BOSTON – With the regular season a week from today, Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens isn’t taking any chances with the health of his starters.
That’s among the chief reasons Stevens decided to sit all but one starter (Amir Johnson) for tonight’s game against the New York Knicks.
Stevens said his first unit tonight will consist of Terry Rozier, Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Jonas Jerebko and Johnson
“We’re going to play some of the younger guys extended minutes,” Stevens said. “We’re going to bet a lot of those guys to help us.”
Stevens said the team’s other starters will be in uniform but are unlikely to play.
The New York Knicks were going with less star power on Wednesday as well. Head coach Jeff Hornacek announced prior to the game that All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony (rest) was not playing.
Stevens said he decided to play Johnson because he had played him limited minutes the last couple games, but added that Johnson wouldn’t play much beyond the first quarter.