PHILADELPHIA — The Celtics have only one player on their injury report coming out of the All-Star break as they’re virtually at full strength. Xavier Tillman is listed as out with left knee inflammation for the 7 p.m. Thursday game against the 76ers.
Otherwise, the C’s have everyone else available in the rotation. Tillman has been buried on the depth chart as a reserve big. He was also a late downgrade to out for the Spurs win back on Feb. 12, the last game before the break. So it appears the knee issue has lingered even with the week off.
The Celtics finished strong heading into the All-Star break, bringing in a 39-16 record into the unofficial second half of the season. They won seven of their final eight games after wading through some inconsistencies for a couple months.
The Sixers are staring at a lost season amid multiple injuries bogging them down this year. They’re 20-34 and in 11th place in the East. They’re also 1.5 games back of the 10th-place Bulls for the final play-in spot, meaning they still have work to do to even qualify for the play-in tournament.
Philadelphia did sign former Celtics guard Lonnie Walker IV to the standard roster, agreeing to a two-year contract. So it appears they’re looking ahead to the future amid a disappointing season.
