Spurs (29-4) at Celtics (26-7) 1/5

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
San Antonio Spurs (29-4) at Boston Celtics (26-7)
Wednesday, January 5
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #34,  Home Game #17
TV:  CSN-NE, FSSW-SA, NBA-LP 757/758
Radio: WOAI, WEEI
TD Garden 




Probable Starters
PGSGSFPFC
PG: Rajon Rondo   10.6 PPG   13.6 APG   2.2 SPG
SG:  Ray Allen   17.1 PPG 3.2 APG .436 3P%
SF:  Paul Pierce 19.0 PPG 5.3 RPG 3.7 APG
PF: Glen Davis 12.2 PPG  5.7 RPG 0.4 BPG
C:   Shaquille O'Neal 10.2 PPG 5.4 RPG 1.0 BPG

Boston Bench Mob
Marquis Daniels
Luke Harangody
Von Wafer
Avery Bradley 
Jermaine O'Neal
Semih Erden
Nate Robinson

Injured
Kendrick Perkins (knee) out
Delonte West (wrist)  out
Kevin Garnett (calf)  out





Probable Starters
PG SG SF PF C
PG:  Tony Parker  17.7 PPG  7.1 APG   1.4 SPG
SG:  Manu Ginobili  18.7 PPG  4.8 APG   .372 3P%
SF:  Richard Jefferson   13.4 PPG   4.5 RPG  1.5 APG
PF:  Tim Duncan   13.6 PPG  9.4 RPG  1.9 BPG
C:   Dejuan Blair  7.3 PPG   6.5 RPG   0.4 BPG 

Reserves
George Hill
Matt Bonner
 Ime Udoka
Tiago Splitter
Gary Neal
Chris Quinn
Antonio McDyess

Injuries
James Anderson  (finger)  out 

Team Connections
Doc Rivers played for San Antonio during the 1994-95 and 1995-96 seasons..
Chris Quinn and Shaquille O’Neal were teammates in Miami from 2006‐08
Jermaine O’Neal and Chris Quinn were teammates in Miami during the
2008‐09 season
Chris Quinn and Luke Harangody both attended Notre Dame
Ime Udoka and Shaquille O’Neal were teammates in Los Angeles with the Lakers during the 2003‐04 season
Ime Udoka and Nate Robinson were teammates in New York during the 2005‐06 season

Key Matchups
vs
Rajon Rondo vs Tony Parker
Rondo has been compared to Parker at times and this matchup will be a big challenge for both players.    When Rondo is aggressive and focused, he can pretty much take on any point guard in the league, including Parker.  Rondo usually gets up for big games and this is a big one.  The only question would be how close to 100% is Rondo at this point? 

vs
Glen Davis vs Tim Duncan
Big Baby will have his hands full in this matchup. Duncan still brings a lot to the table, especially defensively and Big Baby can't try to do too much offensively if Duncan is blocking his shot or preventing him from getting good shots.  On the other end, Big Baby will need to get good position and stand his ground and keep Duncan away from the basket.

Honorable Mention
Ray Allen vs Manu Ginobili
I have to say that Ginobili is one of my least favorite players in the league.  He plays dirty and he also flops more than any player in the league.  Ray will need to watch out for his dirty tricks to avoid injury and early foul trouble if the refs fall for Ginobili's flops. 

Game Notes
The Celtics and Spurs were both considered too old last season and this season they find themselves at the top of the league, with the Celtics leading the East and the Spurs leading the West.  The one big difference is that the Spurs have been healthy for the most part and the Celtics have been playing short handed the entire season so far.  This game is no different.  The Celtics are playing without Perk, Delonte and KG while the Spurs are almost at full strength with just James Anderson out. 

Last season, the two sides split the series 1‐1.  The C’s won their fourth straight game in San Antonio.   Kevin Garnett led the Celtics with an average of 16.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game.  KG will certainly be missed in this game.   Rajon Rondo chipped in with 9.0 points and 9.5 assists per game.  Manu Ginobili led the Spurs with an average of 19.5
points while DeJuan Blair (12.5 points, 11.0 rebounds) and Tim Duncan (12.0 points, 12.0 rebounds) both added double‐doubles.

The Spurs are taking a page out of the Celtics book and winning with team play with 4 of the 5 starters averaging in double figures.  The Celtics lead the league with 24.5 assists per game while the Spurs are 4th, averaging 23.6 assists per game.  The Spurs use ball movement and team ball to beat their opponents just like the Celtics have done. 

Finally the Celtics catch another team on the second of back to back games while they have had the previous day off.  The Celtics have already had 8 back to back sets this season and they always seem to catch a rested and healthy team in the second game.  The Spurs play in New York on Tuesday night before traveling to play the Celtics in this one.   

