Celtics star Jaylen Brown trusts backup point guard Payton Pritchard, and that was evident in Boston's Monday night win over the Heat.

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.

A win would have moved Boston into sole possession of first place in the Eastern Conference for the first time since opening night. However, the Celtics fell to the Cavaliers 115-111.

The game is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. EST and will be broadcast on NBA TV, NBC Sports Boston and FanDuel Sports Network Ohio. Fans looking to watch this NBA game can do so for free by using FuboTV and DirecTV Stream, which both offer a free trial or with SlingTV, which doesn’t offer a free trial but has promotional offers available.

While the Heat are a notch below their usual level of play, they are still a dangerous club the Celtics need to take seriously if they want to win.

A tale of two cities will be told inside TD Garden tonight, as the Boston Celtics host the Miami Heat. The defending NBA champions, after a close defeat at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers, will be facing off against the Heat at 7:30 p.