WALTHAM, Mass. - The Boston Celtics played without Rajon Rondo and Avery Bradley on Friday and they remain uncertain as to whether either guard will be available for Sunday’s game against Dallas.
Rondo and Bradley have been unavailable since Wednesday's win over Philadelphia due to what head coach Brad Stevens termed as soreness. Rondo is experiencing soreness in his right knee, which was surgically repaired nearly a year ago after suffering a torn ACL. Bradley is feeling soreness in his right ankle, which he originally sprained back on Jan. 21.
Rajon Rondo and Avery Bradley missed Friday's game against the Kings but could be back on the floor Sunday evening against Dallas.
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Stevens has reiterated time and time again that neither player has suffered any structural damage. They are just waiting for soreness to subside enough to allow them to get back onto the court. Rondo spoke to the media prior to Saturday’s practice and clarified that his recent absence has purely been a precautionary measure.
“It’s been a while since I’ve played basketball,” he said, subtly reminding reporters that he went 51 weeks without playing in an NBA game. “It’s a little sore. Nothing major. The knee is fine.”
Rondo stated that he was unsure as to whether or not he would participate in Saturday’s practice or not.
Bradley did not speak to reporters but was seen on the court working out with assistant coach Ron Adams. He was not going through any full-speed movements, but he was working on catch-and-shoot jumpers from the top of the key. Stevens said that he expected his starting shooting guard to at least partially participate in Saturday’s practice.
“This is an untaped kind of light workout,” said Stevens. “I think he’ll see how he feels and we’ll go from there. I think he feels a little bit better this morning than he did yesterday. Again, we’ll kind of see how it goes. He’ll shoot and he’ll go through all the light stuff early.”
Though Rondo was noncommittal to the media, he is likely to participate in Saturday's on a similar level to Bradley. Each player will regroup with the medical staff following practice and then again tomorrow morning before making a decision on their status for Sunday evening’s matchup against the Mavericks.
“[Rondo will] go through whatever he goes through today and get with (athletic trainer) Ed Lacerte, and by the time we walk through at the arena tomorrow, 3:15 (p.m.) or so, we’ll know by then,” Stevens explained. “That’s kind of the way that we usually will do it is, you won’t wait until game time necessarily. You’ll be more in the know before shootaround.”
In the meantime, the Celtics will continue to take caution with each player and make sure that they are healthy enough to play before they return to action. The team and each player are looking out for their future well being, and as 13-year veteran Gerald Wallace says, that’s how it needs to be.
“You’ve just got to know how to take care of your body,” Wallace said. “You’ve got to understand that you have to rest. You’ve got to get treatment. You’ve got to do the things that you’ve got to do to keep your body going because regardless of how your body feels, the games are going to keep coming.”
The next game on tap for Boston is a 6 p.m. tip-off against Dallas on Sunday. Will Rondo and Bradley be available to play? We still do not know. What we do know is that if they are available, the Celtics will be in a much better position to bring home their fourth consecutive victory.