The Boston Celtics have a Martin Luther King Jr. Day showdown Monday night against the Los Angeles Lakers, and two of their best offensive players are expected to be back in the lineup.
According to the Celtics’ Twitter account, Jaylen Brown and Kemba Walker are expected to play against the Lakers. Brown has missed the Celtics’ past two games with a right thumb sprain.
He suffered during the injury during the Celtics’ loss last Wednesday to the Detroit Pistons, per NESN’s Lauren Campbell. Walker has had some left knee soreness, and he missed the Celtics’ game Saturday against the Phoenix Suns, per ESPN’s Tim Bontemps.
The Lakers and Celtics will tip off in Boston at 7:30 p.m. EST, and the game will be nationally televised on TNT.
If Brown and Walker play, the Celtics will have two of their top three scorers back on the floor.
Brown, who is having a breakout year, is averaging a career-high 20.0 points per game and shooting a career-high 49.2% from the field. Brown is more involved in the Celtics’ offense this season, boasting a career-high 24.1% usage percentage.
A three-time All-Star, Walker has continued to show why he’s one of the league’s top guards. The past four seasons, he’s averaged at least 20 points a game, and this season isn’t any different. Walker is the Celtics’ leading scorer, averaging 22.1 points per game and shooting 44.2% from the field. A solid distributor, Walker also leads the Celtics in assists per game (4.9).
