Raptors (40-39) at Celtics (54-25) Game #80 4/5/23

[FLCeltsFan]

  at     
Toronto Raptors (40-39) at Boston Celtics (54-25)
Wednesday, April 5, 2023
7:30 PM ET
Game #80 Home Game #39
TV:  NBCSB, TSN, NBA-LP
TD Garden


Probable Starting Matchups 
Point Guard
vs
Marcus Smart vs  Fred VanVleet

Shooting Guard
vs
Derrick White vs Scottie Barnes

Small Forward
vs
Jaylen Brown vs OG Anunoby

Power Forward
vs
Jayson Tatum vs Pascal Siakam

Center
vs
Blake Griffin vs Jakob Poeltl

Celtics Reserves
Malcolm Brogdon
Grant Williams
Sam Hauser
Payton Pritchard
Luke Kornet
Robert Williams III
Mike Muscala

2 Way Players
JD Davison
Mfiondu Kabengele

Out/Injuries
Danilo Gallinari  (ACL)  out
Jaylen Brown (back) questionable
Justin Champaignie (new) questionable
Al Horford (rest) questionable

Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla



Raptors Reserves
Precious Achiuwa
Delano Banton
Will Barton
Chris Boucher
Malachi Flynn
Christian Koloko
Joe Wieskamp
Thaddeus Young

Two Way Players
Jeff Dowtin, Jr
Ron Harper, Jr

Out/Injuries
Gary Trent, Jr (back) questionable
Otto Porter, Jr  (foot)  out

Head Coach
Nick Nurse

Game Notes
After a game in Philadelphia, the Celtics return home for their final 3 games and face the Toronto Raptors in this first of 3 home games.  The Raptors may be the Celtics 1st round opponent in the upcoming playoffs.  This is the 3rd of 4 games between these two teams this season.  The Celtics won the first game 116-110 on December 5 in Toronto.  They won the 2nd game 106-104 on January 21, without Jayson Tatum and without Marcus Smart in the 2nd half.  They will meet one more time in Boston on April 7.

This is the second of back to back games for both teams.  The Celtics played in Philadelphia on Tuesday and had to travel home to face the Raptors.  The Celtics are 9-3 on the second night of back to back games.  They are 2-0 when the second game is at home.  Toronto played in Charlotte on Tuesday night and had to travel to Boston for this game.  The Raptors are 4-7 on the second night of back to back games.  They are 1-7 when the second game is on the road. 

The Celtics are 2nd in the East, 3 games behind first place Milwaukee after a Celtics loss and Bucks win on Tuesday.  They are 2 games ahead of third place Philadelphia. The Celtics are 29-9 at home and 7-3 in their last 10 games.  The Celtics are 31-18 against Eastern Conference opponents.  They are 9-5 against Atlantic Division opponents.  The Celtics are coming off a loss in their last game. 

The Raptors are 9th in the East.  They are tied with 8th place Atlanta, who own the tie breaker.  They are 2 games behind 7th place Miami and 2 games ahead of 10th place Chicago.  They are 6 games ahead of 11th place Indiana.  The Raptors are 14-25 on the road and 7-3 in their last 10 games.  They are 25-24 against Eastern Conference opponents and 4-10 against Atlantic Division teams.  They won their last 2 games. 

Trying to figure out the players who will be out is going to get tougher as the end of the season nears.  I'm guessing that Al Horford will miss this game and that Robert Williams will return. I'm also guessing that Blake Griffin will start and Timelord will come off the bench.  I'm guessing that Jaylen Brown will return to the lineup while perhaps Jayson Tatum or Marcus Smart sits out.  For Toronto, Otto Porter, Jr (foot) is out and Gary Trent Jr (back) is questionable. 

Key Matchups
vs
Jayson Tatum vs Pascal Siakam
Siakam is averaging 24.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 6.0 assists per game this season.    He is shooting 47.7% from the field and 32.7% from beyond the arc.   In the first 2 games between the Celtics and Raptors this season, Siakam averaged 29 points, 8.5 rebounds and 8.5 assists.  Slowing him down will be key.  Tatum may or may not sit out this game for rest. 

vs
Marcus Smart vs  Fred VanVleet
VanVleet is averaging 19.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 7.2 assists and 1.8 steals per game.  He is shooting 39.7% from the field and 34.5% from beyond the arc.  He has been playing well in recent games and is capable of hitting big shots and having a big game if not defended well.

