BOSTON — Boston Celtics forward Gordon Hayward engaged in post-practice shooting Sunday without protective covering on the left hand he broke two weeks ago in San Antonio.
Hayward shot 3-pointers with teammate Semi Ojeleye after Boston’s afternoon workout then stayed on the court for more shooting with assistant coaches. Hayward was expected to miss six weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a fracture in a non-shooting hand.
“He’s great. Feeling well. He’s got some swelling where the incision was but that’s to be expected,” said Celtics coach Brad Stevens. "He’s doing a really good job. It seems like he’s on pace.”
Stevens said that he hadn’t asked the training staff if Hayward’s timeline has changed at all during his rehab. Stevens noted that Hayward had spent time last week working on form shooting with only his right hand but Hayward was using that left hand to guide on Sunday.
"They taped his fingers together just to be triple safe but that’s just under the advice of the doctor,” said Stevens.
The Celtics won their first three games without Hayward but have lost three of their last four, Hayward’s absence particularly noticeable as the Celtics have been sluggish out of the gates recently.
"I think we can play a lot better than we've played,” Stevens said of his team’s slow starts. "Credit to the teams we've played against, that's part of it. They've played hard and have really guarded, but that's what you should expect in the NBA. We just have to be better with our starts. The fourth quarter, we've made some mistakes down the stretch but for the most part, our numbers for the fourth quarter have been outstanding all year. We just have to not dig ourselves those holes.”
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