Celtics forward Jaylen Brown completed a light workout on Wednesday morning as he works his way back from a hamstring strain, and he is optimistic that he will be able to return soon.
Brown said he suffered the injury when he drove to the basket late in the third quarter of the win over the Heat last Thursday. He felt a slight pull and knew something was off, and an MRI revealed a Grade 1 tear, the mildest classification.
Brown suffered a similar hamstring injury before the 2020-21 season shut down because of COVID-19, but he said this one is less severe.
“Maybe I would come back earlier than I was supposed to, especially earlier in my career, but I think that every time I’ve had a hamstring injury, I’ve had to sit down for at least five or six days and then come back, depending on the severity of it,” Brown said. “But this one, being a recurring injury, I want to make sure that I take the proper precautions to make sure that, one, I have my hamstring for the next 10-15 years, and two, that this is not an issue going forward so that I have to be away from the team.”
Brown said he’ll feel confident about returning when his burst has returned without any pain, and when he does not experience significant soreness the day after a workout. He sat out for the second game in a row when the Celtics faced the Raptors at TD Garden on Wednesday night.
“Does it swell up? Does it get aggravated?” Brown said. “You know, all those types of little things … I’m without pain at this point. Still got some tightness but no pain.”
Brown, who was named an All-Star last season for the first time, is averaging 25.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game this season.
Dennis Schröder on Wednesday started in place of Brown for the second game in a row and finished with 20 points. Coach Ime Udoka said the Celtics typically stagger Brown and Jayson Tatum a bit to ensure that one is on the court at all times. With Brown out, the Celtics are looking for playmaking elsewhere.
“So, play calling is a little bit different there when you have certain lineups in, but still we’re relying on our guys to make plays and take the open shot when it’s there,” Udoka said. “I think we’ve done that all year. So it doesn’t change a ton. It’s just some of the play calls we would give Jaylen, we’re spreading out to other guys.”
Players must adjust
The NBA’s officials this season are no longer awarding fouls for “abnormal moves” from players seeking to draw contact. That’s created some frustration and confusion among players, but Udoka said they simply must adjust.
“Certain guys have taken advantage of the rules over the years, with lack of contact allowed for defensive players,” Udoka said. “But for who we want to be as a defensive-minded team, it should work in our favor. We don’t have a lot of guys trying to sell or trick the game anyway.
“Offensively, it’s not a big difference for our guys. Especially, we’re encouraging Jayson to get downhill more, and maybe in the past he would have got more calls, but he has to play and adjust. And I think defensively it’s helped clean up the game, allow guys to be more aggressive.”
Langford returns
Forward Romeo Langford returned after missing Saturday’s game against the Mavericks because of a non-COVID illness and had 6 points in 19 minutes.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.