The Celtics and Cavaliers meet for the 2nd of 4 games between them this season. The Celtics won the first meeting 120-117 in Boston on November 19. They will meet again in Cleveland on February 4 and in a final game in Boston on February 28. The Cavaliers were undefeated and on a 15 game win streak when the Celtics defeated them in Boston and now they will try to return the favor and end the Celtics 7 game win streak.
The Cavaliers are first in the Eastern Conference. They are 10-1 at home and 13-3 against Eastern Conference opponents. They are 7-3 in their last 10 games. They have lost their last 2 games, both against the Atlanta Hawks. The Celtics are 2nd in the East, just half a game behind the Cavaliers. They are 8-1 at home and 13-2 against Eastern Conference opponents. They are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have won their last 7 games.
The Celtics were 2-1 last season with each team winning at home. The Celtics are 140-87 overall against the Cavaliers all time and they are 55-60 in games played in Boston. Cleveland has lost 3 of the last 5 that they have played against the Celtics. The Celtics are playing in the first of back to back games and will face the Heat at home on Monday. They are 2-1 on the first night of back to back games so far this season. Both of the wins were at home and the loss was on the road.
The Celtics played on Friday, getting an NBA Cup win over the Chicago Bulls. After this game at Cleveland, they will return home for a 5 game home stand against Miami, Detroit, Milwaukee, Memphis and Chicago. They then visit Chicago in a home and home set and then travel to Orlando before another 4 game home stand where they host Philadelphia, Indiana twice, and Toronto.
After home and home losses to the Atlanta hawks the Cavaliers have a 3 game home stand starting with the Celtics and then Washington and Denver. They then play at Charlotte and Miami before 3 more at home against Milwaukee, Philadelphia and Utah. They then head out on the road for a trip out West to take on Denver, Golden State, the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas.
After one game where everyone was available for the Celtics, they now have 4 players on the injury list. Al Horford is questionable with a toe injury and Kristaps Porzingis is questionable due to knee injury management. My guess is that Porzingis will play tonight and Horford will play against the heat on Monday, or vice versa. Jrue Holiday is questionable with adductor tightness. Finally, Derrick White left Friday’s game with a foot injury and is questionable for this game. I have included the normal starters as I don’t know who will play and who will be out.
The Cavaliers have 3 players on the injury list. Dean Wade has missed 5 games so far with an ankle sprain and is out for this game. Okoro should continue to start in his place. Former Celtic Max Strus has been ruled out this game with an ankle injury. Strus has yet to make his 2024-25 regular-season debut. Emoni Bates is also out for this game with a knee injury.
Probable Celtics Starters
*(Jrue Holiday, Derrick White and Kristaps Porzingis are all questionable. At this time, I’m not sure who will play and who would start if they don’t.)
Celtics Reserves
Payton Pritchard
Luke Kornet
Jaden Springer
Xavier Tillman, Sr
Jordan Walsh
Sam Hauser
Baylor Scheierman
Neemias Queta
2 Way Players
JD Davison
Drew Peterson
Anton Watson
Injuries/Out
Kristaps Porzingis (ankle) questionable
Al Horford (toe) questionable
Jrue Holiday (groin) questionable
Derrick White (foot) questionable
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Probable Cavaliers Starters
Cavaliers Reserves
Ty Jerome
Caris LeVert
Georges Niang
Craig Porter, Jr
Tristan Thompson
Jaylon Tyson
Sam Merrill
2 Way Players
Emoni Bates
JT Thor
Luke Travers
Injuries/Out
Max Strus (ankle) out
Dean Wade (ankle) out
Emoni Bates (knee) out
Head Coach
Kenny Atkinson
Key Matchups
Derrick White vs Donovan Mitchell
Mitchell is averaging 24.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He is shooting 45.1% from the field and 38.9% from beyond the arc. In the first game against the Celtics, Mitchell finished with 35 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists while shooting 44.8% from the field and 27.3% from beyond the arc. Slowing Mitchell down will be key to getting a win for the Celtics. Derrick White may or may not play in this one. If he is out, I’m not sure who would start, but I would guess that Jaylen Brown would move to shooting guard if just White is out. If 2 or more players are out, I really don’t know who Mazzulla will start.
