The Boston Celtics found themselves in a dogfight with the Sixers in Game 1 of their first round series, but midway through the fourth quarter began to pull away, opening up a 10-point advantage with just over three minutes to play.
Right as they were looking to put the hopeful finishing touches on a win, they saw Gordon Hayward leave the game with a sprained ankle. Hayward landed on Daniel Theis’ foot as he was coming down after going for a rebound under the Sixers basket and rolled his ankle pretty badly. He would limp off the floor and was quickly ruled out for the remainder of the game with what is initially determined to be a sprained right ankle.
Here’s the Hayward injury — right ankle twists pretty hard while fighting for a rebound with Embiid. pic.twitter.com/YgnN3m9nTj
— Chris Grenham (@chrisgrenham) August 18, 2020
#NEBHInjuryReport Gordon Hayward (right ankle sprain) will not return.
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) August 18, 2020
For those who, like many, immediately thought back to his gruesome ankle injury that sidelined him for more than a year, that was a left ankle injury so this is not the same one. What remains to be seen is how long he’ll miss with the injury, as the Bubble playoffs mean games are contested every other day, making it tougher to get players who suffer injuries extended rest without missing a significant number of games. Hayward had 12 points, four rebounds, and three assists in Game 1, and for a Boston team whose greatest strength is their wing depth, they’ll hope he can get back relatively soon.