Boston’s Gordon Hayward to miss 4 weeks with Grade III ankle sprain

Boston Celtics veteran forward Gordon Hayward has a grade III ankle sprain, and will miss four weeks according to the team.

The man can not catch a break, or so it seems.

Boston Celtics veteran forward has been revealed to have a grade three right ankle sprain with an estimated return of four weeks, according a notice published to the team’s Twitter account Tuesday afternoon.

Hayward turned the ankle pretty hard coming down from a rebound attempt on Philadelphia 76ers’ center Joel Embiid’s foot in Boston’s 109 – 101 Game 1 win against the 76ers Monday night, and would later leave the building in an air cast and on crutches.

The Butler product has been a key part of the Celtics’ success in the 2019-20 NBA season, and his loss absolutely makes the path to the NBA Finals considerably more fraught.

With his wife Robyn expecting their next child near the start of September, it seems likely the Indiana native will return to his home state to spend time with his and his wife’s family while he recovers.

Especially given he planned to leave the Disney NBA campus soon to be present for the birth of his child anyway.

The Celtics will need their bench to step up in a big way to continue the sort of run they hope to put together in Hayward’s absence, with few tested options to shore up depth in playoff-level play.

And with wing Romeo Langford working his way back from a wrist injury of his own, even those players able to play are facing a tall order filling in for the Butler product.

We may see Langford, Grant Williams and Semi Ojeleye all vie for increased opportunity in Hayward’s absence.

But, it is more likely additional playing time will mainly be allocated to wings Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and veteran guard Marcus Smart in particular.

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