Boston’s frontcourt depth being put to the test early on this season

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Forsberg: Boston’s frontcourt takes another hit with Grant’s suspension originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics’ inability to harness their frustrations during Monday night’s unraveling in Chicago will now leave them shorthanded for Friday’s visit from the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The NBA suspended Grant Williams for one game for “recklessly making contact with and directing inappropriate language toward a game official.” A frustrated Williams made contact with a referee and ejected Monday, then lingered on the court to voice his objections.

Williams’ absence leaves the already thin-on-size Celtics in a tough spot with the Cavaliers coming to town. The Celtics are still trying to sort out their defense without starting center Robert Williams III available to start the season and now will have to lean even harder on a collection of depth pieces behind Al Horford.

The Cavaliers already have the daunting frontline of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, while bringing Kevin Love and Robin Lopez off the bench. The Celtics have asked training camp invite Noah Vonleh to fill heavy minutes early in the season, while Luke Kornet has played only sparingly while working his way back from a preseason ankle injury. Williams’ absence adds a layer of complication for a Celtics team that has asked him to defend centers in small-ball lineups.

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The suspension also hammers home a concern with the Celtics, who too often struggle to move on from minor frustrations and can be easily sidetracked by blips of adversity.

The lingering question, beyond Friday’s game, is whether these Celtics can subsist on their current depth at the center position with Williams III unlikely to resume basketball activities until December.

The Celtics didn’t appear enthralled with what’s been available on the free-agent scrapheap before signing veteran Blake Griffin before the start of the season. Team brass have desired to navigate the early part of the year with what they have in house in hopes that the marketplace for impact additions might improve when teams start selling off pieces further down the road (particularly those most eager to tank for a chance at Victor Wembanyama).

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The center market could be far more robust, for instance, if a player like Jakob Poeltl, in the final year of a reasonable-money deal, could be available if the Spurs prioritize lottery position. The Celtics could seemingly use an additional veteran big man, even when Williams III is healthy again, if only to limit the wear and tear on both Time Lord and 36-year-old Al Horford.

Maybe Vonleh or Kornet emerges as a reliable option. But a more immediate path to adding talent is complicated. The Celtics are at the 15-man roster limit after carrying both Vonleh and Justin Jackson out of camp. Those two, plus Kornet, are all on non-uaranteed deals, giving the team a pathway to tweaking the roster before those contracts go guaranteed in January, but any veteran player signed to a guaranteed deal — like Griffin last month — cannot be waived for the duration of the season to diminish the luxury tax impact.

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The Celtics, essentially, have limited swings of the bat here. Their means of adding big-man talent are further hampered by a lack of easily tradable contracts.

That means Boston has to maximize what it’s got now. And Williams’ absence on Friday only adds another complication to a team eager to put Monday’s unraveling behind them.

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