The Celtics come off a 2 point win over the Minnesota Timberwolves and face the Los Angeles Clippers in the second of back to back games at home. The Clippers are also playing on the second night of back to back games. The Celtics are 2-0 in the second of back to back games with both of those games on the road. The Clippers are 3-1 in the second of back to back games.
The Celtics are 2nd in the East, 2.5 games behind first place Cleveland. They are 5-2 at home and 8-2 in their last 10 games. They are 1-1 against Western Conference opponents. The Clippers are 5th in the West, 2 games behind the first place Warriors. They are 4-3 on the road and 7-3 in their last 10 games. They are 4-0 against Eastern Conference teams. Both teams have won their last 5 games.
The Clippers have changed quite a bit since last season. They also lost Russell Westbrook to Denver, Brandon Boston, Jr and Daniel Theis to New Orleans, Moussa Diabate to Charlotte, Paul George to Philadelphia, Mason Plumlee to Phoenix, and Xavier Moon, who wasn’t signed. They added Mo Bamba, Nicolas Batum, Kris Dunn, Derrick Jones, Jr and Kevin Porter, Jr. They also added Cam Christie, the 46th pick in the draft.
After hosting the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday, the Celtics host the Los Angeles Clippers in this game in back to back games. They will then play at Chicago and at Cleveland before returning home for a 5 game home stand against Miami, Detroit, Milwaukee, Memphis and Chicago. They then visit Chicago and Orlando before another 4 game home stand where they host Philadelphia, Indiana twice, and Toronto.
The Clippers are playing in the second game of a 4 game road trip. They beat the 76ers in Philadelphia on Sunday before coming to Boston for this game. They will close out the road trip at Washington and Minnesota. They will then have a 4 game home stand against Denver, Portland, Minnesota and Houston. They will then play back to back games at Dallas and a game at Memphis.
Luke Kornet missed the Celtics’ game against the Timberwolves on Sunday and is doubtful for this game with a hamstring injury. Al Horford is doubtful for this game with an illness. Shams Charania reports that Kristaps Porzingis is expected to make his season debut tonight against the Clippers. I am putting him in the starting lineup but he may come off the bench for his first game. If so, I would expect Queta or Tillman to start.
Kawhi Leonard has been cleared to resume shooting work after a knee injury, but he is listed as out for this game. Norman Powell has missed the past 3 games due to a left hamstring strain and is out for this game. PJ Tucker is listed as out but not for injury reasons. The Clippers are expected to trade Tucker when they find a trade partner to take him. He is not with the team.
Probable Celtics Starters
Celtics Reserves
Payton Pritchard
Jaden Springer
Jordan Walsh
Sam Hauser
Baylor Scheierman
Neemias Queta
Xavier Tillman, Sr
2 Way Players
JD Davison
Drew Peterson
Anton Watson
Injuries/Out
Kristaps Porzingis (ankle) probable
Luke Kornet (hamstring) doubtful
Al Horford (illness) doubtful
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Probable Clippers Starters
Clippers Reserves
Mo Bamba
Nicolas Batum
Kobe Brown
Cam Christie
Bones Hyland
Terance Mann
Kevin Porter, Jr
Two Way Players
Trentyn Flowers
Kai Jones
Jordan Miller
Injuries/Out
Kawhi Leonard (knee) out
PJ Tucker (not injury related) out
Norman Powell (hamstring) out
Head Coach
Tyronn Lue
Key Matchups
Jrue Holiday vs James Harden
Harden has been playing very well since coming to the Clippers. He is averaging 20.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 8.8 assists, and 1.6 steals per game. He is shooting 36.5% from the field and 31.1% from beyond the arc. The Celtics need to stay with him on defense and play him for both the shot and the pass.
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Kristaps Porzingis
Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images
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Ivica Zubac
Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images
Kristaps Porzingis vs Ivica Zubac
Zubac is averaging 15.1 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.1 blocks per game. He is shooting 57.7% from the field and has not hit a 3 yet this season. With Porzingis expecting to return I’ve included him in the starting lineup. However he may come off the bench for his first game back and it may be one of the other centers that gets the start. The Celtics need to stay with Zubac in the paint and also box him out on rebounds.
Honorable Mention
Jayson Tatum vs Derrick Jones, Jr
Jones is averaging 10.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game. He is shooting 48.2% from the field and 42.1% from beyond the arc. He is a good 3 point shooter and so the Celtics need to especially guard him on the perimeter.
Keys to the Game
Defense – As always, defense is a key to getting a win in this game and in every game. The Clippers average 108.6 points per game (26th) while the Celtics average 120.7 points per game (2nd). The Celtics are 8th with a defensive rating of 110.7 while the Clippers are 5th with a defensive rating of 107.6. The Clippers have been winning with their defense and if the Celtics want to win this game, they must make defense a priority and they have to put out more effort on defense than the Clippers.
Rebound – The Celtics can’t score if they don’t have the ball. Much of rebounding is effort and desire and so the Celtics must put out the extra effort on the boards to give themselves extra possessions as well as to limit the Clippers fast break opportunities and second chance points. When the Celtics put out extra effort on the boards, it often carries through to other areas of their game. The Celtics average 42.8 rebounds per game (20th) while the Clippers average 46.2 rebounds per game (5th). The Celtics have to work harder on the boards than the Clippers.
Energy and Effort for 48 Minutes – The Celtics have to come out with energy and have to play harder than the Clippers from the opening tip until the final buzzer. 100% effort from every Celtic will be needed to get a win in this one. The Clippers have been playing very well and the Celtics can’t expect to win with less than 100% effort. They have to be the more aggressive team, getting off to a fast start and playing hard right up to the final buzzer with no let up. They will get the Clippers best effort and so the Celtics simply must work harder with no let up.
Play the Right Way – The Celtics must play the right way. The Celtics struggle when players over dribble and iso and try to do too much. On the other hand, good things happen when they move the ball and look to make the extra pass and find the open man and the best shot. They need to take good shots and not force up highly contested shots. If they aren’t hitting their 3 pointers, they need to find other ways to score and not shoot themselves out of the game. For the most part, they have been moving the ball and playing unselfishly, but at times, especially the Jays lapse into hero ball and they need to limit those times.
X-Factors
Home Game – The Celtics are at home for the second straight game. They need to protect home court and play with energy and effort. The Celtics should get a boost from the home crowd and from playing on their home court. The Clippers have the distractions of travel, staying in hotels, and playing in front of a hostile crowd.
Back to Back – Both teams are playing on the second night of back to back games. The Clippers are playing both games on the road, while the Celtics are playing both games at home. The Celtics went down to the wire against the Timberwolves while the Clippers had an easy game against the 76ers. The Clippers starters all played fewer than 27 minutes while the Celtics starters played between 33 and 38 minutes. Fatigue could come into play down the stretch of this one.
Officiating – I know that I say this every game, but the officiating always can be an x-factor in every game. Every crew calls the game differently whether they call every little ticky tack foul or they let a lot of contact go and let the teams play. Some refs favor the home team and some not so much. The Celtics have got to adjust to the way the game is being called and not let the officiating take away from their focus.
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