-
Jrue Holiday
Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images
-
Darius Garland
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Jrue Holiday vs Darius Garland
Garland and Donovan have formed a very good backcourt for the Cavs. Garland is averaging 20.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He is shooting 49.5% from the field and 44.2%from beyond the arc. He was embarrassed in the first game against the Celtics, finishing with just 8 points,2 rebounds, 7 assists and 1 steal. He shot just 14.3% from the field and did not hit a 3 pointer. Hopefully, the Celtics can once again slow him down in this game. Once again, I’m not sure if Jrue will play in this one or who would start in his place if he is out.
Honorable Mention
Jayson Tatum vs Evan Mobley
Mobley is averaging 18.2 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.1 steal and 1.5 blocks per game. He is shooting 55.8% from the field and 32.4% from beyond the arc. Unlike in the first 2 matchups, both of these players are expected to play. The Celtics need to try to keep him out of the paint and off the boards.
Keys to the Game
Defense – Defense is always a key to winning games. The Cavaliers are a good defensive team with a 112.0 defensive rating, which is 12th in the league. The Celtics have a defensive rating of 111.0, which is 8th in the league. Last season, the Celtics were 1st and the Cavaliers were 11th with basically the same rosters. The Celtics must get back to making defense a priority and they have to play that tough defense for 48 minutes and not let up. The Celtics must especially defend the Cavs on the perimeter as they are tops in the league, shooting 40.2% as a team on threes. The Cavs are going to play tough defense and so the Celtics will need to match or exceed their defensive intensity.
Rebound – Next to defense, rebounding is the biggest key to winning. Much of rebounding is effort and desire and when the Celtics put out the extra effort on the boards, it usually carries through to the rest of their game. The Celtics are averaging 43.3 rebounds per game (18th) while the Cavs are averaging 42.9 rebounds per game (21st). Last season, with mostly the same roster, the Celtics were 2nd with 46.7 rebounds per game. The Celtics must work harder to grab rebounds and to box out the Cavaliers on the boards. In their first meeting, the Celtics out-rebounded the Cavs 42-41. They need to do an even better job on the boards in this one.
Points in the Paint – The Celtics have struggled to keep opponents from scoring in the paint. The Celtics are 27th in the league, allowing 53.1 points in the paint per game. Cleveland is 7th, allowing just 44.8 points in the paint while being The Celtics need to especially defend the paint against the Cavaliers as they are 4th in scoring in the paint with 53.2 points in the paint per game. The Cavs are 5th averaging 54.4 points in the paint along with shooting a league best percentage from beyond the arc. The Celtics must protect the paint and limit the Cavs from scoring there.
Effort and Focus for 48 Minutes – The Celtics need to stay focused for 48 minutes. They have to play with extra effort. The Cavs play hard and so the Celtics need to match that effort and play even harder. The team that plays harder and is more aggressive is usually the team that comes out on top and that also gets the better whistle. The Celtics also have to stay focused. They have to focus on taking good shots and making them and on playing as a team and making the right play every time. They also have to keep that effort and focus up for 48 minutes with no let up and no collapse. The Celtics effort and focus have been missing in some games and they need to come into this game focused and ready to play harder than the Cavaliers.
X-Factors
On the Road – The Celtics are playing on the road and will need to stay focused in spite of the distractions of travel and playing in front of a hostile crowd. Cavs fans really do not like the Celtics and will likely be loud and antagonistic. They need to come into this game focused and ready to play harder than the Cavs, regardless of the venue.
Injuries – It goes without saying that if one of more of Holiday, White, Horford and Porzingis are out, the Celtics have a much harder road to get a win. Especially, if more than one are out, that makes both the front court and the back court both a bit thin. The Celtics could have as many as 3 starters out and so everyone must pick up their game and play harder and smarter in order to fill in for the players who are out.
Officiating – The officiating is always an x-factor. Sometimes a crew will call the game tight and blow a whistle on every play. Other times they will let them play and let the game get physical. The Celtics need to adjust to the way the game is called and not let missed calls or bad calls affect their focus. If the calls are bad, they just need to play harder to make up for them and not waste time arguing with the officials.
And make sure to check out CelticsBlog’s Playback stream for a live conversation about the game. To participate, just create a free account, connect your LP sub if you have it, and join our community.
