Boston Celtics guard Malcolm Brogdon has been playing through a “partial tear in the tendon coming out of his right elbow that leads into his forearm” during the Eastern Conference Finals, according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic.
Per that report, Brogdon came down with the injury in Game 1 of the matchup with the Miami Heat.
Weiss noted that Brogdon had been battling through “golfer’s elbow soreness” during the second-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers but “exacerbated the injury by tearing the tendon” while boxing out Miami’s Kevin Love as the two jousted for a rebound in Game 1.
The veteran point guard reportedly will continue playing through the injury, however, and is “expected to evaluate whether he will need surgery after the season, according to team sources.”
Brogdon, 30, is averaging just 8.5 points per game in the Eastern Conference Finals, shooting a woeful 35.3 percent from the field and 21.4 percent from three.
Contrast that to a regular season that saw him average 14.9 points per contest and shoot 48.4 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from three.
Adam Kaufman @AdamMKaufman
If Malcolm Brogdon’s hurt – and we already saw his minutes below 20 each of the last two games – would love to see Sam Hauser get an opportunity. Shooting’s proven to be everything this series. The disparity on open/wide open 3-point success is significant. He can help! #Celtics
While his struggles haven’t been the only factor in Miami taking a 3-1 series lead, the Celtics have lost a major source of scoring off the bench with Brogdon struggling to shoot from the perimeter.
He also told reporters ahead of Boston’s Game 4 win that the Heat have a consistent identity and the Celtics have struggled to form one, another major difference in the series.
“Our identity has waned all year long. We’ve been trying to figure out who we are, because I think we’re such a great, talented scoring team, but when we don’t make shots, we got to rely on our defense, and our defense isn’t consistent every night,” he said. “So, playing a team that’s very consistent and disciplined, we struggle.”
Pulling off the first reverse sweep in NBA playoff history already was a daunting task for these Celtics. Doing so without a healthy Brogdon only increases the improbability.
