DETROIT — The Boston Celtics could be once again be without Payton Pritchard when they close out a four-game roadtrip against the Detroit Pistons on Monday night. Pritchard missed Saturday’s game against the Atlanta
Hawks with left ankle soreness — his first absence of the year — and is questionable with the same injury ahead of Monday’s game.
But the Celtics didn’t miss a beat with their starting point guard; Baylor Scheierman started in Pritchard’s place, and Boston defeated Atlanta 132-106.
Three other Celtics are on the injury report alongside Pritchard; Josh Minott will miss his 8th-straight game with an ankle sprain, while Jayson Tatum continues to rehabilitate a ruptured Achilles tendon. It’s been about 8 months since Tatum first suffered the injury, and his timeline to potentially return this season is uncertain. And, Chris Boucher, who has been out of the rotation since late November, is questionable with low back spasms.
The Pistons, meanwhile, have a clean injury slate.
The Pistons have been the best team in the Eastern Conference
Monday’s game between the Celtics and the Pistons is a battle between the two best teams in the East. The Celtics (26-15) have the second-best record in the East, while the Pistons lead the way with a 30-10 record.
The Celtics and Pistons have faced off three times this season, and each time, the games have gone down to the wire, with the Pistons winning two of three contests. When the two teams first matched up in October, the Pistons came away with a 6-point win. In November, on the eve of Thanksgiving, the Celtics emerged victorious by 3 points. And, in December, the Pistons won by 7. Saturday will mark the fourth and final regular-season match-up between the two teams.
Both teams come into the Monday night matchup with plenty of momentum, having won two in a row; the Celtics have won 7 of their last 10 games, while the Pistons have won 6 of their last 10.
Celtics-Pistons will tip off at 8pm on Saturday at the Little Caesars Arena.
