Back on November 19, the Cleveland Cavaliers suffered their first loss of the season to the Boston Celtics, falling on the road by a score of 120-117. A main reason for this defeat was the performance of Darius Garland, who shot just 3-for-21 (14.3%) from the field and failed to convert any of his six three-point attempts.

Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said Brown is out with a non-COVID illness while White is dealing with a foot sprain suffered in the third quarter of Friday's win over Chicago. Brown averages 24.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists while White is the team's best on-the-ball defender.

Down two of their top three scorers, the Celtics were unable to reclaim first place in the Eastern Conference on Sunday, falling to the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-111.