Kyrie Irving will reportedly miss the playoffs after undergoing knee surgery in brutal blow to the Celtics
- Kyrie Irving will reportedly miss the rest of the season, including the playoffs, after undergoing knee surgery.
- Irving has been out since mid-March, dealing with knee pain, and underwent surgery in late March to repair it.
- The news is a blow to the Celtics playoff hopes as they'll be without their leading scorer.
Kyrie Irving will miss the rest of the season, including the playoffs, after undergoing knee surgery, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The report is a brutal blow to the Boston Celtics' postseason hopes. Irving is the leading scorer on a team who lost All-Star forward Gordon Hayward for the year in the opening quarter of the season.
Irving has been out since since mid-March, initially sitting to deal with knee pain. On March 24, the Celtics announced he would undergo a "minimally invasive" surgery to repair damage in his knee.
The initial timeline was 3-6 weeks, with Celtics coach Brad Stevens recently hinting that Irving may not be back in time for the first round of the playoffs.
The Celtics have gone 7-3 since Irving sat out but have struggled to generate points. They've relied on a core of young players and role players to generate open looks and defend. In the postseason, the lack of scoring punch without Irving may be too much to overcome.
Many felt the Celtics' title hopes were erased when Hayward went down, but the team rallied to a strong start, winning 16 of their first 18 games, and holding steady since. But without their top two players, the Celtics likely have little chance of overcoming contenders like the Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors in the playoffs.