The Boston Celtics may need to provide more ice packs for their upcoming road trip, and guard Jrue Holiday is perfect for that.
“Teams challenge us,” said Holiday. “I think the game is getting more physical, which is good. I think that’s an advantage for us when we can do the same.”
Boston will open its four-game road trip with a tie against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night in Minneapolis.
The Celtics are coming off a 54-point lead over the Toronto Raptors on New Year’s Day. The victory completed an incredible 2024 calendar year for the defending NBA champions, who have renewed title aspirations as they head into 2025.
A late addition to the injury report could make the Celtics’ task even more difficult on Thursday.
Celtics forward Jaylen Brown is listed as questionable because of a right shoulder strain. Brown is averaging 24.4 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.6 assists in 28 starts this season.
Celtics forward Kristaps Porzingis is also listed as questionable because of a sprained left ankle. Porzingis, who has missed three straight games with an injury, is averaging 18.3 points and 6.4 rebounds in 11 starts.
Minnesota also has a few injured players, but none who usually take over the starting lineup. Rookie guard Rob Dillingham is on the sidelines for Thursday’s game with a sprained right ankle, while tight end Luka Garza is also out with a left ankle injury that has kept him out for the past six games.
Anthony Edwards leads the Timberwolves with 24.8 points per game on 44.3 percent shooting. Julius Randle is second with 19.9 points to go along with 6.9 rebounds per game.
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch is more concerned about another statistic: turnovers. He said his team was too sloppy with the ball (23 turnovers) in their last game, losing 113-105 to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.
“If we don’t turn the ball over, we can control this game,” said Finch. “There’s no doubt about it.”
The only player back in Boston’s lineup is Holiday, who returned Tuesday after missing three games with a shoulder injury. He finished with 14 points and made 4 of 5 attempts from beyond the arc.
Holiday joked that the source of his shoulder injury may have improved his three-point shot.
“Maybe the beating helped,” said Holiday. “Maybe my shoulder is on the line.”
Celtics coach Joe Mazzella recently challenged his team to be more active on defense.
Holiday said that fits his basketball personality well.
“I think it’s about working and using your instincts,” Holiday said. “That’s something I always like to do — think about the game, especially on the defensive end. Being able to get a deflection, start a break and stuff like that. It’s really fun, a lot of work.”
This is the second and final regular season game between the teams. Boston won the opener 107-105 at home on November 24.
Brown led the Celtics with 29 points in that game. Jayson Tatum added 26 points and eight rebounds, while Derrick White recorded 19 points and nine rebounds.
Edwards finished with 28 points, nine rebounds and seven assists against Boston. Randle added 23 points, while Rudy Gobert posted 10 points and 20 rebounds.
–Field Level Media