Ryan Rollins Won't Start Monday as Celtics Travel to Milwaukee with Two Starters Out
The Milwaukee Bucks will not have Ryan Rollins in their starting lineup Monday night, a decision that arrives as the Boston Celtics head into Milwaukee without two starters. The timing — with Boston on the second night of a back-to-back and Milwaukee set to welcome a returning star — sharpens the stakes for both clubs.
Ryan Rollins Won't Start Monday
Milwaukee has designated Ryan Rollins to come off the bench for Monday’s Eastern Conference matchup, a move that coincides with other roster shifts. The Bucks enter the game with a 26-33 record after a road loss to the Chicago Bulls on Sunday in which Bobby Portis led Milwaukee with 18 points and five rebounds and Cam Thomas added 15 points and three rebounds off the bench. Taruean Prince remains ruled out as he continues to recover from neck surgery, removing a veteran option from the rotation and increasing the importance of lineup decisions.
At the same time, Giannis Antetokounmpo is off the Bucks’ injury report and expected to return Monday after missing time with a right calf strain that sidelined him since January 27. The return of Antetokounmpo, coming after more than five weeks out, is likely to shift matchups and usage across Milwaukee’s frontcourt and backcourt. With rollins not starting and Prince unavailable, the Bucks must balance reintegrating Giannis while compensating for lost depth.
Boston Celtics Missing Jaylen Brown and Neemias Queta
Boston arrives in Milwaukee at 40-20, but without starters Jaylen Brown and Neemias Queta. The Celtics’ official injury report lists Jaylen Brown out with a non-COVID illness and Neemias Queta out with rest; Jayson Tatum remains out as he continues work on a right Achilles repair. Brown’s absence will mark his seventh missed game of the season, while Queta has sat out just three of Boston’s first 60 contests this campaign.
Both players had been productive in Boston’s most recent game: Brown led the Celtics in Sunday’s win over the Philadelphia 76ers with 27 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, while Queta posted 27 points, 17 rebounds and three blocks. Across the season, Brown is averaging career highs — 29. 0 points, 7. 1 rebounds and 5. 1 assists in 34. 3 minutes per game — and Queta has delivered career-best marks including 10. 1 points, 8. 4 rebounds and 1. 3 blocks in 24. 9 minutes while shooting. 645 from the field, a mark tied with Antetokounmpo for third in the league.
Those absences produce measurable effects: Payton Pritchard, Baylor Scheierman and Hugo Gonzalez are penciled in for expanded roles, and centers Nikola Vucevic and Luka Garza could see increased minutes with Queta out for rest. The Celtics’ depth will be tested on the second night of a back-to-back, when rotation flexibility typically narrows and coaching staffs must cover depleted minutes without eroding late-game effectiveness.
What makes this notable is how the combined personnel moves reshape both teams’ matchups: Boston must replace high-volume production on the wing and down low, while Milwaukee balances reintegrating Giannis with the absence of veteran depth and a decision to push Ryan Rollins to the bench. Coaches on both sides will be managing short-term absences and immediate lineup chemistry as the result of injuries and roster management choices.
