The Boston Celtics have steadied themselves ahead of the trade deadline. After a very topsy-turvy January, they have been able to play some much better basketball in the last couple of weeks.
Boston has now won six of their last seven games and finally look like the team pundits thought they would be. This looks like a roster that still has a chance to repeat as NBA champions.
The Celtics didn't make any moves at the trade deadline to improve the roster, either. The only move they made was to trade Jaden Springer to lower their luxury tax bill.
Boston just needs to stay healthy for the rest of the season. They think they have the roster to win the championship again this year, as long as they have good health.
With the All-Star break so close, the Celtics are just trying to keep themselves together. Ahead of their game against the Spurs, star player Jaylen Brown has found himself on the injury report.
Brown is listed as questionable due to right knee swelling.
Knee swelling is not something Celtics fans want to see one of their star players dealing with. That could end up lingering and making Brown less effective when the playoffs get closer.
The good news is that the All-Star break is right around the corner. Brown will get a little bit of rest before he takes the court for the All-Star game, which is a much different format this year.
Boston needs to do whatever it needs to do to keep Brown's knee from getting worse. He is the second-most important player on the roster behind Jayson Tatum.
As long as those two players are healthy, they can win the title. That's what happened last year when Kristaps Porzingis missed most of the playoffs with a knee injury.
Boston has a 2.5-game lead in the Eastern Conference standings over the Knicks for the second spot in the East. As long as they are able to keep that spot, they feel like they can take down Cleveland in the Conference Finals.
Brown is averaging 22.9 points, six rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game this season.
