Author Topic: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17  (Read 17068 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« on: December 26, 2017, 10:19:05 PM »

Offline FLCeltsFan

  • Kendrick Perkins #1 Fan
  • Author
  • Rajon Rondo
  • *****
  • Posts: 5280
  • Tommy Points: 11831
  • Marcus Smart Fan!
  at 
Boston Celtics (27-10) at Charlotte Hornets  (12-21)
Wednesday, December 27, 2017
7:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #38,  Road Game #19
TV: NBCSB, FSSE-CHA, NBA-LP (DTV750, xfinity751)
Radio: 100.7 WZLX, WFNZ 610 AM The Fan
Spectrum Center




Probable Starters
PG SG SF PF C
PG: Kyrie Irving
SG: Marcus Smart
SF:  Jayson Tatum
PF:  Al Horford
C:   Aron Baynes

Celtics Reserves
Abdel Nader
Daniel Theis
Guerschon Yabusele
Terry Rozier
Jabari Bird
Shane Larkin

Injuries
Gordon Hayward (ankle)  out
Marcus Morris (knee) out
Jaylen Brown (Achilles)  out
Semi Ojeleye (back) out

Two Way Players
Kadeem Allen

Coach
Brad Stevens




Probable Starters

PG:  Kemba Walker
SG:  Nicolas Batum
SF:  Michael Kidd Gilchrist
PF:  Marvin Williams
C:  Dwight Howard

Probable Reserves
Dwayne Bacon
Michael Carter Williams
Frank Kaminsky
Malik Monk
Johnny O'Bryant
Treveon Graham
Julyan Stone

Injuries
Cody Zeller  (knee) out
Michael Kidd Gilchrist  (illness) game time decision
Marvin Williams (finger) day to day

Two Way Players
Mangok Mathiang
Marcus Paige

Head Coach
Steve Clifford

Game Notes
The Celtics are back on the road to visit the Hornets for the second of 3 regular season games.  They have already met twice in the preseason with the Celtics winning both games.  The Celtics also won the first meeting in November as the Celtics came back from 18 down to win 90-87.   The Celtics swept the series last season 4-0.  These two teams will meet once more in Boston on February 28.

In the first meeting between these two teams, the Celtics were without Al Horford who was out with a concussion.  Also, Kyrie Irving played just 1 minute in the game, leaving after taking an elbow to the face from teammate Aron Baynes.  Jayson Tatum and Shane Larkin led the Celtics with 16 points each and Terry Rozier added 15 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. 

The Celtics are 5-5 in their last 10 games and are 13-5 on the road.  The Hornets are 3-7 in their last 10 games and are 10-9 at home.  The Celtics are coming off a loss to the Wizards on Christmas day while the Hornets are coming off a win over the Bucks on Saturday.  Once again, the Celtics catch a rested Hornets team with 3 days rest.

The Celtics briefly slipped to second in the standings as the Raptors won 6 in a row while the Celtics have been up and down.  Thanks to a loss to the Mavericks on Tuesday, the Celtics are back on top, 1.5 games ahead of both the Raptors and the Cavaliers, who, along with the Celtics, lost on Christmas day. 

The Hornets will be without Cody Zeller who is out with a knee injury.  Marvin Williams left Saturday's game vs the Bucks with a finger injury and is day to day.   Michael Kidd-Gilchrist missed Tuesday's practice with an illness and is a game time decision for this game.  He went through shoot around and has said that he plans to try to play.   

After missing 8 games, Marcus Morris played 15 minutes against the Wizards on Christmas day.  He is once again expected to miss this game as the Celtics look to ease him back into the rotation.  Semi Ojeleye missed Monday's game and is listed as out for this game after going through shoot around with less pain than expected but still isn't able to move the way he needs to.    Jaylen Brown limped off the court at the end of Monday's game after reportedly bumping knees with Markieff Morris and will miss this game.  With possible strained ligaments in that knee, he may be out for more than just this game. 

Jabari Bird has been called up from the Red Claws and is with the team for this game.   I expect Marcus Smart to start in Brown's place.  This is the first of yet another back to back set with the Houston Rockets coming up on Thursday night.  The Celtics' depth and resiliency will definitely be tested. 

Key Matchups
vs
Kyrie Irving vs Kemba Walker
Walker is averaging 21.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.7 assists.  Kyrie is going to need to play defense to slow Walker down because he is capable of taking over a game. Walker had 20 points and 11 rebounds in the first game.  Kyrie will also need to make him work on the defensive end so as to wear him out a bit. 

vs
Aron Baynes vs Dwight Howard
This is a matchup of two physical old school centers.  Neither is a 3 point shooter and both are physical in playing around the basket.   Howard is averaging 15.4 points, 12.1 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game.  Baynes needs to keep Howard out of the paint and away from the basket, especially on rebounds.   

Honorable Mention
Daniel Theis vs Frank Kaminsky
This is a battle of two players off the bench who can influence a game.  Kaminsky always seems to play very well vs the Celtics.  He came off the bench for 14 points in the first game between these two teams.  He averages 10.7 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists and hopefully Theis can keep him in check in this one. 

Keys to the Game:
Defense Defense Defense!!  Defense is the key to winning every game, but particularly this one.  The Hornets average 104.6 points per game while the Celtics average 103.5 points per game.  The Hornets average 3.5 more rebounds per game and fewer turnovers.    The biggest difference is defense.  The Celtics have let their defense slip since their win streak.  They have slipped to second with a defensive rating of 101.1. Golden State is now #1.  The Celtics must continue to make defense a priority and play tough individual and team defense if they want to win this one.   

