Celtics Rumors

And-Ones: East/West, Stephenson, East Finals, World Cup

May 15th, 2025 at 11:40am CST by Luke Adams

The stunning events that occurred on Monday, namely Dallas and San Antonio moving up to No. 1 and No. 2 in the draft lottery and Celtics star Jayson Tatum tearing his Achilles tendon, will reverberate through the NBA for years to come. As Tim Bontemps of ESPN writes, there was already a significant divide in star power between the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference — now there could be a “chasm.”

“The West just keeps getting richer,” one league executive told Bontemps. “How come everybody keeps going to the West? For the veteran players, you could say it’s better weather, going to California, better organizations. But they’ve also just gotten really lucky.

“It seems like every time there’s one of these generational talents — Victor (Wembanyama), Zion (Williamson), Anthony Davis — they just end up in the West. It’s just bad luck … it is what it is.”

Aside from Indiana, New York and Cleveland, Tatum’s injury means there are suddenly major question marks in the East, which could make teams more aggressive on the trade market. There’s a possibility that Giannis Antetokounmpo could be traded to the West as well.

“Cooper Flagg is going to the West for the next 10 years, Giannis could be headed West, Tatum is out of the mix for a year and the Celtics likely are, too,” a scout said. “Good for East teams who are trying to make the Finals.”

We have more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Former NBA swingman Lance Stephenson is signing a contract to play in the BIG3 for the 3×3 league’s upcoming season, reports NBA insider Chris Haynes (Twitter link). Stephenson, who played for eight NBA teams across 10 seasons from 2010-22, spent most of his professional career in Indiana. He last played in the G League for the Iowa Wolves in 2023/24.
While the Pacers don’t yet know which team they’ll be facing, the Eastern Conference Finals schedule has been announced (Twitter link via Michael Preston). The series will begin on May 21, with games played every other day until a potential Game 7 on June 2.
FIBA has announced the draw for the 2027 World Cup qualifiers, officially confirming the groups for the Africa, Americas, Asian, and European events. Team USA will be in group A of the Americas qualifiers, alongside the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and a to-be-determined fourth team that makes it through the pre-qualifiers.
FIBA is looking to engage the NCAA about a possible letter of clearance system for international players who want to leave their teams for a college program, per Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter links). As Givony points out, international teams already have the ability to block a player from leaving if he’s under contract, so it’s unclear why the NCAA would agree to a change that would give European teams more leeway to prevent a young prospect from moving stateside.

Rory Maher contributed to this post.

Celtics Notes: Kornet, Porzingis, Tatum, Brown

May 14th, 2025 at 11:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

Luke Kornet was an unexpected star as the Celtics staved off elimination by beating the Knicks in Wednesday’s Game 5, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. With Kristaps Porzingis struggling through another ineffective game, coach Joe Mazzulla decided to have Kornet start the second half in his place. Kornet delivered one of the best performances of his career, blocking five shots in the third quarter while scoring four points and grabbing five rebounds.

“He was great,” coach Joe Mazzulla said in a separate Boston Globe story. “He did a great job protecting the rim, he did a great job defending without fouling, did a great job on both ends of the floor. I just thought his presence was good, especially with the rebounding. … He made some big-time plays for us.”

Kornet finished the night with a near triple-double, posting 10 points, nine rebounds and seven blocks in 26 minutes. With Porzingis slowed by lingering virus symptoms, Kornet may have a more significant role for the rest of the series, which moves back to New York on Friday.

“He was unbelievable,” Derrick White said of Kornet. “He came in and just seemed to be always in the right position. Seven blocks is crazy, he was unbelievable tonight and really stepped up when he needed him. He’s a had a great season, and he was big time for us tonight. … Yeah, I was barking with him. It’s just fun to see him do that.”

