The undermanned Celtics faced off against the lottery-bound Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse last night. Beyond Jaylen Brown’s expected absence, Marcus Smart was ruled out with a calf contusion, Kemba Walker for load management, and Robert Williams with turf toe.
Boston once again looked sloppy on defense, and ultimately lost to Cleveland 102-94. Kevin Love scored 30 points and dropped 14 rebounds, both season-highs. With the loss, the C’s officially sealed their fate for the play-in tournament.
With the flurry of injuries lately, the Celtics have been forced to adapt on the fly. Tristan Thompson was quoted earlier this season saying that regular-season games don’t matter. He was asked about that quote, as well as the Celtics mentality moving forward, in his postgame interview.
Boston will have a few days rest before their matchup against the Timberwolves on Saturday, followed by their final game of the regular season against the Knicks on Sunday. The team could end up resting key players, but since seeding has yet to be finalized they could slide as far as ninth in the standings
