The news on Danilo Gallinari's knee injury suffered over the weekend has been better than initially feared. However, it appears the new Celtics forward will still miss some regular-season games.
Italian-based site Sportando reported on Monday that Gallinari is expected to miss "at least two months" after suffering a torn meniscus while playing in a FIBA World Cup qualifier for the Italian national team on Saturday.
That timeline would have Gallinari out through the end of October and possibly returning at some point in November. The Celtics open the regular season on Oct. 18 against Philadelphia.
While that's not ideal for a 34-year-old joining a new team, it's still a lot better than it could have been. There were early fears that Gallinari may have torn his ACL, which could have ended his entire season. However, the Italian national team said in a statement over the weekend that Gallinari did not damage his ACL or any other ligaments.
The Celtics are no strangers to torn meniscuses. Starting center Robert Williams suffered one in March and actually managed to return during the first round of the playoffs less than a month later, although he clearly wasn't even close to full-strength until late in the postseason.
Given that Gallinari's injury came during the summer and not just before the playoffs, they can afford to give him all the time he needs to make a full recovery and not rush anything.