Jae Crowder played fewer minutes than usual during his return to the Boston Celtics lineup on Saturday night at Detroit.
Listening to him, that’s probably not going to change tonight at Minnesota or anytime soon, for that matter.
The 6-foot-6 forward missed eight games because of a left ankle injury that, according to Crowder, probably won’t be fully healed for another two months.
“If (the pain) doesn’t slow down or decrease I’ll sit out a few games,” Crowder told reporters on Monday.
For now he plans to play as much as he can, well aware that he’s physically unable to play at the level he’s accustomed to.
“I could sit out two months and feel nothing but I don’t think that’s the right thing to do at this point,” Crowder told reporters on Monday. “Just try to get it to the point where I don’t feel nothing in my ankle; I still feel (some) discomfort.”
In Boston’s 94-92 win at Detroit on Saturday, Crowder played 27 minutes which was slightly more than what he was supposed to have played minutes-wise.
Boston Celtics
He scored nine points on 3-for-9 shooting.
Among his misses was a last-second 3-pointer that ultimately wound up in the hands of Al Horford for what turned out to be the game-winning points for Boston. That shot was indicative of the kind of night Crowder had, a player who was clearly not himself physically.
On Monday, Crowder acknowledged that the ankle was giving him some problems.
“It definitely got fatigued,” he said. “I was close to telling the staff that I couldn’t go anymore; it definitely got fatigued. I just want to see with the treatments and rehab, can I play through it more.”
And while the plan now is for him to start tonight’s game against the Timberwolves, there’s no sense as to whether the ankle will hold up and allow him to finish.
“Tonight will be a good test,” he said. “I’m gauging this game to see where I’m at physically.”
Crowder has appeared in five games this season, averaging 12.6 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists. He's also shooting career highs from the field (51.1 percent) and 3-point range (43.5 percent).