ORLANDO, Fla. -- Dairis Bertans, a guard for the Boston Celtics summer league team, was hospitalized Wednesday after going headfirst into the padded stanchion beneath the basket while attempting a layup late in the third quarter of a game against the Detroit Pistons.
Bertans was stretchered off the court and underwent a CT scan, which came back negative for any fractures, according to the team. He'll be discharged from the hospital tonight, but his game status for Thursday is undetermined. It would seem unlikely Bertans would play again in Orlando.
Bertans appeared to go face-first into the stanchion after being fouled while trying to convert a fastbreak layup with 2:24 remaining in the third quarter. He was immobilized on a backboard and taken from the court on a stretcher. Bertans gave a double thumbs up as he was wheeled off to applause from the teams and league talent evaluators on hand.
"It’s really scary," said coach Jay Larranaga. "He’s such a nice kid. It wouldn’t matter who the player was, you care about them. You just hope the best for him."
Bertans, a native of Latvia, plays for overseas squad Bilbao Basket. He was averaging 6.5 points, 2 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game through two appearances for the Celtics summer league squad.
“It looked bad," said Celtics rookie guard Marcus Smart. "Especially from my angle, I knew it was bad. He tried to catch himself, but it was a little too late for him. They said he’s going to be all right, though. He had a little neck pain, we just didn’t want to take a risk with those. He’s going to be all right, and we’re just going to pray for him."
