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Oklahoma City Thunder (20-52) at Boston Celtics (55-19)
Sunday, March 29
7:00 PM ET
Game #74, Home Game #36
TV: CSN HD, KSBI, NBA LP 755
TD Banknorth Garden Probable Starters Rajon Rondo/Ray Allen/Paul Pierce/Glen Davis*/Kendrick Perkins
*Doc said that he is doubtful that KG will play in this one. He may surprise is and make a game time decision to play him, but we will probably see Big Baby in the starting lineup again.
ReservesGlen Davis
Eddie House
Gabe Pruitt
Bill Walker
Stephon Marbury
Mikki Moore
Injuries:Tony Allen (thumb) out
Brian Scalabrine (head) out
Leon Powe (knee) out
Probable Starters Russell Westbrook/Kyle Weaver/Kevin Durant/Jeff Green/Nick Collison
ReservesThabo Sefolosha
Nenad Krstic
Chucky Atkins
Malik Rose
Robert Swift
Earl Watson
Damien Wilkins
InjuriesDesmond Mason (knee) out
DJ White (jaw) out
Connections hese two teams are connected by several players and transactions. Jeff Green, their starting small forward was picked by the Celtics in the draft and promptly traded to Seattle to bring Ray Allen to Boston. Delonte West and Wally Szczerbiak, the two players who came along with the draft pick are no longer with the team as they were traded to Cleveland in the middle of last season.
Another connection has been Robert Swift. There have been countless stories and rumors about Danny's infatuation with Swift. It was said that Danny very much wanted Swift but had to settle for Big Al when Seattle grabbed Swift ahead of him. Big Al was a key to bringing KG to Boston and is one of the most promising young big men in the league. Meanwhile, Swift has been plagued with injuries and has not played in games so far this season.
Key Matchups vs
Paul Pierce PPG 20.2 RPG 5.80 APG 3.7 EFF + 18.99
Kevin Durant PPG 25.9 RPG 6.60 APG 2.9 EFF + 23.40
Last year's #2 overall draft pick has been a bright spot for the Thunder this season and can score from pretty much anywhere on the court. Pierce will have a hard time trying to contain him, but on the other hand, Durant stands little chance of stopping Pierce either.
Honorable MentionBench vs Bench
With KG and Rondo still affected with injuries, the Celtics' bench players should see more playing time in this one. And Big Baby may be called on again to play big minutes. Hopefully they will be up to the task.
Game NotesThe Celtics won in Oklahoma City 96-83 and so should have no trouble beating them in Boston. The Thunder are 6-28 on the road while the Celtics are 29-6 at home.
Keys to the GameTake Care of the Ball - The Celtics must take better care of the ball and reduce their turnovers. This would be a good game to get that done.
Rebound - The Celtics need to crash the boards and keep the Thunder from getting second chance points.
Defense - The Celtics have yet to get back to their pre-All Star Break defense. They have to concentrate on getting their defensive intensity back as defense wins championships. We saw it in most of the Hawks game but they let the Hawks back in the game in the 4th quarter. They have to get back to playing defense for 48 minutes.
X-FactorFocus and Effort
If the Celtics take this team seriously, they should be able to beat them, even without KG. But, if they come in expecting this to be a cakewalk and don't put forth the effort, they could be surprised by a young Thunder team.