Boston Celtics - Fantasy News

Kyrie Irving - Expected at full strength by August

6/20/18

NBA

Boston Celtics

Kyrie Irving

The Celtics initially handed Irving a 4-to-5-month recovery timeline after he underwent a second surgery in April to remove two screws in his left knee. Stevens' comments suggest that Irving is on track to beat the projected timetable or hit the low end of it, at the very least. Prior to being shut down following the procedure, Irving noticed only a slight decline in his overall numbers during his first season in Boston compared to his final campaign with Cleveland in 2016-17. The point guard still averaged 24.4 points, 5.1 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 2.8 three-pointers in 32.2 minutes per game over 60 contests, but he could notice another dip in his producion during the upcoming campaign. In addition to his sketchy track record on the health front, Irving could cede some of the scoring burden to Gordon Hayward (ankle), who was limited to one game in his first season with Boston, and perhaps another star player. The Celtics have a deep trove of high draft picks and young assets through which to engineer a deal for one of the top talents on the open market this summer.