Stevens: No Decision On Celtics' Starting 5 Vs. Detroit
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Celtics will host the Detroit Pistons Wednesday night, looking to win their second straight.
The Celtics beat the Brooklyn Nets on Monday with a new starting five, which included Kelly Olynyk in place of the struggling Jared Sullinger. The team and both players responded well to the move, with the Celtics scoring 37 points in the first quarter. Olynyk finished the game with nine points in 34 minutes, while Sullinger was a key contributor off the bench with 12 points and 10 rebounds in 18 minutes on the floor.
Stevens told 98.5 The Sports Hub's Zolak & Bertrand that he hasn't made a decision on Wednesday night's starting five, but it sounds like the coach is leaning towards going with the lineup that snapped Boston's two-game slide.
"I'll go through shootaround and see, but I did like the way we played the other night," said Stevens. "Then again, Sully was part of the reason we played well the other night. When he came off the bench at the six-minute mark in the first quarter he made a lot of big plays and helped us extend the lead. He ran the floor in the second half and made a lot of good plays; to have a double-double in just less than 20 minutes is pretty impressive."
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Marcus Smart also had a big impact on Monday night's win, his fourth game back from a knee injury that sidelined him for 18 games. Stevens said the guard is very close to being his old self, which is great news for the Celtics defense.
"It's good to have him back. He's pretty close to be fully back too," Stevens said of Smart. "To come off the bench for us and do a really good job; he made some plays late in the game the other night to help secure the win [in Brooklyn]. He gave us chance to win the game before stealing some inbounds. He's such an intangible player and as he continues to improve he'll have more of an impact on the game."
Unfortunately Stevens and the C's will be without guard Avery Bradley, who is expected to miss the next two games with a hip pointer.
Stevens also discussed the steady growth his players have shown since the start of the season, their success on the second night of back-to-backs, and the hurdles in the way of a potential of an outdoor game in Boston:
