In a matchup of first in the East vs First in the West, the Celtics host the Oklahoma City Thunder for the 2nd and final game this season. The Thunder won the first game 127-123 in OKC on January 2. These 2 teams split the series 1-1 last season with each team winning at home. The Celtics are 78-66 overall all time against the Thunder and they are 39-27 in games played in Boston. The Thunder are playing in the second of back to back games. They are 7-5 on the second night of back to back games and they are 1-2 when the games are both on the road.
The Celtics remain 1st in the East, 12 games ahead of 2nd place Milwaukee, 13.5 games ahead of 3rd place Cleveland, 15 games ahead of 4th place Orlando, 15 games ahead of 5th place New York, and 16.5 games ahead of 6th place Indiana. They are 32-3 at home and 8-2 in their last 10 games. They are 20-7 against Western Conference teams and have won their last 2 games.
The Thunder started Tuesday 1st in the West but ended the night at 3rd. They are half a game behind of 1st place Denver and 2nd place Minnesota. They are 5 games ahead of the 4th place Clippers, 7 games ahead of 5th place Dallas and 7 games ahead of 6th place New Orleans. They are 23-14 on the road and 7-3 in their last 10 games. They are 19-6 against Eastern Conference teams and they are coming off a loss in their last game.
The Celtics are playing in the first game back home after a 6 game road trip. They went 4-2 on the trip, beating Detroit, Chicago, New Orleans and Charlotte and losing 2 games to Atlanta. After this game they will stay at home for 2 games against Sacramento, and Portland. Then it’s one game on the road in Milwaukee before finishing the season at home against New York, Charlotte and Washington.
The Thunder are playing in the 3rd game of a 5 game road trip. They beat New York and lost to Philadelphia in their first two games of the road trip. The loss to the 76ers was without their 2 top scorers. After this game they will continue the road trip through Indiana and Chicago. They will then finish the season with a 4 game home stand with the first 2 games against Sacramento and then Milwaukee and Dallas.
Jaylen Brown sat out Monday’s game after injuring his hand in the game against New Orleans. Jaden Springer missed that game with a knee injury and JD Davison missed the game with an ankle injury. As of now, only 2 Celtics are on the injury report. Jaylen Brown is questionable with a left hand sprain and Jaden Springer is questionable with left knee tendinopathy. Both are expected to be a game time decision but I expect them to play if at all possible.
For the Oklahoma City Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander missed his third contest out of the Thunder’s last four games when he sat out Tuesday’s game at Philadelphia due to a right quad bruise. Jalen Williams also sat out Tuesday in Philadelphia with a left ankle sprain. Both have been ruled out for this game. Aaron Wiggins and Jaylin Williams started Tuesday’s game vs Philadelphia and will likely start once again.
Probable Celtics Starters
PG: Jrue Holiday
SG: Derrick White
SF: Jaylen Brown
PF: Jayson Tatum
C: Kristaps Porzingis
Celtics Reserves
Oshae Brissett
Sam Hauser
Al Horford
Svi Mykhailiuk
Payton Pritchard
Jordan Walsh
Luke Kornet
Xavier Tillman
Jaden Springer
2 Way Players
JD Davison
Drew Peterson
Neemias Queta
Injuries/Out
Jaden Springer (knee) questionable
Jaylen Brown (hand) questionable
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Probable Thunder Starters
PG: Aaron Williams
SG: Josh Giddey
SF: Lugentz Dort
PF: Jaylin Williams
C: Chet Holmgren
Thunder Reserves
Bismack Biyombo
Ousmane Dieng
Gordon Hayward
Isaiah Joe
Mike Muscala
Cason Wallace
Lindy Waters III
Kenrich Williams
2 Way Players
Keyontae Johnson
Olivier Sarr
Lindy Waters III
Out/Injuries
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (quad) out
Jaylen Williams (ankle) out
Head Coach
Mark Daigneault
Key Matchups
Derrick White vs Josh Giddey
Giddey is averaging 12.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.6 assists. He is shooting 47.6% from the field and 34.4% from beyond the arc. Against the Celtics in the first game, Giddey finished with 23 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. He shot 57.1% from the field and 57.1% from beyond the arc.
