The Boston Celtics are just over 48 hours away from hosting the New York Knicks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
All-Star forward Jaylen Brown talked with reporters on Saturday and provided Celtics fans with a crucial update on his right knee injury.
“Jaylen Brown said he’s trending in the right direction with his knee injury: ‘Structurally, everything is fine,'” CLNS Media’s Bobby Manning posted on Bluesky.
It was reported in mid-April that the 28-year-old had received pain management injections in his right knee in an effort to “promote healing” before the playoffs. Brown missed the final three games of the regular season but returned for the beginning of the playoffs.
He ended up playing all five games during Boston’s first-round series victory against the Orlando Magic. Brown finished second on the team behind fellow All-Star Jayson Tatum in points (23.0) and rebounds (7.6) per contest, while posting 12 assists and six steals across 35.8 minutes per tilt with a .494/.444/.844 shooting line as well.
His biggest effort came in the Celtics’ Game 2 home win (when Tatum was sidelined with a wrist ailment), as he registered a 36-point, 10-rebound double-double.
“Brown confirming no structural damage in his knee today is a massive deal. Hadn’t been much clarity on what his injury actually was,” Manning wrote.
Jrue Holiday Returns to Full Practice
Another piece of good injury news for Boston on Saturday came with veteran guard Jrue Holiday returning to a full practice.
The NBA Sportsmanship Award winner missed the final three games of the first-round series against Orlando due to a right hamstring strain.
“(Holiday) was able to do everything that we worked on,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said, per Zack Cox of the Boston Herald.
Holiday is in his 16th NBA campaign and second with Boston. His 11.1 points per game and 3.9 assists per contest during the regular season were his lowest since his rookie year and the 4.3 rebounds per tilt were the fewest in eight years as well.
Holiday’s .443 field goal percentage was his worst since 2016 and his .353 three-point field goal percentage was his lowest since 2019, though he was still reliable from the free throw line, shooting at a career-high 90.9% clip.
The UCLA product started in all 62 of his regular season appearances and in both of the team’s first two playoff games against the Magic before suffering the hamstring injury. Saturday’s news bodes well for his availability for Game 1 on Monday against the Knicks, however.
Celtics-Knicks Eastern Conference Semifinals Schedule Released
As the No. 2 seed, Boston will have homecourt advantage vs. No. 3 New York.
With the Knicks finishing off the Detroit Pistons in their first-round playoff series on Thursday night, the schedule has now been updated for the former’s best-of-seven set against the defending champions.
– Game 1: 7 p.m. ET, Monday at TD Garden
– Game 2: 7 p.m. ET, Wednesday at TD Garden
– Game 3: TBD, 05/10 at Madison Square Garden
– Game 4: TBD, 05/12 at Madison Square Garden
– Game 5 (if necessary): TBD, 05/14 at TD Garden
– Game 6 (if necessary): TBD, 05/16 at Madison Square Garden
– Game 7 (if necessary): 8 p.m. ET, 05/19 at TD Garden
The Celtics and Knicks haven’t met in the playoffs since 2013, when Boston (led by Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo) fell to its rivals in six games in the first round of the tournament. The teams played four times during the 2024-25 regular season, with Boston sweeping the set.
