BOSTON (AP) — The band is back together in Boston.
Or, at least, it’s healthy again.
Hopes were high for the Celtics going into last season thanks to a revamped roster that included All-Star additions Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward.
Everything changed five minutes into the season with Hayward’s gruesome leg injury. Expectations changed again late in the season when Irving was also lost for the year following a pair of knee surgeries.
Without them, Boston finished the regular season with 55 wins and made the Eastern Conference finals. A Game 7 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers ended a playoff run that saw veteran leadership from Al Horford, the emergence of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown as budding stars and growth from Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart.