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Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« on: January 01, 2014, 09:39:26 PM »

Online FLCeltsFan

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Boston Celtics (13-18) at Chicago Bulls (12-18)
Thursday, January 2, 2014
8:00 PM ET
Game #32, Road Game #15
TV: CSNNE, CSN-Chicago, NBA-LP 755(DTV)/753(Xfinity)
Radio: 100.7 WZLX, ESPN 1000
United Center




Probable Starters

PG: Jordan Crawford................................................SG Avery Bradley

Center: Jared Sullinger

SF: Jeff Green ................................. ............PF Brandon Bass

Celtics Reserves
Kris Humphries
Phil Pressey
Courtney Lee
Gerald Wallace
Keith Bogans
Kelly Olynyk
Vitor Faverani

Injuries

Rajon Rondo (ACL)out
Jared Sullinger (wrist) questionable

Red Claws

MarShon Brooks




Probable Starters

PG: Kirk Hinrich ............................................. SG: Jimmy Butler

Center: Joakim Noah

SF: Luol Deng .................................................. PF: Carlos Boozer

Bulls Reserves
Taj Gibson
Nazr Mohammed
Marquis Teague
Mike Dunleavy
DJ Augustin
Erik Murphy
Tony Snell
Marquis Teague

Injuries
Derrick Rose (knee) out

Key Matchups
vs
Jared Sullinger vs Joakim Noah
Noah will be a tough matchup for the Celtics.  He is averaging 10.7 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.14 blocks per game. Jared has been playing with a hand injury and he re-injured it against the Hawks and even at 100%, he would have trouble staying with Noah. 

vs
Jordan Crawford vs Kirk Hinrich
Crawford has alternated between efficiently running the team and over dribbling and chucking.  Hinrich is a hard nosed player and good defender and will take advantage of any lapses on both ends of the court. 

Honorable Mention
Jeff Green vs Luol Deng
Green wasn't happy with sitting out the 4th quarter against the Hawks and so hopefully will put that anger to good use by upping his play in this game.  Deng is playing very well, averaging 19.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.9 assists.  The Celtics will need Green to be at his best on both ends of the court.

Game Notes
The Celtics travel to Chicago for the first of 3 games against the Bulls this season.   Both teams are without their All-Star point guards due to ACL tears.  The Celtics' Rondo is expected to return soon.  The Bulls' Rose will be out the rest of the season once again.

The Celtics are still hanging on to the 8th spot in the East, tied with Detroit for the 7th spot and just half a game behind Charlotte for 6th.  They are also just half a game in front of Chicago, who is in the 9th spot.  Toronto has moved 1 game ahead of the Celtics for the Atlantic division lead. 

Both teams are coming off a loss with the Celtics losing on Tuesday to the Hawks and the Bulls losing to the Raptors.  Both teams are 4-6 in their last 10 games.  The Celtics are 5-9 on the road while the Bulls are 7-7 at home.

Both teams had problems in the 4th quarter of their last game.  The Celtics blew an 18 point lead to lose by 1 point to the Hawks.  Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah and Kirk Hinrich combined to go 4 for 27 overall Tuesday, and Chicago missed 20 of 24 shots in the fourth quarter on their way to a loss to the Raptors.   

Keys to the Game
Play 48 Minutes - The Celtics have been getting off to fast starts and big leads. But, in the second half, they stop running, stop moving the ball, and stop going to the basket.  They have to continue to do what works for 48 minutes and not slack off in the second half. 

Rebound - The Celtics must crash the boards as a team, especially the guards. Rebounding takes effort and the Celtics must be the team that wins the rebounding battle.

Set the Pace - The Celtics have to run on every possession. Part of the reason they have given up big leads is that they stop running, stop pushing the ball inside, and stop moving the ball. They have to keep up the pace for the entire game.

Be Aggressive - The Celtics must be the more aggressive team.  They have to win the 50/50 balls and be aggressive in going to the hoop, rebounding, and defending.  They have to be the team that wants it more.

X-Factors
On the Road and Focus
The Celtics will be on the road and so they need to keep their focus through a hostile crowd and arena.  They also have some internal distractions to overcome  such as Bass and Green's reported altercation on the bench in their last game. They have to regain their focus and keep it on the game at hand. 

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #1 on: January 01, 2014, 09:55:37 PM »

Offline slamtheking

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cool FL, I got to be the first person to give you a TP on the last game of 2013 and I get to be the first one to give you a TP on the first game of 2014.  superlative job on the write-up as always!

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #2 on: January 01, 2014, 10:57:43 PM »

Online FLCeltsFan

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cool FL, I got to be the first person to give you a TP on the last game of 2013 and I get to be the first one to give you a TP on the first game of 2014.  superlative job on the write-up as always!

Thanks slamtheking!  And a TP right back at you for the first TP of the year!  Go Celtics!!!

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #3 on: January 01, 2014, 11:13:08 PM »

Offline SHAQATTACK

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Go  Celtics......!

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #4 on: January 01, 2014, 11:58:39 PM »

Online hpantazo

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Sullinger has done a good job against top centers such as Duncan, but Noah is a different type of player, very active, athletic, and rough, It will be interesting to see how Jared fares against him.

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #5 on: January 02, 2014, 07:23:07 AM »

Offline LatterDayCelticsfan

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Ah Bold Predictions! Green eats Deng for breakfast on both  ends of the Court. Humphries logs his 1st double double of the season, and Pressey leads the bench in scoring 18 points.   
Banner 18 please 😍

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #6 on: January 02, 2014, 08:58:30 AM »

Offline slamtheking

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Ah Bold Predictions! Green eats Deng for breakfast on both  ends of the Court. Humphries logs his 1st double double of the season, and Pressey leads the bench in scoring 18 points.
I think you could be right about Green and Hump. Green may be looking to heat it up after the last game and Hump looked good last game. 

I think KO will lead the bench brigade again but a solid game from Pressey would be great.

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #7 on: January 02, 2014, 09:13:46 AM »

Offline DesertDweller

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My prediction for this game is....Sully goes bananas.

Lets also hope Jeff Green is over the hissy fit he had last game when he refused to talk to coach Stevens and also refused to sit down for half the 4th quarter in some sort of ridiculous protest for being yanked.
the last thing we need is for these guys to be at odds with each other during this very difficult upcoming west coast road trip!!!

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #8 on: January 02, 2014, 09:33:31 AM »

Offline fantankerous

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I think this game will be ugly.  There's a chance neither team scores 80.  Due to the snowstorm, I also expect low attendance and low energy in the United Center.  In the end, with Deng back and playing at home, I see the Bulls winning a close game.

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #9 on: January 02, 2014, 10:08:24 AM »

Offline bello_man09

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pressy really plays well out there knows how to run the team..watching Crawford is a nightmare sometimes when he is on he's on fire but when he is off geeez!!! :-X :-\.. I say we win by 6.....Hump has  17 and 11...

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #10 on: January 02, 2014, 12:02:26 PM »

Offline celticslove

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pressy really plays well out there knows how to run the team..watching Crawford is a nightmare sometimes when he is on he's on fire but when he is off geeez!!! :-X :-\.. I say we win by 6.....Hump has  17 and 11...
i hope coach plays pressey longer, but i guess he don't wanna add crawford to the player in our pouting list.lol

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #11 on: January 02, 2014, 12:10:29 PM »

Offline hwangjini_1

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pressy really plays well out there knows how to run the team..watching Crawford is a nightmare sometimes when he is on he's on fire but when he is off geeez!!! :-X :-\.. I say we win by 6.....Hump has  17 and 11...
i hope coach plays pressey longer, but i guess he don't wanna add crawford to the player in our pouting list.lol
Another win-win/lose-lose game for the celtics!  If the celtics win, we enjoy the victory, but it pushes the celtics into the dreaded "nuked by Indiana as the 8th seed" territory.

If the celtics lose, sad day for losing, but a lottery victory since Chicago is a rival for the "watch us get swept" 8th seed in the draft position.  ;D

In either case, goooooo celtics!!!
I believe Gandhi is the only person who knew about real democracy — not democracy as the right to go and buy what you want, but democracy as the responsibility to be accountable to everyone around you. Democracy begins with freedom from hunger, freedom from unemployment, freedom from fear, and freedom from hatred.
- Vandana Shiva

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #12 on: January 02, 2014, 12:40:59 PM »

Online Neurotic Guy

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pressy really plays well out there knows how to run the team..watching Crawford is a nightmare sometimes when he is on he's on fire but when he is off geeez!!! :-X :-\.. I say we win by 6.....Hump has  17 and 11...
i hope coach plays pressey longer, but i guess he don't wanna add crawford to the player in our pouting list.lol
Another win-win/lose-lose game for the celtics!  If the celtics win, we enjoy the victory, but it pushes the celtics into the dreaded "nuked by Indiana as the 8th seed" territory.

If the celtics lose, sad day for losing, but a lottery victory since Chicago is a rival for the "watch us get swept" 8th seed in the draft position.  ;D

In either case, goooooo celtics!!!

True.   

Root for the win and enjoy the silver lining in the loss.

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #13 on: January 02, 2014, 08:07:49 PM »

Offline Chief

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Give KO Bass's minutes!
Once you are labeled 'the best' you want to stay up there, and you can't do it by loafing around.
 
Larry Bird

Re: Celtics (13-18) at Bulls (12-18) Game #32 1/2
« Reply #14 on: January 02, 2014, 08:09:00 PM »

Offline The Rondo Show

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No more blown leads
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