Brad Stevens broke out the bubble wrap Friday night.
Al Horford and Jayson Tatum officially were rested, and when the Celtics play the bottom-feeding Hawks on Sunday, there will be even more of that rustling plastic sound.
Preservation, after all, is now the key, with Kyrie Irving about to have his second knee surgery in a month Saturday and Marcus Smart, in the words of his coach, not “back for the foreseeable near future.”
Enter Jabari Bird, who became the first Celtic with that surname since 1992 to hit a 3-pointer, and point center Greg Monroe with his second career triple-double (19 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists).