Three Things to Know: Celtic loss of Williams hurts more than one to Raptors

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Boston was not going to sweat losing to Toronto Monday — you could tell because Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Al Horford all stayed home on the second night of a back-to-back (all three are expected to play in a showdown with the Heat Wednesday) — but the Celtics reserves played well and made the Raptors sweat out an overtime win.

However, it’s not the loss to Toronto that has Boston faithful sweating heading into the playoffs — defensive anchor center Robert Williams has a torn meniscus and likely will undergo surgery.

Ime Udoka says the team will "evaluate surgical options" for Robert Williams over the next couple of days pic.twitter.com/L6fsvOIiB7

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) March 28, 2022

The Celtics will not put a timeline on his return — it depends on the tear and what is done in surgery — but usually, the early timeline is still about 4-6 weeks. Williams is certainly out for the remainder of the regular season. The questions are, when can he come back in the playoffs, and can the Celtics can stay alive long enough for Williams to return and make an impact?

Williams has been an All-Defensive Team level player this season and the Celtics will have a hard time replacing what he brings in the paint.

Put in numbers, the Celtics preferred starting five — Marcus Smart, Tatum, Brown, Al Horford, and Williams — has a defensive rating of 94.8, giving up less than a point per possession this season (stats via Cleaning the Glass, which filters out garbage time). Remove Williams