Celtics at Wizards
With their first-round playoff situation now secure, the Boston Celtics simply hope to have a healthy squad entering the postseason. The Celtics have one final tune-up -- likely without forward Jayson Tatum, guard Marcus Smart and others -- when they visit the Washington Wizards on Tuesday in the regular-season finale for both teams.
Tatum departed Sunday's 116-108 loss to Orlando at home with a left shin contusion and Smart left with an oblique bruise that could be more problematic going forward. "The point of tonight was to try to -- because we won't play [a playoff game] 'til Saturday, maybe Sunday -- was to get a true game for some of our starters and our top seven or eight guys," coach Brad Stevens told the media. "But those guys will play a lot less on Tuesday, if at all." The Wizards finished their road schedule with a 113-110 loss at the NBA-worst New York Knicks on Sunday. They need a victory in the finale to avoid their first 50-loss season since 2012-13.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, TNT, NBCS Boston
ABOUT THE CELTICS (48-33): Boston will open the playoffs at home as the No. 4 seed in the East and taking on fifth-seeded Indiana. It will very likely rest All-Star guard Kyrie Irving, who scored 23 points in Sunday's loss, and center Al Horford, averaging 18.4 points over his last 10 games, on Tuesday. Gordon Hayward may deserve a break as well after playing a team-high 38 minutes against Orlando and finishing with 16 points on 8-of-14 shooting, his seventh straight contest making at least 50 percent of his shots.
ABOUT THE WIZARDS (32-49): Washington has All-Star guard Bradley Beal finishing up his best season in the NBA and figures to also build around center Thomas Bryant and forward Bobby Portis going forward. Bryant had 17 points at New York on Sunday and averages 12.2 points on 57.2 percent from the floor to go along with 7.5 rebounds in 24.5 minutes since the All-Star break. Portis is averaging 14.4 points and shooting 40.5 percent from 3-point range in 27 games since being acquired in a trade with Chicago.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Boston took the first two meetings, including an overtime triumph in the first visit to Washington on Dec. 12.
2. Celtics PF Marcus Morris is shooting 37.8 percent since the All-Star break after making 47.6 percent of his shot attempts prior to the intermission.
3. Wizards PF Jabari Parker (knee) missed the last two games and is day-to-day.