There’s more from Boston:

Mazzulla confirmed that health issues resulted in Porzingis sitting out the entire second half, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. Porzingis is still feeling the effects of a virus he contracted in late February and recently explained that he has physical crashes that rob him of energy and stamina. “He couldn’t breathe,” Mazzulla said. “So he was available if absolutely necessary. So that was just a decision between me and him. He was having difficulties breathing, but he wanted to be out there. And if we absolutely needed him, we would have been able to go to him and rely on him.”
Jayson Tatum posted an Instagram message on Wednesday, reaching out to fans for the first time since undergoing surgery to fix an Achilles tear on Tuesday. Tatum, who suffered the injury during Monday’s Game 4, displayed a picture of himself in his hospital bed with the statement, “Thankful for all the love and support.”
Stephania Bell of ESPN examines Tatum’s projected recovery timeline and compares it to other stars who’ve been through the same procedure.
Jaylen Brown, who contributed 26 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in the Game 5 victory, talked about the need to adopt a greater leadership role in Tatum’s absence, tweets Jared Weiss of The Athletic. “Just be who I am and I think that’s it,” Brown said. “Just be myself, come out, be aggressive and get it done in multiple ways. We’re a team. We’ve always been a team. … The goal is to just lead and be myself.”

Celtics Notes: DPE, Cost-Saving Moves, Tatum’s Recovery, Game 5, Porzingis

May 14th, 2025 at 5:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics are unlikely to pursue a disabled player exception in the wake of Jayson Tatum‘s Achilles tear, writes Brian Robb of MassLive. The DPE provides an avenue to help teams replace players who suffer serious injuries, but it carries restrictions that will limit its usefulness for Boston.

Robb points out that teams aren’t permitted to use the exception until a physician designated by the NBA determines that the player is “substantially more likely than not” to be sidelined through June 15 of the qualifying season. Tatum’s injury occurred Monday during Game 4 against the Knicks and he underwent surgery on Tuesday, so it’s far too early to put a firm timetable on his recovery process.

Also, the DPE is limited to the amount of the mid-level exception, which is currently $14.1MM. Considering Tatum’s $54.1MM salary for next season, the Celtics couldn’t come close to replacing him with a similar player. Robb notes that the team is already facing a record tax payment for 2025/26, so the extra financial penalties associated with adding salary would make it prohibitive.

Robb believes Boston will definitely make moves this summer to drop below the $208MM second apron and may try to get beneath the projected $188MM tax line. He states that the front office might have to explore moving Jaylen Brown if the return is right, and he lists Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis and Sam Hauser as other trade candidates.

There’s more from Boston:

Tatum’s father expects the recovery time to be about eight to nine months, Marc J. Spears of Andscape said on ESPN’s NBA Today (Twitter video link). A nine-month absence would bring him back around the All-Star break, giving him plenty of time to ramp up for the playoffs. Spears adds that Tatum and his father cried on the phone together after the injury, but his father inspired him by pointing out that Kobe Bryant went through the same experience. Spears also reveals that Tatum’s surgeon performed similar procedures on Kevin Durant and Tiger Woods.
A league source tells Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe that Tatum and the Celtics made the decision to have surgery right away after doctors confirmed the severity of the injury Tuesday morning. Himmelsbach’s source adds that the medical outcomes with Achilles tears tend to be more favorable when they’re addressed quickly, and that complications are often associated with this type of operation, so Celtics officials were relieved when Tatum’s procedure went smoothly.
Despite the grief over losing Tatum, the Celtics still have a chance to salvage their second-round series with three straight wins over the Knicks, starting with tonight’s Game 5, Himmelsbach adds. He points out that the team went 8-2 without Tatum this season, but was only 2-2 against playoff teams. “We feel for [Tatum], of course,” Porzingis said. “But we have to move forward. He doesn’t want us to be sad and not playing our best basketball. So we’re going to go out there and leave it all out there and live with the results.”
Porzingis, who is dealing with side effects from a lingering virus, was able to play 24 minutes on Monday, the most since Game 3 of the opening-round series with Orlando, Himmelsbach notes. “Tonight was the first time I felt decent, honestly, just everything,” Porzingis said. “My energy, I was more, like, uplifted, and maybe didn’t have my best game, anyway, but my energy was good and I felt like I could go a bit more up and down, so that was a positive.”

Celtics Reserve Forward Sam Hauser Listed As Probable For Game 5

May 13th, 2025 at 9:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Celtics got a small bit of good news in an otherwise dark day. Sam Hauser, a key reserve forward, is listed as probable to play in Game 5 at Boston on Wednesday, Steve Popper of Newsday tweets. Boston trails New York, 3-1, with the second-round series returning to the Celtics’ home floor.

Hauser only played four minutes in Game 1 before being sidelined with a right ankle sprain. He has missed the past three games.

Hauser was the eighth man in the rotation for much of the season and played a regular role off the bench in the first round against Orlando, averaging 14.6 minutes per game across those five contests. Hauser scored 10 points in the clinching Game 5 win.

