On Monday night in Charlotte, the Celtics will look to pick up their second straight shorthanded win as a pair of rotational pieces are out for Boston.
Starting with the good news, the Celtics will have Jaylen Brown back after he missed Sunday’s win over Houston with left patellar tendinopathy. With the second night of a back-to-back likely factoring into the equation, they will be without Romeo Langford and Al Horford on Monday.
Horford is being listed with a left abductor strain, while Langford has left calf tightness causing them to miss Monday’s matchup with the Hornets. The injuries will potentially open up opportunities for players on the fringes of the Boston rotation, as coach Ime Udoka said he will be looking to go small in order to deal with the loss of Horford. Whether that means Enes Kanter, Juancho Hernangomez, Jabari Parker, or some combination of the three getting minutes remains to be seen, but at least one of them should likely crack a shorthanded Celtics rotation.
The Celtics (1-2) and Hornets (3-0) are set to start at 7:00 p.m. ET.
Ime Udoka said that there is an opportunity for Enes Kanter, Juancho Hernangomez and Jabari Parker to see some minutes tonight with Al Horford out.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) October 25, 2021
Al Horford and Romeo Langford are OUT tonight #Celtics #Hornets
— gary washburn (@GwashburnGlobe) October 25, 2021