The Celtics will trot out a lineup of backups Wednesday night in Orlando, with one possible exception.
One day after defeating the New York Knicks 119-117 in overtime at Madison Square Garden, Boston ruled out Jayson Tatum (ankle), Derrick White (ankle), Jrue Holiday (shoulder), Kristaps Porzingis (return from illness reconditioning) and Al Horford (knee) for their road matchup with the Magic.
Head coach Joe Mazzulla sitting his regulars for the second game of a back-to-back with Boston’s status as the No. 2 playoff seed in the Eastern Conference was not a surprise, especially after Tatum, Porzingis, White and Holiday all set or approached their season highs for minutes played against the Knicks. The 38-year-old Horford was the only Celtics regular who did not play against New York.
The lone Boston starter not ruled out against Orlando was Jaylen Brown, who was listed as questionable. Brown has been playing through what he’s described as a painful knee injury, with the Celtics putting him on a minutes restriction. Mazzulla did not play Brown in the fourth quarter or overtime against the Knicks; he logged just 22 minutes for the second straight game.
“We just got what we needed to get out of him as he continues to push himself and test himself,” Mazzulla said postgame. “We’ve still got games left, so we got what we needed to get, what we needed to see, and we just continue to move forward.”
Brown must play in at least two of the Celtics’ final three games (at Orlando, followed by two against Charlotte at TD Garden) to reach the 65-game minimum to qualify for All-NBA and All-Defensive team consideration, though he’s said that isn’t influencing his decision to play.
After Tuesday’s win in New York, Porzingis questioned Brown’s decision to play hurt rather than resting ahead of the playoffs.
“He’s a tough dude,” the Celtics center said. “He always preaches his warrior mindset and he lives by it, but to what extent do we need that right now? Maybe he needs to take care of it and make sure he’s going to be ready for the most important moments. So I think we just have to urge him to make sure he does everything he needs to prepare, to get it healthy and to prepare for what’s going to come. And I think he’s a smart guy, so he will.”
Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser and Luke Kornet were the only rotation players not listed on Boston’s latest injury report. Players lower on the depth chart will have ample opportunities for playing time against the Magic, who, as the current No. 7 seed in the East, are a possible first-round playoff opponent for the Celtics.
That group includes Baylor Scheierman, Torrey Craig, Neemias Queta, Jordan Walsh, Xavier Tillman and two-way players JD Davison, Drew Peterson and Miles Norris, who all rejoined the big club after the Maine Celtics’ G League playoff run ended this past weekend.