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Kristaps Porzingis
Photo by Brian Fluharty/Getty Images
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Chet Holmgren
Photo by Bart Young/NBAE via Getty Images
Kristaps Porzingis vs Chet Holmgren
Porzingis will be matched up with 7’1” Chet Holmgren. Holmgren is averaging 16.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 2.4 blocks per game. He is shooting 53.3% from the field and 37.3% from beyond the arc. He is a difficult cover but this also should be a fun matchup to watch.
Honorable Mention
Jaylen Brown vs Lugentz Dort
Dort is averaging 10.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 1.4 assists. He is shooting 47.6% from the field and 39.8% from beyond the arc. In the first game against the Celtics he finished with 9 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 blocks and 1 steal. In Tuesday’s game against the 76ers, he finished with 15 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals while shooting 50% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc.
Keys to the Game
Defense – Defense is always the key to winning. The Thunder average 120.4 points per game (3rd) and they are 4th with a defensive rating of 111.5. The Celtics average 120.9 points per game (2nd) and they are 3rd with a defensive rating of 110.7. The Celtics need to tighten up their defense and make playing defense a priority especially against this Thunder team that averages 120.4 points and have a defensive rating right behind the Celtics. The Celtics need to defend the paint since the Thunder are 7th in the league with 52.5 points in the paint per game. But they also must defend on the perimeter because the Thunder are first in the league, shooting 39.1% from beyond the arc.
Rebound – Rebounding is also a key to winning. The Celtics need to rebound on the defensive end to keep the Thunder from getting second chance points and they need to rebound on the offensive end to give themselves extra possessions. The Thunder are 27th with 41.9 rebounds per game while the Celtics are 2nd with 46.5 rebounds per game. Much of rebounding is desire and effort and the Celtics as a team have to put in the extra effort to beat the Thunder on the boards.
Take Care of the Ball – The Celtics need to keep their focus and not turn the ball over. The Thunder are 1st in the league with 20.3 points off turnovers per game. The Celtics have to move the ball because they are a much better team when they move the ball and don’t over dribble. But they must stay focused and make careful passes and not get sloppy. They also have to be aware when dribbling the ball so as not to allow the Thunder to get steals. The Thunder will make them pay if they get sloppy and turn the ball over.
Be Focused and Ready for a Tough Game – The Thunder are at the top of a tough Western Conference and are a very tough team defensively. The Celtics have to be ready to go to the basket if they struggle from three. They also have to be ready to shoot from midrange if both the paint and the perimeter are defended tightly. The Celtics must stay focused on playing hard for 48 minutes, on playing tough defense, on fighting for rebounds, and on playing the right way.
Don’t Underestimate – I almost felt better when I thought that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams were playing. The Celtics have a way of playing down to teams missing their stars, as they did against the Lakers without LeBron and AD. The Celtics can’t underestimate the Thunder because they are fully capable of beating the Celtics without SGA and J Dub. They are a young and hungry team and if the Celtics take them lightly, they will make them pay for it.
X-Factors
At Home vs Back to Back – The Celtics are at home and they should get motivation from playing in front of their fans. It is the first game back after a long road trip and sometimes that game is tough. The Celtics have had a day off after playing in Charlotte on Monday. The Thunder are playing back to back on the road and so fatigue may be a factor for them down the stretch. The Thunder are 1-2 when their back to back games are both on the road and so the Celtics need to defend their home court and draw energy from their fans.
Officiating – Officiating is always an x-factor. How the refs call the game has a big influence on how the teams play. Will they let them play or call every little bit of contact? Will they call it evenly or will they favor one team or the other. It all effects the outcome of the game and the Celtics need to play the right way and not allow the officiating to take them out of their game. The refs have been quick to call techs for complaining this season and the Celtics need to remember that. Also, they should never be caught complaining to the refs while the other team goes in for a score.
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