Barbosa Injury Plagues Celtics Season

Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE

Just when you thought the Boston Celtics’ season couldn’t get any worse, Leandro Barbosa will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL.

During the third quarter of Monday night’s game against the Charlotte Bobcats, Barbosa was driving to the basket against Ramon Sessions and tweaked his left knee. He was eventually helped off the court by his teammates and went into the locker room for evaluation.

Doctors diagnosed the problem as a torn left anterior cruciate ligament.

The loss of Barbosa will continue to infringe upon the Celtics playoff hopes. The 30-year-old guard has had a big impact on Boston since the season-ending injury to Rajon Rondo.

In the seven games since, he has averaged 22.5 minutes per game and has taking over the primary ball-handling responsibilities. The result has led to a five-game winning streak, which was snapped to the loss at Charlotte.

Before the injury to Rondo, Barbosa had only been playing sparingly. He averaged just 5.2 points and 1.4 assists on 12.5 minutes per game, all of which are career lows.

While significant injuries happen from time to time, it’s hard to swallow if it’s just one team that’s absorbing all of the losses. Last week, it was announced that rookie sensation Jared Sullinger will be out for the season with a back injury, the same problem he was red-flagged with during his college days, putting a damper on his career.

It seems the Celtics are not only running out of star power, but abled bodies to put on the floor. It is expected that general manager Danny Ainge will sign one or maybe even two players to add some depth to the depleted roster. The deepest hole is the point guard position, where they hope to fill spots behind starting guard Avery Bradley and Jason Terry. The best option is to sign a one-year deal with a D-league player (such as Jannero Pargo and Jonny Flynn), leaving their options open for next year.

Otherwise, the injury to Barbosa might lead to Ainge making a move before the Feb. 21 trade deadline, considering this team has little shot in the playoffs, if it even makes it there.