Honorable Mention
Jaylen Brown vs O.G. Anunoby
Anunoby is averaging 17.0 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.9 steals.  In the first 2 games between these two teams, Anunoby averaged 12.5 points, 4 rebounds, no assists and 1.5 steals.  The Celtics need to stay with him on defense because he can have a big game. 

Keys to the Game
Defense -  Defense will always be the key to winning.  The Celtics are 4th with a defensive rating of 110.7  while the Raptors are 12th with a defensive rating of 113.4.  If the Celtics hope to win this game it will have to be with defense first.  The Raptors average 52.8 points in the paint per game and are shooting just 33.6% from three.  The Celtics must try to keep them out of the paint and force them to play out of their comfort zone. 

Rebound - The Raptors average 43.0 rebounds per game (18th) while the Celtics average 45.2 rebounds per game (7th)  The Raptors are 2nd in the league with 16.4 second chance points per game and so rebounding is very important to limit those second chance scores.  Much of rebounding is effort and hustle.  The Celtics must put out more effort to beat the Raptors to rebounds.

Take Care of the Ball - The Raptors don't turn the ball over much.  They are 1st in the league with 11.8 turnovers per game.  The Celtics are 6th with 13.3 turnovers per game.  But the Celtics have been known to go through spurts in the game where they turnover the ball on possession after possession.  They must take care of the ball and limit their turnovers.  The Raptors are 1st with 21.0 points off turnovers per game.  If the Celtics get sloppy, the Raptors will make them pay.  The Raptors are also 2nd with 17.8 fast break points per game and limiting turnovers will help in that area also.

Play Hard From Start to Finish -  The Celtics have started off slow in some games and have had to put out a lot of effort to catch up and then come up short in the end.  In other games they have gotten off to a big lead and then let up on their effort, allowing their opponents to come back and forge ahead for the win.  The Celtics must come out with a strong effort to start and they have to play hard for the entire game until the final buzzer with no let up.

X-Factors
Home Game -  The Celtics are at home and they need to use use the cheers of the fans as motivation to play hard and to stay focused.  They have to make opponents uncomfortable in the Garden and give their best effort to protect their home court.  The Raptors are just 14-25 on the road and hopefully the distractions of travel and playing in front of a hostile crowd will give the Celtics an advantage. 

Coaching - Joe Mazzulla is a first year head coach who was thrown into the position just 2 weeks before the season while Nick Nurse has been coaching the Raptors since 2018 and has won a championship with them.  Nurse is good at making in-game adjustments and at taking advantage of any weaknesses he can find in the opponent.  Joe won the first 2 rounds against the former Coach of the Year.  Can he do it again? 

Officiating - While rarely is officiating a reason for a win or a loss, it can always be an x-factor.  Every game is called differently.  Some games are called tightly and some games are allowed to be more physical.  The Celtics have to adjust to the way the game is being called and focus on playing and not on the calls that are being made or not being made. 

 

[Phantom255x]

TP FLCeltsFan!

Guessing Horford, Tatum, and 1 or 2 of Smart/White/Brogdon will rest this game

[FLCeltsFan]

TP to  Phantom255x  for being the first to post in the game thread!!!!!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Celtics!!!

Beat the Raptors!!!!!

[KG Living Legend]

 Get Errr Done!!!

[slamtheking]

TP for another great thread FL.  let's make the #2 seed official with a win tonight

[footey]

TP FL!

First game v Raptors since Poeltl trade.

[liam]

Another big team. Go Celtics!

[Phantom255x]

Not a bad idea to do some scouting on Toronto this week. We play them Friday as well. And there's a decent chance we play them first round if they are the 8 seed and play Miami in the play-in and win that game.

But also, the results of this week could impact where Toronto finishes and the seeding + play-in matchups. I wonder if the C's have a preference.

[Who]

I really like this Raptors. They got a fun group of players there.

VanVleet is cool at PG. He has had a disappointing year with his shot but I do like his game. He is fun to watch. Scrappy defense. Good tempo to his game. Shares the ball. Shoots with range and variety.

Then the three combo forwards with S Barnes, Siakam and Anunoby. All fun guys. Siakam and Anunoby probably top 20 forwards in the league. Scottie Barnes just outside the top 20.

