Though hardly surprising, the Boston Celtics have officially ruled out one of their most important players for their first postseason game.
Starting center Robert Williams III, who hasn't played since tearing his meniscus on March 27, won't face the Brooklyn Nets for at least the first game of Boston's Eastern Conference quarterfinal series, which begins on Sunday.
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Daniel Theis, who has started each of the Celtics' last five games in place of Time Lord, will likely slot in at center.
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But all hope is not lost when it comes to a return to the court for Williams at some point during the Brooklyn series. Though head coach Ime Udoka said earlier this week that he doesn't expect to have the Time Lord in the lineup, the team hasn't ruled him out for the duration of the first round, either. With the initial prognosis for his return being four to six weeks, Game 5 of the Boston-Brooklyn series is scheduled for exactly four weeks since his initial injury.
Williams, 24, had been enjoying a breakout fourth season in the NBA. In 61 games -- all starts -- the Time Lord was averaging a career-high 10 points and 9.6 rebounds per game, along with a league-leading 102.4 defensive rating and 2.2 blocks per game, second in the league.