“Celtics play big man depth against Wizards”.

With Sam Hauser sidelined with lower back soreness, the conventional wisdom was that head coach Joe Mazzulla would bring in fellow wing Jordan Walsh to take over those minutes.

Not so fast.

“We have the flexibility and the depth to go a different route,” Mazzulla said before Thursday night’s game against the Wizards. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be a grand piano. It could be a guard. It could be a big one. It just depends on what the encounters look like in these second units. Our sub-patterns will change from game to game and within the game.”

Al Horford got the start again against Washington and played just 20 minutes after 26 against the New York Knicks. But unlike on Tuesday, Mazzulla went with Luke Kornet (16th minute), Xavier Tillman (15th), And Neemias Queta (14) in this ninth man spot.

“I trust everyone we name that they are ready to play just based on the work they put in and the things they do,” Mazzulla continued.

This work certainly includes Xavier Tillman and his three-point shot. After scoring 6 of 11 from behind the arc in preseason, he missed all three on Ring Night but rebounded with a 2-for-3 performance against the Wiz.

With Tillman, the Celtics have another versatile defender who can also stretch the field in the form of Horford and Kristaps Porzingis.

When asked about the team's second unit without Hauser, Derrick White said, “It doesn't change much.” The standard is the standard and no matter who we put there, we expect the same. Of course, there isn't Sam Hauser running around out there, but there are many different ways to gain an advantage. I think all the big guys did a great job for us today. No matter who we put in, we expect them to do what they do and had a good game for us tonight.”

In the previous season it was Kornet who got the starting signal. Surrounded by stars, he is the natural conduit for all of Boston's talent. He has good feel around the rim and is a huge lob target from the dunker spot, but ultimately his “do what they do” is his understanding of the angles and where everyone is on the floor.

In addition to his vision and instincts when defending pick-and-rolls, he is an above-average player in the high post and a skilled passer in the short throw.

And then there is Queta.

“Athletic,” White described his bouncy teammate. “Seems to get every offensive rebound. Just a big body around the edge. I just think he's a little more comfortable, a little more confident and knows where to be on offense. I think maybe last year he was thinking too much, but this year he’s just playing and doing what he does.”

After being upgraded from a two-way to a standard contract before the playoffs last year, Queta signed a three-year, $7.2 million deal over the summer. He's still raw – it's hard not to see a lot of early Robert Williams III in his game – but he's active in the restricted area and has great hands. He turned his four offensive rebounds into eight points against 265 pounds, 83 inches of Jonas Valančiūnas.

The Celtics will wait another two months for Porzingis to return, or however long it takes for him to be 100% healthy, because 1) he is an important building block in their championship aspirations and perhaps even more importantly, 2) they can .