BOSTON — The Celtics (23-12) will look to make it five straight wins when they face the Denver Nuggets (24-12) on Wednesday night at 7pm at TD Garden.
Boston enters the matchup relatively healthy; they’ll only be without Jayson Tatum, who continues to recover from a ruptured Achilles tendon, and Josh Minott, who is out with a left ankle sprain. Minott has fallen out of the Celtics rotation in recent weeks, having received a DNP in 5 of his last 6 games. But, for the season, the Celtics forward is averaging a career-best 6.3 points and 4 rebounds on 50.4% shooting.
Alongside the team’s four perennial starters — Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, and Neemias Queta — Sam Hauser has started the past two games, replacing Jordan Walsh in the starting lineup. Prior to that, Walsh had started 20 straight games for the Celtics.
The Nuggets arrive at TD Garden hampered by injury
The Nuggets, meanwhile, will be without Nikola Jokic (knee), Cam Johnson (knee), and Jonas Valanciunas (calf). Jamal Murray (ankle), Aaron Gordon (hamstring), Christian Braun (ankle), and Tim Hardaway (illness) are all questionable.
The Nuggets, who have the fourth-best record in the Western Conference, are 2-2 without Jokic. They picked up wins against the Toronto Raptors and Philadelphia 76ers, while dropping games to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets.
In the Nuggets’ Monday night victory over the 76ers, a trio of bench players led the way: Jalen Pickett exploded for 29 points, Peyton Watson tallied 24 points, and Bruce Brown scored 19.
Nuggets head coach David Adelman praised their performance: “This is a bunch of guys finding a way to get it done with grit and effort and timely shot making. And I think that’s something that, when they’re older, 20 years from now, they’re probably gonna have a beer and talk about this game.”
Who is available to suit up for the Nuggets remains to be seen, but Denver will once again need big-time performances from their bench players to hold their own against Boston. Celtics-Nuggets will tip off on Wednesday at 7pm.