Poeltl is nothing special but at least he is a legit center. For the first time since Marc Gasol left, the Raps have filled that gaping hole at center that was sinking their team. They have had solid teams in recent years but they were so unbalanced that they were underachieving badly. It is great that they have finally done something about this.

Gary Trent Jr is a nice 6th man. A shooter at SG.

Then some nice deep bench pieces with Otto Porter, Thad Young, Will Barton, Precious Achiuwa, Boucher. Good players at the end of their rotation.

Need a real backup PG to take some pressure off of VanVleet. It would be nice to see more of a pecking order in the bench pieces as well. Gary Trent is a good player but the rest are more of end of bench guys rather than a good 7th man. Someone more dependable on a night-to-night basis.


I'd love to see Toronto move Scottie Barnes to the bench and start a real SG instead of him. A legit outside shooter / secondary ball-handler / playmaker. A Jeff Hornacek type. I am not convinced Gary Trent is that guy but he is their best current option.

I'd love to see them commit to playing 96 minutes of forward minutes between their three combo forwards of Siakam, Anunoby and Barnes. No let up. 100% of forwards minutes with two of them on the floor at all times. I think that would be great.

Of course it would limit the utility of their bench forwards who are solid players in Porter, Thad Young and Boucher but that would be what I would do. Move more towards a quality backcourt. Just imagine what they could do with real guards there. I mean they only have two legit guards on their roster in VanVleet and Trent Jr. Proper shooting. Proper spacing. Proper passing & ball-handling. More quickness on the drive. Then let your three combo forwards beat up on all the forwards around the league with their athleticism and quickness.

That would be an awesome team. So much fun to watch.

I'm not sure it would be a title team but it would dang fun to watch.

[Silas]

I really like this Raptors. They got a fun group of players there.

VanVleet is cool at PG. He has had a disappointing year with his shot but I do like his game. He is fun to watch. Scrappy defense. Good tempo to his game. Shares the ball. Shoots with range and variety.

Then the three combo forwards with S Barnes, Siakam and Anunoby. All fun guys. Siakam and Anunoby probably top 20 forwards in the league. Scottie Barnes just outside the top 20.

Poeltl is nothing special but at least he is a legit center. For the first time since Marc Gasol left, the Raps have filled that gaping hole at center that was sinking their team. They have had solid teams in recent years but they were so unbalanced that they were underachieving badly. It is great that they have finally done something about this.

Gary Trent Jr is a nice 6th man. A shooter at SG.

Then some nice deep bench pieces with Otto Porter, Thad Young, Will Barton, Precious Achiuwa, Boucher. Good players at the end of their rotation.

Need a real backup PG to take some pressure off of VanVleet. It would be nice to see more of a pecking order in the bench pieces as well. Gary Trent is a good player but the rest are more of end of bench guys rather than a good 7th man. Someone more dependable on a night-to-night basis.


I'd love to see Toronto move Scottie Barnes to the bench and start a real SG instead of him. A legit outside shooter / secondary ball-handler / playmaker. A Jeff Hornacek type. I am not convinced Gary Trent is that guy but he is their best current option.

I'd love to see them commit to playing 96 minutes of forward minutes between their three combo forwards of Siakam, Anunoby and Barnes. No let up. 100% of forwards minutes with two of them on the floor at all times. I think that would be great.

Of course it would limit the utility of their bench forwards who are solid players in Porter, Thad Young and Boucher but that would be what I would do. Move more towards a quality backcourt. Just imagine what they could do with real guards there. I mean they only have two legit guards on their roster in VanVleet and Trent Jr. Proper shooting. Proper spacing. Proper passing & ball-handling. More quickness on the drive. Then let your three combo forwards beat up on all the forwards around the league with their athleticism and quickness.

That would be an awesome team. So much fun to watch.

I'm not sure it would be a title team but it would dang fun to watch.

Looking forward to a fun game tonight.

[Phantom255x]

Lol everyone who was on the injury report yesterday is officially ruled out 

[liam]

GAME TIME!!!

[Phantom255x]

If the Bucks and Celtics both win tonight, then the 1 and 2 seed is officially set in the East

[Silas]

Hey Liam, it's you and me tonight....so far.

[Phantom255x]

Hey Liam, it's you and me tonight....so far.