The Celtics’ game against the 76ers in Philadelphia on Saturday was postponed until Sunday because of winter storm Jonas, which could dump up to 2 feet of snow on the city.
“We’re staying on our toes with all the travel right now,’’ coach Brad Stevens said before Friday’s 110-101 win over the Bulls at TD Garden. “I think that we have a game plan, but we’re going to make sure we’re safe, first and foremost.’’
The Celtics are scheduled to face the Wizards in Washington on Monday. The Wizards’ game against the Jazz on Saturday was postponed, too. Stevens said Celtics president Rich Gotham will continue to be in contact with the 76ers and Wizards, and the team would be prepared to make adjustments to its schedule as the storm progressed.
The Celtics planned to fly to Philadelphia after Friday’s game, but that option vanished when the storm progressed quickly. They are now hoping to fly out on Saturday after practicing in Waltham.
Celtics forward Amir Johnson missed Friday’s game because of personal reasons and is expected to return by Sunday, but Stevens said weather could potentially impact his travel, too.
Coaches support Blatt
The Cavaliers’ firing of coach David Blatt sent shockwaves around the NBA on Friday afternoon. Stevens and Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg were among those stunned by the news. The Cavaliers are 30-11 and in first place in the Eastern Conference despite their star point guard, Kyrie Irving, missing 26 games with a knee injury.
“David Blatt did a heck of a job and he won a ton of games,’’ Stevens said. “He handled himself, I thought, with great grace all the way through. His team got all the way to the Finals, a team that had to change the way they played to get there. I read his statement afterward. I stole a play from him that we got an open 3 on the other day. I would think he’s not going to be unemployed long. He’s a heck of a coach.’’
Hoiberg said that when he coached Iowa State last season, Blatt welcomed him to Cavaliers training camp when he was in Ohio recruiting. Blatt gave Hoiberg film to take with him.
“He’s just a really good person and I think a hell of a basketball coach,’’ Hoiberg said. “It’s a tough day. He was great to me when I got into this league.’’
Assistant coach Tyronn Lue, a Celtics assistant from 2009-13, signed a three-year contract to take the reins in Cleveland.
Stevens and Hoiberg said they understand the fickle nature of their industry.
“When you take over a job where a championship is what you’re shooting for and the way your roster’s built,’’ Hoiberg said, “there’s always extra pressure.’’
Mickey out two weeks
Rookie forward Jordan Mickey said he was diagnosed with a moderate ankle sprain and that he expects to return in about two weeks. Mickey suffered the injury while playing for the Maine Red Claws in a D-League game last Saturday. The Celtics recalled him the next day so he could receive medical treatment from the team’s training staff.
“Trying to do a little lower leg stuff so I can loosen it up, get my calves back to where they need to be,’’ Mickey said. “It was real disappointing. I was on a pretty good roll at that time. To go down with just an ankle sprain, it definitely hurt just knowing the pace I was going.’’
In 21 games with Maine, Mickey is averaging 17.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 4.6 blocks.
Wins are what get you in
The NBA All-Star Game reserves will be voted on by the coaches in the coming days before being announced next week. On Wednesday, Stevens and Raptors coach Dwane Casey shared some insight on how they will make their picks.
“Probably the biggest criteria is looking at the team’s record,’’ Casey said, “because you can score 50 a game and have a losing record, and you’re not going to [be an] All-Star. That’s not only for me, but for all coaches.’’
Casey was probably exaggerating just a bit, because a 50-point scorer on any team would be a lock, but you get his point. Wins matter. Stevens echoed that sentiment, saying he uses team success as an easy tiebreaker among players who otherwise appear to be equals.
“Probably a differentiating factor will be who scares me the most,’’ Stevens said. “That’s just kind of the way I’d look at it. Obviously, who do you have to prepare for differently? Who makes you tweak what you normally do?’’
When Stevens analyzes numbers and figures, he does find some advanced statistics quite helpful.
“I look more at efficiency than anything else,’’ he said. “I don’t get too caught up in points per game or rebounds per game or those types of things. You get caught up in efficiency and those types of things. You get caught up in efficiency from a points standpoint. You get caught up in rebound percentages. I think that, again, you have to also factor in fourth quarter and crunch-time performance.’’
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach.
