It was a bit surprising to see the Celtics with a full injury report when they played the Raptors Monday in Toronto. Jayson Tatum and Jayson Tatum were ruled out with minor injuries, while Al Horford was sitting due to "personal reasons." All three players were active Sunday against the Timberwolves, without any indications they would need to miss time.
Is this an example of load management, or are the Celtics hiding something? Canada now mandates that all unvaccinated visitors spend 14 days in quarantine, making it impossible for unvaccinated athletes to join their teams in Toronto. Previously, Canada exempted professional and amateur athletes from its stringent vaccination and quarantine requirements. When the Celtics visited Toronto in late November, Tatum, Brown and Horford were all in the lineup.
ESPN NBA reporter Tim Bontemps first raised questions about the vaccination status of Celtics players in his post-game story Sunday, which mainly covered Robert Williams' sprained left knee. After mentioning Tatum's and Brown's expected absences Monday, Bontemps wrote the Celtics "declined to comment" when "asked directly" whether everyone on their roster was eligible to play north of the border. That's a significant question, considering the Celtics could face the Raptors in the first round of the playoffs. Boston is the No. 3 seed, and Toronto is sitting at No. 6.
On ESPN Tuesday, Brian Windhorst repeated Bontemps' report. "We've talked for weeks about Kyrie Irving's status if the Nets had played Toronto in the postseason. That also applies to other teams," he said. "Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, Jaylen Brown were on the injury report on Monday night. They were not on the injury report, and they played on Sunday. Jayson Tatum in the past has said he's vaccinated on the record. When asked about whether all of their team would be available under the current rules in Toronto, the Celtics offered a 'no comment.' I don't know if they're going to play in the postseason, we'll see, but just let that be known."
As one of the most plugged-in NBA reporters in the country, it would be uncharacteristic for Windhorst to blindly speculate about whether multiple star players are unvaccinated. But the notion that the Celtics declined comment when asked about the issue contradicts what Ime Udoka said in his postgame press conference Sunday.
In fairness, the Celtics' head coach didn't originally provide a clear answer about the topic. When Udoka was first asked about whether everyone on his roster is eligible to play in Toronto, he deflected. "Al is in a personal situation. We've got some guys who are banged up, including Rob tonight, so he won't be going," Udoka said. "We'll get some other guys looked at now. Our thing is injury prevention going forward in the last eight games. Jaylen, Jayson had the flareups before tonight, second night of a back-to-back. We'll see how they feel after the game, they'll get checked out shortly."
As you may notice, Udoka didn't answer the inquiry at all. He was more direct when asked again about whether all of his players could play in Toronto. "Yeah. I mean, obviously Canada could change their rules, but we're looking at our guys available to play," he said. "All our guys, if healthy, are available to play."
That would seem to settle the issue: Udoka said everybody on the roster is eligible to play. But then why would Bontemps and Windhorst say the Celtics declined to comment on the matter? "Merloni and Fauria" producer Tyler Devitte said Tuesday he texted Bontemps for clarification, but didn't receive a response.
The mystery continues, at least until the playoffs begin.
