Don’t miss NBC Sports Boston's coverage of Celtics-Mavericks, which tips off Monday at 7:00 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live, and then Mike & Tommy have the call of the game at 7:30 p.m. You can also stream the game through the MyTeams App.
***
The Boston Celtics earned their seventh straight victory on Saturday night vs. the San Antonio Spurs to improve to 7-1 on the year. Unfortunately, Gordon Hayward's injury overshadowed the win.
Hayward suffered a left-hand fracture in the second quarter after colliding with Spurs big man LaMarcus Aldridge. After what was such an encouraging start to the season for Hayward, this is devastating news for the C's if he's to miss significant time.
Here are three instant overreactions from the bittersweet win:
1. Gordon Hayward's injury is a major setback for the surging Celtics.
Verdict: Not an overreaction
Again, this one hurts both literally and figuratively. Hayward was on a roll to begin the year and looked as good -- if not better -- than he was prior to the catastrophic ankle injury he suffered in 2017.
So who will step up in his absence? Kemba Walker, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown obviously will have more on their shoulders, but Marcus Smart will be the one filling in for Hayward while he's out.
Boston Celtics
Find the latest Boston Celtics news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Boston.
There's also a chance we'll see more of Javonte Green, who's been impressive in his last couple of games off the bench.
We'll just have to see how much time Hayward's forced to miss, then go from there. He'll see a specialist on Monday to determine whether surgery is needed.
2. Robert Williams is the real deal.
Verdict: Overreaction
The Timelord had his best game as a pro on Saturday, tallying 11 points to go with six rebounds and six blocks off the bench. It was a sensational performance that definitely should excite C's fans.
Williams needs to get a shot at starting a few games before we declare him the next big thing. He deserves the opportunity, and I have no doubts he'd take advantage of it. It'd just be encouraging to see performances like these on a consistent basis from the Celtics' 2018 first-rounder. Once that happens, this one will change to "not an overreaction" real quick.
3. Jaylen Brown is taking it to another level this season.
Verdict: Not an overreaction
Brown hasn't missed a beat since returning from the illness that kept him out of commission for three games. He said after Thursday's win he "can't wait for people to see how much better he's gotten," and it looks like he wasn't kidding.
The 23-year-old dropped 20 points in the first half of Saturday night's win and finished with 30. With each game, he's shown improvement on both ends of the floor. It's only going to continue.
Click here to download the new MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Celtics easily on your device.