Devin Carter is the only Celtic listed out for tonight's opener at Detroit, with a return date of November 8. Everyone who rested in Philadelphia on October 16 was cleared the next day, so the first regular-season look at the roster around Jayson Tatum and Paul George comes against the team that won 60 games last season.
Carter is the only absence, and the date attached to him is November 8.
Carter went from questionable to out on October 18, listed with an illness, one day after his contract was converted to a two-way deal. CelticsBlog's Nate Moskowitz reported the diagnosis is mono; MassLive's Souichi Terada noted the two-way guard is the lone name on the report for Detroit. The nine regulars who sat at Philadelphia on October 16 were all cleared on October 17, the same day Boston waived four players to close camp. That leaves 17 names on the roster, and no one else on the list.
Detroit arrives with the better record and the faster clock.
The Pistons went 60-22 last season to Boston's 56-26, and they played at a pace of 99.9 against Boston's 95.6. Cade Cunningham averaged 23.9 points and 9.9 assists; Jalen Duren added 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds. Both teams come in on three days of rest. Taurean Prince, listed for personal reasons, is Detroit's one question. J.B. Bickerstaff's team is at home, and the game is on NBC and Peacock.
Last season's best five cannot take the floor again.
The unit of Brown, White, Queta, Pritchard and Hauser posted a +17.9 mark across 35 games and 200 minutes last season, with an offense at 122.6 and a defense at 104.7. Brown is now in Philadelphia. George, 36, played 37 games last season at 17.3 points and 39.2 percent from three, and Celtics.com describes him embracing the free-flowing offense. Thirty-seven games says nothing about eighty-two. That is the open question, not the fit.
The Knicks follow Friday, and the bill is already above the tax.
After Detroit, Boston hosts the Knicks on October 23 on Prime Video, then the Bulls on October 26 and the Nets on October 27. The payroll is $203.9 million, above the $200.4 million luxury tax line, with Tatum at $58.5 million and George at $54.1 million. Pritchard's extension, agreed October 13, still has no reported terms.
Who is out for the Celtics against the Pistons?
Devin Carter is out with an illness and listed with a November 8 return date. No other Celtic is on the injury report.
When is the Celtics' next game after the opener?
Boston hosts the Knicks on October 23 on Prime Video, followed by the Bulls on October 26 and the Nets on October 27.