During the regular season, he averaged 8.5 points and 3.2 rebounds in 21.7 minutes per game across 71 outings (19 starts), knocking down 41.6% of his three-pointers.

Hauser gives his team another quality option as it tries to make up for the enormous loss of star Jayson Tatum, who underwent surgery to repair a torn right Achilles tendon on Tuesday.

Jayson Tatum Undergoes Surgery To Repair Torn Achilles

May 13th, 2025 at 3:47pm CST by Luke Adams

Celtics star Jayson Tatum has undergone surgery to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon, the team announced today in a press release (Twitter link).

Tatum’s 2024/25 season is over, and given the typical recovery timeline following an Achilles tear, his ’25/26 availability is very much in jeopardy as well. According to the Celtics, no timeline is available for his return yet, but he’s expected to make a full recovery.

This is exactly the diagnosis that Tatum and the Celtics feared when the 27-year-old was carried off the court on Monday after suffering a non-contact right leg injury. After taking an awkward step near the top of the key, Tatum crumpled to the floor and was unable to put any weight on the leg as he was helped off the floor.

It’s a devastating blow in both the short term and the long term for the Celtics, who face a 3-1 deficit in their second-round series against the Knicks and will face a significant uphill climb as they look to make a comeback without their leading scorer.

Tatum, who has earned three consecutive First Team All-NBA nods, will almost certainly make it four in a row this spring after averaging 26.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 6.0 assists per game in 72 regular season outings. He had put up 28.1 PPG, 11.5 RPG, and 5.4 RPG through eight playoff contests.

Besides dealing a massive blow to the Celtics’ chances to repeat as NBA champions, Tatum’s injury casts a major cloud over the 2025/26 season.

There had already been speculation about the possibility of Boston making cost-cutting roster moves this offseason after spending the last two seasons operating above the second tax apron. With Tatum unlikely to play much – if at all – next season, shedding salary could become a greater priority for a Celtics team that will be hard-pressed to repeat the success of the past two years without its star forward on the court.

This is the first major injury of Tatum’s NBA career — the 10 games he missed this season represented a career high, as he had never been sidelined for more than eight in any of his previous seven years in the league.

Tatum signed a five-year, super-max contract extension last July that will go into effect beginning in 2025/26. The deal, which runs through at least 2029, with a ’29/30 player option, projects to be worth nearly $314MM.

Jayson Tatum Carried Off With Right Leg Injury

May 12th, 2025 at 9:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum suffered a potentially serious injury in the fourth quarter of Boston’s loss to the Knicks in Game 4 of their series on Monday night.

Tatum was carried off the court after injuring his right leg on a non-contact play, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps reports. Tatum took an awkward step near the top of the key and crumpled to the floor. He was unable to put any weight on the leg as he was helped off the court.

The exact nature of the injury is unclear, but it’s feared that it may involve his Achilles tendon and/or ankle. He’ll undergo an MRI on Tuesday.

“It’s tough to see a guy like him get carried off,” head coach Joe Mazzulla said, per Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The Celtics fell behind 3-1 in the series, but veteran big man Al Horford was more concerned about his fallen teammate.

“The loss is the loss. More importantly it’s Jayson I’m worried about,” Horford said, per Weiss (Twitter link).

New York rallied for a 121-113 win despite Tatum’s efforts. He racked up 42 points, eight rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks.

Tatum’s five-year, designated veteran extension worth approximately $314MM kicks in next season.

Knicks Notes: Stagnant Offense, Robinson, Starting Five

May 12th, 2025 at 5:28pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks know they have to create more havoc on defense to energize their offense, Jared Schwartz of the New York Post writes. Their halfcourt offense has frequently bogged down, although they’ve managed to take a 2-1 lead in the series against the Celtics. Game 4 will be held tonight.

“When you’re not causing turnovers and you’re getting the ball under the rim, taking it out every possession, it’s tough to have that speed,” forward Josh Hart said. “So we have to try to cause more turnovers, play better defense and finish possessions with rebounds and run, and even when we do take the ball out, have pace to our offense and not just be standing around being so stagnant.”

Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau had a similar viewpoint.

“I think for anybody, live-ball turnovers that put you into the open floor, get you easy baskets,” he said. “So that’s a big part of the game, and that’s the fight. I think it’s the challenge for each team to try to create as many as you can, because you know what it does for your offense. It fuels your offense.”

