Boston Celtics’ Gordon Hayward will be back in time for training camp
By Dave Daniels
The Boston Celtics and Gordon Hayward got some fantastic news today.
The Boston Celtics have a lot to look forward to. They have a crew of young talent that just pushed LeBron James to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, and it now appears that both Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward will be ready to go at the start of next season.
Here is ESPN’s Marc J. Spears on the latest update.
Celtics say Gordon Hayward had surgery to remove the plate & screws implanted following the broken fibula he suffered on Oct. 17. His ankle and fibula are both structurally sound. He is scheduled to return to basketball activities in 6-8 weeks and be ready for training camp.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) May 31, 2018
Hayward had a season to forget just as the Celtics were putting together one to remember. He suffered a compound leg fracture in the first game of the year, and it seemed like Boston would be out of the running as a result. A lot of us underestimated this roster and their head coach Brad Stevens.
Hayward’s second surgery was mainly motivated by getting him 100 percent pain free according to Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge.
"“Gordon felt like he was making great strides and getting close, but he still had a little bit of pain in one little spot that persisted over the last couple months,” Ainge said on 98.5 The Sports Hub radio show. “So, they just felt like they were going to get the hardware out. His bone had completely healed and the muscles and tissues and everything had all healed.”"
It’s unclear what the Celtics will do with this roster in the future. If they sign Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier to contract extensions and keep Hayward and Irving, then their luxury tax bill will be astronomical.
But having too many excellent players is an incredible problem to have. Just ask LeBron. He would take that issue any time of the day, and the Celtics will have it for the next few years.
My bet is that they sell high on Rozier. He was amazing offensively in the playoffs, but he was also a liability on defense. That’s Irving’s role on the team. He’s supposed to be the small point guard that can’t play defense, and Rozier was stepping all over that corner this postseason.
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Hayward and Irving will be in the unique position of learning how to fit in with these young players next fall, and it will be fascinating to watch the Celtics develop chemistry before another playoff run. Isn’t the NBA more fun when the stars are healthy? Hayward certainly does.