Hayward not ruling out possible return this season

Gordon Hayward is saying there's a chance.

The 27-year-old's debut with the Boston Celtics this season fell apart just over five minutes in, when a failed alley-oop attempt against the Cleveland Cavaliers caused him to land awkwardly on his left leg, simultaneously fracturing his tibia and dislocating his ankle.

While the initial outlook on Hayward's injury was negative - even his own agent believed he was unlikely to play again this campaign - Hayward insists he hasn't discounted a possible return at some point this season, provided his body is up to the task.

"It's definitely in the back of my mind," Hayward told the Boston Globe's Adam Himmelsbach in an encompassing interview. "I'm definitely pushing to get back as fast as I can, while making sure that I still have a lot of good years of basketball in me. And coming back early and hurting something else is not part of that plan. So I'm making sure that if I come back, I'm one-thousand percent confident in myself and my leg.

"I hope more than anything I can play this season. That would be awesome. But that's not something I'm stressing about. I'm stressing about what I can do today to help myself get better."

Signed to a four-year, $128-million contract in July, Hayward was expected to spearhead a new-look Celtics team alongside fellow blockbuster offseason acquisition Kyrie Irving. Since his freak injury, however, Boston has blown over the rest of the East, going 22-4 in his absence to hold the top spot in the conference.

With how well his teammates are doing without him, Hayward is able to relax on his short-term goals, allowing him to cautiously hold on to a small hope he'll be back before the season's over.

"I feel like for me it's better to just tell myself, 'Let's be better today than I was yesterday,' and then keep doing that day in and day out," Hayward said. "And if it happens to get to the point where the season's still going on and I can play, then, like, that's awesome."