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Brad Stevens met with the media Saturday ahead of the Celtics’ road clash with the Houston Rockets and gave some injury updates on two of his players.
After saying all year that he did not expect Gordon Hayward to return from the sever ankle injury he suffered on opening night, Stevens finally gave everyone a definitive “no” to those who hoped Hayward could come back.
Brad Stevens' reaction to new video showing Gordon Hayward moving much better? ... "He's not playing this year."
— Steve Bulpett (@SteveBHoop) March 3, 2018
Stevens added that Hayward is still has a while before he starts cutting, and that he is up to running on 60% of his weight on the anti-gravity treadmill. This update comes a day after Hayward released a video of a portion of a workout, showing his ability to jump on some of his shots. Stevens said that he likes the videos because they give everyone a chance to notice Hayward’s progress while Hayward himself might not be able to.
The Celtics’ head coach also told the media that Daniel Theis is expected to return Saturday against Houston after missing the last game with a hamstring injury.
Brad Stevens has good news regarding Daniel Theis’ hamstring injury: “He did some shooting last night and felt really good. He’ll go through shootaround and will likely be available to play (tonight).”
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 3, 2018
Theis had been playing the best basketball of his season since the all star break and should have plenty of minutes available against a versatile Rockets team.
The Celtics and Rockets tip off at 8:30 p.m. EST as the Celtics try to pick up their fifth win in a row as well as snap the Rockets’ 14-game winning streak.