Celtics swingman Gordon Hayward told reporters on Friday that he planned to exit the NBA “bubble” in Orlando, Florida for the birth of his fourth child, if the Celtics are still playing at the time. His wife, Robyn, is due in September, and the Conference Semifinals are scheduled to tip on August 31. Boston currently sits third in the Eastern Conference with a 43-21 record through 64 games.
“It’s a pretty easy decision for me on that,” Hayward said. “I’ve been at the birth of every one of my children, and I think there are more important things in life. So we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. I know the NBA has a protocol for that type of thing, and hopefully I can do the quarantining and testing the appropriate amount of time and then be back with the boys.”
And he’s not the only Celtics player to be weighing that decision: big man Vincent Poirier told Jared Weiss of The Athletic Boston he would also take a paternity leave. Poirier said his partner, Assouan, is due to have their first child, a daughter, on September 17.
Prior to the league’s suspension of play, Hayward averaged 17.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists while shooting 50.1% (39.2 3P%) in 33.4 minutes per game. Poirier averaged 5.4 minutes across appearances in 21 games.