We have more on the Knicks:

Fans exasperated by Mitchell Robinson‘s free throw shooting futility got a response from the Knicks center and it’s probably not what they want to hear. Robinson posted on his Instagram Live account (hat tip to Erich Richter of the New York Post) on Sunday that he’s not interested in the fans’ opinions. “So, I know y’all commenting and doing all the stupid stuff, thinking that I really care,” he said. “I really don’t. Y’all know what I care about: this (pointing to his truck), playing basketball, and my daughter. All the other stuff, I really don’t care for. … Y’all should know me by now. Been here seven years. … Anyway, Happy Mother’s Day. Y’all enjoy yourselves.” Robinson is shooting just 28.9 percent from the free throw line during the playoffs, leading opponents to intentionally foul him during certain stretches of games.
The Knicks have won two games despite their starting five — Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns — being outscored by 29 points through the first three games, Schwartz said. “I think a big part of that is how we’re starting games and starting the second half,” Hart said. “We haven’t done a good job imposing our will into the game from the jump. That’s something that we struggled with in Detroit also, coming out of the half. There were times we had a 10-, 12-point lead and then we surrendered it in the first three, four minutes of the half. That unit, we have to come out with more sense of urgency, more desperation, more competitiveness and let everything else fall into place.”
Thibodeau played it coy during his pregame press conference on Monday regarding a lineup change. When asked if he might insert Robinson, the coach replied, “There’s a lot of thoughts you put into it,” James Edwards of The Athletic tweets. Asked if he would stick with his usual starting five, the coach said, “We could be.”

Injury Notes: Towns, Hauser, Garland, Dillingham, Tyson

May 11th, 2025 at 7:22pm CST by Luke Adams

Knicks big man Karl-Anthony Towns appeared to suffer a hand or finger injury in Saturday’s Game 3 loss to Boston, but he was a full participant in practice on Sunday and isn’t listed on the injury report for Monday’s Game 4, per Kristian Winfield of The New York Daily News and Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter links).

It’s positive news for the Knicks after both Towns and head coach Tom Thibodeau were cagey about the potential injury following Game 3. Towns is coming off his worst shooting game of the postseason, as he made just 5-of-18 field goal attempts on Saturday, including 1-of-5 three-pointers.

The only player on Monday’s injury report for either team is Celtics forward Sam Hauser, who has been upgraded to questionable after having been initially listed as doubtful and then downgraded to out for each of the past two games. While it remains to be seen if he’ll be active for Game 4, the new designation suggests he’s nearing a return.

“He’s getting there,” head coach Joe Mazzulla said on Sunday (Twitter video link via CLNS Media). “He’s getting better. He’s day-to-day.”

Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:

The three injured Cavaliers who returned for Game 3 – Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and De’Andre Hunter – were no longer on the injury report ahead of Game 4 on Sunday evening. Although head coach Kenny Atkinson said the trio has recovered well in the past couple days, he identified Garland as the player the Cavs are still most worried about and whose minutes will be monitored the closest (Twitter links via Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star). “He’s doing what he can do. I’ll just put it that way,” Atkinson said of the point guard. “You saw it the other night. I got him in and out. It’s something he’s grinding through. There’s been a lot of stuff that’s gone into him playing.”
The Timberwolves‘ injury report for Monday’s Game 4 is clean, the team announced today (via Twitter). Rookie guard Rob Dillingham had been the only player listed on the injury report as of late due to a sprained ankle. He was upgraded to available for Game 3 and is now off the report altogether, though he’s unlikely to play outside of garbage time.
Nuggets forward Hunter Tyson, who has only played in garbage time during the postseason, was inactive for Game 4 on Sunday due to a right ankle sprain, according to the club (Twitter link).

Knicks Notes: Robinson, Brunson, Anunoby, Hart

May 11th, 2025 at 9:59am CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics are taking advantage of Mitchell Robinson‘s weakness as a free throw shooter and creating a difficult decision for Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscription required). Boston coach Joe Mazzulla employed the “Hack-a-Mitch” strategy repeatedly in Game 3, sending the backup center to the line 12 times. He only made four of those attempts, and Bondy observes that the misses included an air ball and several line drives that had no chance of going in.

