Boston Celtics veteran forward Gordon Hayward is pushing for a Game 3 return to action, according to The Athletic’s Jared Weiss.
Hayward, who has been out four and a half weeks with a Grade III ankle sprain, has been greatly missed in the series against the Miami Heat, who play a brand of zone defense the Butler product has a skillset especially suited to beating.
His three-level game (especially the midrange) and passing abilities — to say nothing of depth — would be a massive addition to the team’s efforts to advance to the NBA Finals in the Disney bubble restart.
Gordon Hayward is progressing toward returning for Game 3 of Celtics-Heat after feeling good in Wednesday’s post-practice workout, a source with knowledge of the situation told @TheAthleticNBA. He expects to get more on-court work Friday with the hope of playing Saturday.
— Jared Weiss (@JaredWeissNBA) September 18, 2020
The Indiana native had previously been elevated from “Out” to “Doubtful” ahead of Game 2, but was not expected by most to actually suit up for the contest, which he did not.
After a positive workout after practice on Wednesday, Hayward hopes to play Saturday, reports Weiss. The plan for now is to get in more work on Friday with the intent on getting back on the court for Game 3.
