Celtics say Sullinger 'healed' and available tonight

Celtics say Sullinger 'healed' and available tonight
April 3, 2015, 1:00 pm







Finally, some good news on the injury front for the Celtics, who will welcome back Jared Sullinger.


The 6-foot-9 forward, the team’s leading scorer at the time of his foot injury, will be available for tonight’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Celtics said Sullinger's "metatarsal stress fracture has healed completely."
“We are excited that Jared’s recovery progressed quicker than initially expected,” Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said in a statement. “Jared was extremely diligent in his rehab, repeatedly expressing his eagerness to help our team reach the postseason. He will be available in a limited role this weekend as he works his way back to 100% game shape."

The return of Sullinger comes at a time when the Celtics (34-41) find themselves nestled in a tightly contested race towards the playoffs.

Boston is currently a half-game behind Brooklyn for the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot.

Sullinger’s impact on the team’s rotation remains to be seen, but in all likelihood his return will signal fewer minutes for Jonas Jerebko.

While his return is ahead of schedule, the Celtics wouldn’t be willing to put him back on the floor if they didn’t think he had healed to a point where he could contribute without doing further damage to his foot.

“Anytime you have a foot injury in this league, you want to be cautious and correct about coming back at the right time,” Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said on 98.5 the Sports Hub Friday afternoon.




bob



.

Oh man - I just apologized to Beat for making a similar post without having seen his... Missesd yours too, sorry about that..

What, what a development!  He's coming back to a different team, and he may have to be a little cautious about adjusting his role.  I hope he doesn't feel obligated to shoot a lot of threes.  He's not likely to run with the team, but he could potentially be very valuable in igniting the break with his defensive rebounding and good outlet passing.  In fact, it's possible that his presence on the defensive boards will free guys like Crowder and Turner to do a little less defensive rebounding and more getting out on the break.  And it will be interesting to see how he interacts with Bass in the offensive lane.

Here's hoping that, if he does play, it will be a successful return and a helpful one for the team—perhaps giving Brad a little more flexibility in his big man rotation.

Sam