Boston Celtics All-NBA point guard Kemba Walker might be able to play against the Utah Jazz on Feb. 26, but don’t get your hopes up.
The team is playing it extra-cautious with the All-Star floor general, knowing their postseason ceiling very likely hinges on the health of the UConn product, and are thus acting accordingly.
Already sitting out Tuesday night’s game with the Portland Trailblazers, Walker has not played since the 2020 NBA All-Star game, where an extended stint on the court for the annual exhibition may have aggravated a swollen knee that has been bothering the former Husky for some time.
It ultimately required a bursa in his knee to be drained, which sounds scary but has happened to the Bronx native as recently as 2016 with little impact.
Still, the team wants to take care with the 29-year-old’s health, with head coach Brad Stevens downplaying the prospects of Walker suiting up against the Jazz.
Kemba Walker still considers himself day-to-day, though tomorrow in Utah may be a stretch. Sitting out the Lakers game was tough. "It looked like so much fun, would have been great to be part of it. But unfortunately I couldn’t. It was definitely killing me – I can’t lie."
— Mark Murphy (@Murf56) February 25, 2020
“I guess there’s a possibility but I would say it would be unlikely,” said Stevens via the Boston Herald’s Mark Murphy.
“What he’s doing is exactly what we said, strengthening and working out hard and trying to make it so it doesn’t become a back and forth thing. That’s the goal.
If we need to sit him, it’s a planned second night of a back-to-back down the road, it’s not because the knee acted up and we need another week or two. Let’s do it now, strengthen it, make it as good as it can be, then we can ramp up accordingly as we head into the stretch run.”
“That’s the latest I’ve been told,” he added.
Walker, for his part, seemed on board with the approach ahead of shootaround. “It’s more about the long haul, just being smart about things, that’s it,” noted the four-time All-Star.
“It’s a part of the game, man, it happens. We all go through injuries and things of that nature. I’ve been blessed my whole career to not have to go through this as much. It happens, not much I can do … It’s a different situation and I have to be smart, just have to be.”
“For sure if it was up to me I would definitely go out there and play, but at this point don’t want to take a step backwards if I was to go out there,” he added.
Kemba Walker doesn’t want any setbacks with his knee issue: “I’ve gotta be smart. I just have to be smart.”
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) February 25, 2020
While it goes against the competitive nature of the New Yorker to sit for important games — or even to play below a certain number of minutes — it’s an approach Walker will need to embrace to be at full strength for the games that matter most.
And it sounds like all the people who need to be on the same page look like they are all-in on the plan to manage the veteran floor general’s ailing knee as well.
While it would be ideal to have Walker available for the entirety of the regular season, Boston knows it has an excellent opportunity in this year’s playoffs, and are taking the appropriate steps to prepare for it.
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