CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Gordon Hayward finally returned to game action Friday night.

Hayward scored 10 points in his first game in nearly a year for the Boston Celtics, who fell to the Charlotte Hornets 104-97 on the opening night of the NBA preseason schedule.

"Definitely good to get that one out of the way," Hayward said. "Didn't feel like I played my best basketball, but I was having fun out there and it was good to be back with the guys. Definitely had some good moments, some bad ones."

It was Hayward's first time in a game since Oct. 17, when he broke the tibia in his left leg and dislocated the ankle about five minutes into the Celtics' regular-season opener at Cleveland.

"I've been through a lot this past year, so just to be out there in front of the fans, playing with my teammates, there were moments that I didn't know if I was going to be able to do that. So, that was definitely a win," Hayward said.

Hayward's first points came when he grabbed an offensive rebound in transition early in the opening quarter and scored easily. He finished 2-for-7 from the field, playing about 23 minutes.

"The one cut to the rim, I usually would have dunked that one. Tried to go up off my leg and just didn't have it, I guess," Hayward said. "So, that stuff I think will come back, that little explosion. I'm certain of that. ... It was just the speed of the game, just the crowd, that's something I need to get used to again."