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Celtics center Nikola Vucevic undergoes surgery on broken finger, will miss at least 3 weeks
The Celtics' front-court depth took a hit Friday night.
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The Celtics will be without one of their top big men for at least the next few weeks.
Center Nikola Vucevic underwent successful surgery on his right ring finger at New England Baptist Hospital, the team announced Saturday. Vucevic will be reevaluated in three to four weeks, the team added.
Vucevic suffered the injury in the first quarter of the Celtics’ win over the Mavericks on Friday night. He grabbed at his hand after catching the ball on a post-up against Mavericks’ center Moussa Cisse. He was able to run back on defense, but left the game after the Mavericks scored on the other end.
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Vucevic played just two minutes before the injury. He finished with no points or rebounds.
The injury is certainly a blow to the Celtics’ front-court depth, and it also happened when they were seemingly fully healthy for the first time all season. Jayson Tatum returned to action on Friday in his first game back after suffering an Achilles tear last May.
Neemias Queta has been productive, averaging 9.9 points and 8.2 rebounds, but he only averages 24.8 points per game. Luka Garza has been the Celtics’ top reserve option at center. Beyond those two, the depth down low gets real thin without Vucevic. Rookie Amari Williams appeared in 16 games with a pair of starts, averaging 7.2 minutes per contest.
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Vucevic has averaged 11.4 points and 8.8 rebounds for the Celtics since being acquired at the trade deadline. He’s shooting 49.6 percent from the field and 37.3 percent from beyond the arc.
The Celtics have an important week ahead of them, taking on three title contenders in their upcoming road trip. They face the Cavaliers in Cleveland on Sunday before traveling to San Antonio to take on the Spurs on Tuesday. They close out the road trip with a matchup against the Thunder on Thursday.
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