When Tony Allen makes his expected return from ankle surgery next week, the Celtics could send rookie guard Lester Hudson to the NBDL.
"I don't want to go to the D-league," Hudson said, "but if I have to, I will."
Hudson would be just two hours away from the team, in Portland, unlike last season when Bill Walker and J.R. Giddens were shipped to Utah.
"Yeah, but I still don't want to go," he said. "I'd like to be around the guys and learn from the guys, learn the NBA game. The D-league is not the same as the NBA."
Hudson has played less than 37 minutes in his brief NBA career, something the former Tennessee-Martin star isn't accustomed to.
"It's kind of hard," he said, "but you understand that you've got veteran guys in front of you."