Boston lost an important game last night in Toronto. The 96-78 loss puts them 3 games behind the Raptors for the one seed, making finishing first almost impossible. That wasn’t the biggest loss of the night though. Word has now surfaced that Kyrie Irving won’t see the court again until next season as he’ll need another surgery on his left knee. Irving is said to be having two screws in his knee taken out, and the recovery is scheduled to take 4-5 months. The Celtics are expected to make an official statement soon. This is the final nail in the coffin for the Celtic’s season. We knew it was going to be tough going from the start when Gordon Hayward went down opening night. The outstanding play of Brown and Tatum gave the Celtics new hope, but without Kyrie this team cannot make it out of the East. The rookies have been amazing, but it won’t be enough to beat either Toronto or Cleveland in a seven game series. Not to mention that backup point guard Marcus Smart isn’t expected to be ready for the start of the playoffs either as he recovers from a thumb injury. While this postseason will still be important in the development of their young talent, the Celtics front office better start looking towards the offseason. We know that Hayward and Irving will be the healthy centerpieces, but what will this roster look like around them? Do they try to leverage some of that young talent to get another All-Star veteran? Or do they try to add in free agency and keep the main pieces in tact? I would try my hardest to keep both Brown and Tatum. They are going to be All-Stars in the very near future and both play the game with great energy on both sides of the ball. The Celtics should turn their focus on upgrading the front court. Al Horford has been great while reinventing his game and stretching out to the three point line, but Boston would really benefit from a legit post threat and rim protector to help all their guard talent. Sorry Boston fans, but you’ll have to wait another year for a championship run.
