaround ahead of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Gallinari and some assistant coaches began a full-court workout. Gallinari simulated game play as he played defense, ran around screens and shot 3-pointers, all while running up and down the floor. He looked gassed by the end of it, but that was the point. Part of his focus right now is picking up his conditioning.
“We’ve been doing conditioning, a lot more stuff on the bike,” Gallinari told the Herald. “But it’s different than when you get on a court and you actually go up and down, you try to reproduce the game, what happens in the game and stuff. It’s way harder than the bike. But it’s fun. It’s a lot of fun.”
When Gallinari had surgery in late September, it was a near certainty that he would miss the entire season. But the forward has kept belief that he could return in these playoffs, as unlikely as it’s seemed. It has fueled him throughout his rehab.
As the Celtics begin the Eastern Conference Finals with a chance of making the NBA Finals, Gallinari hasn’t lost that hope that he could return this season.
“It’s still in my mind,” Gallinari said. “I think that in this situation, you have to use all the motivations that you can. Sometimes during the rehab, you’re going to go through ups and downs, especially mentally. It’s not easy to approach every step of the rehab. And so, that’s still a motivation for me.”
Gallinari said he’s right where he expected to be at this stage of his rehab.
“We are right on schedule, what the medical team predicted, more or less from the beginning of the rehab,” Gallinari said. “Everything is going well, on pace. No thoughts on the immediate future this season, but everything’s going well.”
Gallinari said the next step for him is to ramp up contact. There was some light contact during Wednesday’s workout, but nothing that would really simulate the game experience.
It’s unclear how much time, or how much more work is required before he would be cleared to return. Time is certainly short, and it may be unrealistic to expect him to make his Celtics debut during the biggest games of the season. But after dealing with this same injury in 2013, the possibility drives him.
“For me, especially because I’ve done it unfortunately already, so I know what motivation gets me going every day and just to click my mind to get the best every day,” Gallinari said. “And so that’s one of the motivations that I use to get the best and everything that I have every day.”
For now, Gallinari is remaining a constant presence for the Celtics even though he’s played for them yet. He’s on the bench for games and in the locker room. He has traveled with the team for most of the season, and has provided veteran help when needed. He said he’s talked to coaches and players about game plans, scouting reports and giving insight into what he sees.
But Gallinari doesn’t want to step on any toes. He’s enjoying the ride as the Celtics chase a championship.
“It’s been great witnessing what these guys have been doing since the beginning of the season,” Gallinari said. “Of course, the job is not done yet but already what they’ve done has been great. To see how their chemistry is on and off the court, I think I’ve been lucky and honored to be part of something special.”