BOSTON - In the immediate aftermath of Gordon Hayward's freak ankle injury, the Boston Celtics were rattled and uncertain how to respond. As pundits raced to adjust Boston's season expectations, Celtics players themselves couldn't help but hear the noise and wonder whether their own goals had to be tempered.
Maybe not surprisingly, the calming voice in the room came from head coach Brad Stevens, who told his team to simply focus on the next possession and everything would take care of itself from there.
On Monday night, the Celtics won their NBA-best fifth straight game while taking down a San Antonio Spurs team that Boston hadn't beaten since March 2011.