The Boston Celtics suffered a blow when Jaylen Brown exited Tuesday’s 107-98 win over the Atlanta Hawks with an ankle sprain. Brown was ruled out for the remainder of the game, but the good news is he didn’t appear to have too significant a limp as he made his way to the locker room under his own power.
Here’s where the injury happened.
Afterward, Celtics Ime Udoka elaborated on Brown’s ankle after their win.
“Rolled it. It’s got some swelling and soreness, obviously,” Udoka said. “He tried to give it a go in the back and wanted to come back out and play, but we just thought big picture, and where we’re at in the season, and be smart. We’ll know more over the next few days, but he tried to give it a go and it’s still sore and swollen.”
Despite no timetable to offer, Udoka remained optimistic this won’t be a long-term issue for Brown, though the team says he’s unlikely to play Thursday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
“He walked off by himself and then tried to go in the back, so you would hope not. But we’ll evaluate him over the next few days. It doesn’t seem like it, but you never know how it could change overnight with swelling and pain.”
The Celtics obviously can’t be without Brown for long. Again, the injury didn’t appear too serious, but even a week or so out will be tough for Boston to shoulder. The Celtics are tied with the Raptors in the loss column for the No. 6 seed as of this writing, with both teams in action and the play-in tournament on the other side.
