76ers vs. Celtics: How Severe is Gordon Hayward's Injury?

During Monday night's Game 1 matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Celtics star forward Gordon Hayward left the game with a suspected ankle injury. Not too long after coming out of the game to get himself checked out, the Celtics decided to rule Hayward out for the rest of the night for what they considered to be an ankle sprain.

After spending 35 minutes on the court, Hayward finished the game shooting 5-13 from the field, totaling for 12 points. Following the Celtics' victory over the Sixers, Boston's starting forward was spotted on crutches leaving the arena, heading out to go and get an MRI on his injured ankle.

After further evaluation, it turns out that Hayward is dealing with a Grade 3 ankle sprain, according to Shams Charania of The Atheltic. Shortly after the initial report, the Boston Celtics confirmed Hayward's injury and revealed he is expected to be out for "approximately four weeks." With that news, it is confirmed that Hayward will miss the remainder of the playoff series against the Sixers.

#NEBHInjuryReport Celtics forward @gordonhayward suffered a Grade III sprain of his right ankle during the fourth quarter of last night’s game against Philadelphia. He is expected to miss approximately four weeks.

Further updates will be provided as appropriate.
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) August 18, 2020

Now, the playing field is evened a bit for the Sixers versus Celtics series. Heading into Monday's game, the 76ers were missing their starting forward Ben Simmons, who suffered a knee injury a couple of weeks back.

While the loss of Hayward does slightly change things -- having him off the court doesn't make life much easier for Philadelphia. Heading into Game 2, the Sixers still have a major focus on stopping Boston's top three scorers in Kemba Walker, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown. Also, the Sixers have to minimize mistakes and turnovers too if they want a chance to even out the series on Wednesday.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_