Celtics settle into their Florida routines

They had not been together on a basketball court for more than 17 weeks, dating back to March 10 in Indiana.

The Celtics had a long-awaited reunion on Friday afternoon at Disney World, going through their first practice since the coronavirus brought the NBA season to a halt in the winter.

During a 90-minute session, the Celtics began a three-week process of preparing for the remainder of the regular season — eight games in 14 days followed by the start of the [...]

They had not been together on a basketball court for more than 17 weeks, dating back to March 10 in Indiana.

The Celtics had a long-awaited reunion on Friday afternoon at Disney World, going through their first practice since the coronavirus brought the NBA season to a halt in the winter.

During a 90-minute session, the Celtics began a three-week process of preparing for the remainder of the regular season — eight games in 14 days followed by the start of the playoffs on Aug. 17.

They worked out on two courts constructed inside a large ballroom at the Contemporary Resort roughly a 10-minute bus ride from the team hotel, shaking a bit of the rust that has piled up during a long layoff.

"Overall, very good,’’ said coach Brad Stevens on a video conference with the media. "Physically good, moving well. We’re able to do things on the fly as far as things we’re trying to do on both ends of the court.

"But there’s going to be a lot of habit building. There were a few fumbles, a few too many turnovers that you would expect in a normal training camp, let alone after a hiatus like this.

"The good news is that everybody wanted to play more when we were done. That’s good because we’ve got a build up here over the next three weeks where we feel we can do exactly what we need to do to be ready.’’

The Celtics arrived in central Florida on Wednesday, underwent coronavirus testing and were quarantined. Stevens said that all the players tested negative and were cleared to hit the practice floor.

Since the Celtics were not allowed into the Auerbach Center to work out until last month, the players were unable to stay in tip-top shape, so the process of getting back in peak form will take some time.

Jaylen Brown compared the first practice at Disney World with opening day of a training camp in the fall.

"I don’t think it was too much of a difference,’’ said Brown. "We had a lot of guys with a lot of great energy. A lot of the young guys had a lot of high energy.

"I think we’re looking forward to getting things going. We’re on a mission, all of us here. We understand we don’t want to do too much complaining about other stuff. We want to focus on what we can control. This team has been great. I think we’re all excited about what the future entails.’’

The Celtics will be staying at Disney World a minimum of seven weeks — three for practices, two for the rest of the regular season and two for the first round of the playoffs.

Each playoff round would add up to two more weeks to that tally. Players will be living in a bubble, unable to leave the Disney World campus.

"An interesting experience,’’ said Brown of his first couple of days. "I’m not going to do too much complaining or doing any complaining at all. I come from humble beginnings like everybody else.

"It’s not what we’re accustomed to, but that’s fine. I’m just trying to find a routine to pass the time. We’re down here for a purpose.’’

Brown admitted there were some nerves being up close with teammates on the floor for the first time, but he is confident the NBA is doing its best with the situation.

"Absolutely, there’s a lot of nerves,’’ he said. "A lot of people are away from their families, away from their kids, away from their grandparents and loved ones. A lot of people were nervous, including myself, coming down here.

"Not sure of the long-term effects of the COVID-related things, but we think the NBA is going to do a good job of keeping us safe. But nonetheless, there was a lot of nerves and still is. As we get more comfortable and get a routine, some of those nerves may go away or they may not.’’

Stevens said that the plan is to have Kemba Walker ease back into the routine of playing this month before the games begin. Walker struggled through February and early March with an ailing knee and said recently the time off helped him.

"Everybody’s available. Everybody did some portion (of practice),’’ said Stevens. "We’re going to move very slowly with Kemba Walker and let him strengthen and make sure he’s all good to go as we enter the seeding games and into the playoffs.’’

Teams are given three-hour time frames in which to practice each day. Stevens said the ballroom has plenty of room with the two courts and an area to lift weights.

On Friday, because of scheduling, the Celtics had their time reduced, but Stevens said 90 minutes was plenty for the opening day.

"We’ve had plenty of time to think about (planning practices and changing on the fly), so we’re ready to roll,’’ said Stevens. "We’re able to hit curveballs if we need to.’’

jfenton@enterprisenews.com

On Twitter at @JFenton_ent.