“It’s a tough position to be in, especially mentally, but you have to encourage,” Jalen Brunson said. “We’re going to have each other’s backs, regardless.”

Robinson is 11-of-38 from the line (29%) since the playoffs began, which makes it hard to keep him on the court. Bondy notes that he’s the team’s best rebounder and rim protector, and he’s able to switch onto Boston’s star wings on pick-and-rolls. He had six offensive rebounds on Saturday, but he only played 19 minutes because his inefficiency at the line resulted in too many empty possessions.

“If he’s making them, he stays,” Thibodeau said. “If he’s not, you have to get him out. Is his impact on the game more beneficial to leave him in? There are a lot of factors that go into that.”

There’s more from New York:

Brunson is one of the NBA’s best clutch performers, but he hasn’t been delivering enough early offense in this series as the Knicks have faced big deficits in all three games, observes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Brunson is shooting just 36.5% from the field through the first three quarters, but he doesn’t plan to change his approach. “Continue to shoot my shot, do the things I work on, continue to stay confident, that’s the biggest thing,” he said after Saturday’s loss. “Just trust what I do. That’s basically it right there.”
The Knicks will need more offense from OG Anunoby to survive the series, states Jared Schwartz of The New York Post. Anunoby was limited to 1-of-6 from the field in Game 3, with his only basket coming on a third quarter dunk. Schwartz points out that New York is 8-0 in playoff games when Anunoby takes at least 14 shots, but just 5-9 when he doesn’t.
The Celtics were able to torch the Knicks from three-point range after being held in check the first two games, and Josh Hart believes his team wasn’t aggressive enough in challenging Boston’s shooters, per James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. “It was not what it should have been,” Hart said. “It should have been more physical, more aggressive. We let them get into a rhythm early and feeling good early. That’s something that we can’t do. We made the mistake on that and, like I said, we have to learn from it.”

Celtics Notes: Game 3 Win, Tatum, Porzingis, Pritchard, Mazzulla

May 10th, 2025 at 11:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

“You’ve got to tap into your darkness,” coach Joe Mazzulla said as the Celtics approached Saturday facing a 2-0 series deficit, and his team responded with probably its best game of the playoffs, writes Jared Weiss of The Athletic. Boston struck quickly, built a commanding early lead, and controlled the game throughout on its way to a 115-93 victory.

“If you plan on doing this for a long time, trust me, it’ll be a lot worse than the last 72 hours, and that’s the perspective you have to have,” Mazzulla said. “This is the fun part. I didn’t get into the journey for it to be easy. It’s been dark, but in a good way.”

The Celtics set a playoff record by missing 45 three-point attempts in the series opener and were shooting 25% as a team from beyond the arc in the first two games. That changed dramatically in Game 3 as they overwhelmed the Knicks from the outside, connecting on 20-of-40 three-point shots.

Jayson Tatum, who had been badly misfiring in the first two games, made five of his nine three-point attempts on Saturday and talked about the need to be a leader when times are tough.

“You just understand what comes with being that guy,” he said. “I get a lot of praise, I get a lot of credit, I get a lot of accolades, but I’m not perfect. And there’s times where I’ve needed to play better, I’ve needed to do more, and that’s what comes with being that guy.”

There’s more on the Celtics:

Kristaps Porzingis played 19 minutes off the bench, but he’s still experiencing side effects from a virus he contracted in late February, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter video link). Charania states that Porzingis has been dealing with “energy zaps” and stamina “ebbs and flows” over the past two months. He began feeling better before the team’s first-round series, but went through a “crash” before Game 1 against New York.
Payton Pritchard was 5-of-10 from three-point range on Saturday while logging 35 minutes, the most playing time he’s seen in this year’s postseason, per Khari Thompson of The Boston Globe. Mazzulla explained that he gave Pritchard an expanded role because Jrue Holiday picked up early fouls. “Our sub patterns are always flexible,” Mazzulla said. “Tonight, Jrue had three fouls and Payton was good. At times, you go with what makes the most sense. Just the flexibility of what we were able to do, but he played really well on both ends of the floor for us. There was some foul trouble there, so we were able to go to some different stuff.”
Mazzulla’s job is likely safe regardless of the outcome of this series, Brian Robb of MassLive states in a mailbag column. However, he warns that the Celtics will likely have to sacrifice some depth this summer due to financial concerns, so it will be harder for Mazzulla to keep the team at an elite level in the future.

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