The Celtics have been playing some uninspired basketball since KG went down, barely getting by the Wolves and pouring it on at the end to defeat a Raptors team even more depleted then the Celtics.  Of course that may be as much playing down to the opponent than anything but one thing is for sure, if the Celtics want to win this one, they are going to have to bring their A game. 

Keys to the Game 
Defense - The Celtics must make defense a priority in this game.
The Spurs are having one of their best offensive seasons in franchise history. They are averaging 105.6 points per game this season.  The Celtics must defend the perimeter because they are shooting .400 from beyond the arc.  Matt Bonner ranks 2nd in the NBA in three-point
field goal percentage at .495  and Richard Jefferson ranks 16th at .432 while Gary Neal ranks 1st among rookies in three-point field goals
made.  Of course the Celtics must also defend the paint with Tim Duncan a threat to score inside along with Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili who can get to the hoop pretty much at will. 

Focus - With the Spurs in town, the Celtics must keep their focus from the opening tip to the final buzzer.   The Spurs are very capable of taking advantage of any lack of focus on the Celtics part.  The Celtics have to come out strong as coming back from a big deficit would be very difficult against a strong defensive team like the Spurs.  Also, they have to play strong until the end of the game.  The Spurs won't let up and neither can the Celtics if they want to win this one.    Keeping their focus also includes taking care of the ball and not committing unforced turnovers. 

Rebound The Spurs are a good rebounding team and the Celtics need to concentrate on crashing the boards. Without KG, the Celtics have not been rebounding as well as they should.   The Wolves out rebounded the Celtics 45-30.  The Celtics must crash the boards and keep the Wolves from getting second chance points, which they do very well. 

Be Aggressive  When the Celtics are aggressive in going after loose balls, taking the ball to the hoop and playing in your face defense, they are very tough to beat.  When they get lazy and allow teams to beat them to loose balls and rebounds and when they settle for jumpers and don't go to the basket, they are very beatable.  They must stay aggressive. 

[j804]

Watching Spurs and Knicks and jesus the Spurs don't miss. Defense will be key for sure.

[Fafnir]

Watching Spurs and Knicks and jesus the Spurs don't miss. Defense will be key for sure.

The Knicks don't really defend either.

But yeah without KG the C's are underdogs in tomorrows game.

[snively]

Popovich benched all his starters down 10 to the Knicks with 3:13 left. Apparently he wants to rest for us.

[j804]

Watching Spurs and Knicks and jesus the Spurs don't miss. Defense will be key for sure.

The Knicks don't really defend either.

But yeah without KG the C's are underdogs in tomorrows game.

True in the beginning of the game Knicks somewhat were though but both just couldn't miss a shot. We have to be the agressors tomorrow it should pay off. Spurs seemed soft and were vulnerable defensively. In games like this -- this is where Rondo should attack and look to score but I doubt well see that.

[apc]

i actually love Ginobili, the guy is clutch! so what he flops, so does pierce.

[apc]

Popovich benched all his starters down 10 to the Knicks with 3:13 left. Apparently he wants to rest for us.

i saw that. i thought it was kind of weird to give up on the game with 3 minutes left.

[csfansince60s]

I know that I am stating the obvious, but Rondo is the key to this game. A not 100% Rondo against both Parker and Hill does not bode well for us. Parker, himself will be a handful, but Hill is probably the best backup pg in the league and could start for most teams.

Our bigs have to bang Duncan a bunch and use their fouls wisely. I'd put Shaq on Blair and let JO/BBD tag team Duncan. While they've gotten decent production from their bench and while Bonner has big games against us, especially here, aside from Hill, our bench is superior to theirs.

[FLCeltsFan]

Tomorrow's game just got harder.  The Spurs haven't lost 2 games in a row all season.   And the starters were MAD when Pop pulled them.  They are going to be very motivated to win tomorrow. 

[FLCeltsFan]

Also the Heat won again tonight and so they are tied with the Celtics for the top spot in the East. A loss tomorrow will drop the Celtics into 2nd place in the East.  And that would put Spoelstra in the lead for coaching the All Star game. 

[Edgar]

Hopefully we will manage to pull this one
will be tough and D have to excell
JO will be important

and seeing the glass half full if we win this one
we will be really close to the best record in the league

[JerseyKid.]

This is already a scary game without KG ... Parker/Ginobli attack the basket very hard. Way harder then rondo does, im hoping rondo has a HUGE 20+ assist night to off balance their attacks.

If BBD is looking to shine while KG is out, NOW IS THE TIME ... no one better to play hard against than Tim Duncan.


Oh boy, im biting my nails already.

[thebat]

It's gonna be a tough game, I'm kinda scared  .
It's ok if we lose tomorrow (reverse phsych). But if we win, I'd be happiest!!!

[Megatron]

Pointless game, if we win nice, but if we lose its kind of expected since we have so many injuries, and were missing our MVP KG.

[j804]

I am pumped up for this game.