Brown’s message didn’t come across as a challenge. It sounded more like encouragement, the words of a caring teammate looking to empower one of his brothers.

The Boston Celtics fired up a matchup against the Toronto Raptors on the road on Tuesday night. It was the first matchup of a back-to-back set, which concludes

Joe Mazzulla’s core rotation consists of nine Celtics players. Nearly half of them were unavailable Tuesday night in Toronto. No Jrue Holiday and Al Horford, who both sat out on the first night of a back-to-back.

While Jayson Tatum might not necessarily get his credit from detractors, NBA head coaches have spoken at length about what he brings to the Celtics.

Up until recently, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla didn't have the depth necessary to deal with the absence of a guard or forward. Whenever Boston has been short-handed in the backcourt or on the wing, Mazzulla has been forced to lean on a double-big rotation.

Jrue Holiday sat a stretch of games before the All-Star break, giving him an extended period to rest his lingering shoulder injury.

Still, the Celtics know Craig won't be able to fill all of the holes on the team if they keep getting hurt. Despite having a lot of their players getting some rest over the All-Star break, they could be missing a lot of players against the Raptors on Tuesday.

Still, behind some clutch shooting from Derrick White and a crafty play call from Joe Mazzulla that enabled Neemias Queta to score a late-game layup, the Celtics prevailed, 111-101, as they continue their February surge.

The Detroit Pistons put their seven-game winning streak on the line when the Boston Celtics visit for their final matchup of the regular season.

Yes, you can. To listen to Wednesday's Celtics game on the radio, tune in to 98.5 FM The Sports Hub at the time of tip-off, as 98.5 is the flagship station of the Boston franchise, according to their website. "Occasionally when scheduling conflicts arise, select games can be heard live on ROCK 92.9," the Sports Hub website said.