NBA teams
Chris Forsberg, ESPN Staff Writer 6y

Celtics' Terry Rozier says mindset is on winning despite injury-depleted roster

NBA, Boston Celtics

WALTHAM, Mass. -- Boston Celtics players admit they have found motivation in those who suggest their injury-ravaged roster is not long for the postseason, but they swear the increased chatter is no different from what they've heard for most of the 2017-18 season.

SinceĀ  All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving underwent a second knee surgery and was ruled out for the remainder of the season last week, Celtics players have been bombarded with questions about overcoming adversity in the playoffs. And Boston's young roster is tired of the focus being on those who are not available instead of those who helped Boston win 55 games this season.

"There's been a chip on [Boston's] shoulder since [Gordon] Hayward went down," said Celtics third-year guard Terry Rozier, who has been elevated to the role of starting point guard with both Irving and Marcus Smart (thumb) sidelined by injury.

The Celtics enter the postseason missing four players from their 15-man roster in Irving, Smart, Hayward, and rookie Daniel Theis, who tore his meniscus in March.

"It sucks to see your brothers go down -- Smart, Theis, Kyrie, Hayward -- but, like I said, it's not over. It's not going to be an easy road for our opponents. They still have to go through us. We're ready," Rozier said.

Celtics players missed a total of 216 games this season because of injuries, including 81 for Hayward, who fractured his ankle just minutes into Boston's opening night matchup with the Cavaliers.

"I think the way I look at it is, whether we were 100 percent with all our players or not, we're coming in really focused in what we need to do and really just focused on Game 1," said All-Star big man Al Horford, one of the veteran voices on the roster. "I really want the guys to understand you're not going to win the series in the first game, you're not going to lose it. It's just being able to stay in the moment and just enjoy this. ... Our expectations are we're going to take it game to game and we're going to compete as hard as we can and that's that."

Celtics coach Brad Stevens has implored his young team to focus on preparation but also seems invigorated by the approaching playoffs, especially after Boston had the No. 2 seed locked up entering the final week of the regular season.

"I love playing games with everything on the line. I think that's a blast," Stevens said. "I loved it in college, love it here. It's a great opportunity. I love to see different guys step up. I love to see narratives busted. There's a lot that I really love about the postseason."

Stevens coached a Cinderella to a the NCAA men's basketball title game in 2010 during his time at Butler University (then got back there again a year later), and the Celtics overcame injuries last season to make the Eastern Conference finals.

Stevens' players seem eager to prove their doubters wrong.

"You heard a lot of people doubting us from [the Hayward injury]," Rozier said. "We went on the 16-game winning streak and everybody hopped back on the bandwagon. That's just how it goes. We understand that, but we have to come out with a chip [in the playoffs]. We have to be the harder-playing team. Coach always says you don't want anybody to be more prepared than us. We want to be the most prepared team. We know it's work. We're ready for it."

Added Rozier: "At the end of the day, we're trying to come out on top. We're not worried about what nobody else say, click on the ESPN channel or whatever. We got each other, we still gotta go out there and get in between the lines, and they still have to go through us. Our mindset is win."

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