At the trade deadline, the Boston Celtics made the decision to trade for Nikola Vucevic. They traded Anfernee Simons in exchange for him. They believe that they needed some more help at the center spot, and decided to have Vucevic come off the bench.
Vucevic only played 12 games for Boston before getting hurt. He fractured his right ring finger and has been out for the last few weeks. Without Vucevic, the Celtics’ bench hasn’t been quite as strong offensively. They were just starting to learn how to play with him before he got hurt.
Jayson Tatum just recently came back from his torn Achilles tendon injury that he suffered. He actually gave an impromptu injury report on Vucevic.
Celtics Forward Jayson Tatum Gives Injury Report on Nikola Vucevic
While speaking to the media at shootaround, Tatum had Vucevic walk by him. Vucevic demanded that Tatum say something nice about him, so Tatum did.
“Vooch? He’s been working his ass off. He’ll be back soon, I hope.”
That doesn’t give a timeline on when Vucevic will actually return to the court, but he was doing some work on the court, as well. It has been almost four weeks since he suffered his injury, so the timeline for him getting back on the court is drawing near.
Vucevic has been working hard to get back into the lineup. He gives them rebounding and shooting in a way that Luka Garza does not. Since the All-Star break, the Celtics have the 12th-worst offense from their bench in the league. Vucevic has not played in any of those games.
Tatum has been watching Vucevic trying to get back as soon as possible. He understands what it takes to get back to the court, as he missed 10 months before being able to return. The Celtics are hoping to get Vucevic back right before the regular season ends.
Boston is Hoping Not to Regret Trading Anfernee Simons
Simons was playing really well before they decided to move him. At the guard spot, he was able to come off the bench and give them a scoring punch. Simons has also been hurt since he was sent to Chicago, having only played six games since the trade.
Simons broke his arm. With the Bulls tanking, it’s unlikely that he will be returning this season. At least the Celtics will have a chance to play Vucevic during the playoffs. With everyone healthy on the roster, the Celtics are expected to be the favorites to make it out of the East.
Boston traded Simons because he had an expiring contract. This is also the final year of Vucevic’s deal. The Celtics will have to use the playoffs to determine whether or not they try to re-sign him in the offseason. It’s unlikely that Vucevic will be able to find another team to start for.
The Celtics are getting healthy at the right time of year. They have just a few more games before they will learn who their playoff matchup will be.
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