An ankle injury sent one of the Celtics’ most important players to the locker room early in Sunday’s game at TD Garden.

Starting center Neemias Queta came up limping after a midair collision with Magic guard Anthony Black midway through the first quarter. Queta, in visible pain, was briefly evaluated on the Celtics’ bench before hobbling down the tunnel.

The Celtics announced he was questionable to return with a left ankle sprain.

Queta jumped from fourth to first on Boston’s big man depth chart following the offseason departures of Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and Luke Kornet, and he’s impressed in his first season as an NBA starter. The 26-year-old 7-footer entered Sunday averaging 9.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.4 blocks per game, with advanced metrics that rank among t

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