Next Man Up - If Brown, Ojeleye and and Morris are all out, each Celtic needs to step up his game to the next level.  It has been this way pretty much all season with one player getting injuried after another.  In the last game vs the Hornets when Kyrie got hurt, Terry Rozier and Shane Larkin both stepped up.  Who will step up in this one? 

Rebound -  The Celtics had been rebounding very well this season but like the defense, in recent games they have really slacked off in this area.  Poor rebounding was one of the reasons they lost to the Wizards.   They are averaging 43.9 rebounds per game to 46.5 rebounds per game for the Hornets, which is second in the league.  The Celtics need to put in extra effort to crash the boards and beat the Hornets to the rebounds. 

Be Aggressive - One of the strengths of the Celtics has been their aggressiveness on the court.  They need to be aggressive in going after rebounds, on defense, in attacking the basket and in going after loose balls.  The more aggressive team will also usually get more calls from the officials.  The Celtics let the Wizards be more aggressive in their last game and they need to be sure that they don't let the Hornets do the same. 

Play Hard 48 Minutes - The Celtics have gotten into the habit of either starting off slow and needing to catch up or getting off to a big lead and then letting up and allowing the opponent to get back into the game with a chance to win and a lot of confidence.  The Celtics have had 15 games where they fell behind by 11 or more.  They are 7-8 in those games.  They need to get off to a strong start and play hard right up until the final buzzer. 

X-Factors
Depth and Fatigue -  The Celtics' schedule has been brutal with no breaks and no time for practice.  It's obvious that the players are feeling it with many shots coming up short and effort on defense and rebounding.   Each of the Celtics will need to work harder on both ends of the court as they try to win games like this that they should win. 

Don't Underestimate - The Celtics can't underestimate the Hornets because of the sub-.500 record.  They are tough and they seem to do everything well except defend.  It's certain that the Hornets will come in motivated to avenge their earlier loss to the Celtics and so,  if the Celtics let up at all, they are likely to get beat. 
« Last Edit: December 27, 2017, 04:14:18 PM by FLCeltsFan »

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #1 on: December 26, 2017, 10:19:49 PM »

Offline csfansince60s

  • Paul Silas
  • ******
  • Posts: 6234
  • Tommy Points: 2238
TP, FLCeltsFan!!

Hope you had a great day with the fam yesterday!

It was good for me up till when the Wiz schooled us.

New foe here. Let's buzz those pesky Hornets!!

Need a win.....dinged up.


Go Cs!!!!

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #2 on: December 26, 2017, 10:21:09 PM »

Offline FLCeltsFan

  • Kendrick Perkins #1 Fan
  • Author
  • Rajon Rondo
  • *****
  • Posts: 5280
  • Tommy Points: 11831
  • Marcus Smart Fan!
TP to csfansince60s for being the first to post in the game thread! 

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Celtics!!!

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #3 on: December 26, 2017, 10:23:31 PM »

Offline libermaniac

  • Jim Loscutoff
  • **
  • Posts: 2835
  • Tommy Points: 375
3rd. Go Cs.

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #4 on: December 26, 2017, 10:43:37 PM »

Offline SCeltic34

  • JoJo White
  • ****************
  • Posts: 16005
  • Tommy Points: 1956
Well since the Brown injury thread got locked, the latest I saw from ESPN said that he has RIGHT knee soreness.  The achilles issue is on his left foot.  So I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, but hopefully it's a minor issue and maybe a blessing in disguise - rest up and rehab the left leg while doing the same for the right.

Also, why the heck did Morris play yesterday if he was going to sit out this game?  Did they bring him back too early again or is it a precautionary measure?  He's of little use to us if this continues, since he's just going to be rusty and ineffective every time he comes back.

This game will need a lot of Baynes to block out Howard and help with the boards.

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #5 on: December 26, 2017, 10:54:40 PM »

Offline Jon Niednagel

  • Jaylen Brown
  • Posts: 617
  • Tommy Points: 57
Go Celtics!!!! Let’s rebound (literally and figuratively).
“Being a Celtic is, every decision you make is about the team. Every cut you make is about the team. Every pass you make is about the team. You take yourself out of it. It’s not for everyone. If you don’t want to win, don’t want to play team basketball, and it’s more about you then you’re probably not a Celtic." Doc 2010

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #6 on: December 27, 2017, 04:46:31 AM »

Offline greece66

  • Tiny Archibald
  • *******
  • Posts: 7395
  • Tommy Points: 1342
  • Head Paperboy at Greenville
6th!

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #7 on: December 27, 2017, 05:00:44 AM »

Offline GreenEnvy

  • Antoine Walker
  • ****
  • Posts: 4551
  • Tommy Points: 1031
Gotta get off the schneid and get a W tonight!
CELTICS 2024

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #8 on: December 27, 2017, 06:04:56 AM »

Offline trickybilly

  • Rajon Rondo
  • *****
  • Posts: 5593
  • Tommy Points: 617
No Jaylen hurts. Marcus and Tater will need to step up in this one.
"Gimme the ball, gimme the ball". Freddy Quimby, 1994.

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #9 on: December 27, 2017, 06:15:48 AM »

Offline hodgy03038

  • NCE
  • Ray Allen
  • ***
  • Posts: 3701
  • Tommy Points: 440
  • Marcus Smart #1 Fan
This is huge. We need this as we face a scorned Houston team who has lost 3 in a row on Thursday. No Morris tonight so anyone can step in an play better than he did the last game.

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #10 on: December 27, 2017, 08:48:30 AM »

Offline bopna

  • NGT
  • Bailey Howell
  • **
  • Posts: 2367
  • Tommy Points: 136
3rd straight loss coming up...I really dont see us winning this one.
The way we have been playing and with the defense looking more and more atrocious each day...yup..this qill be a blow out for the Buzzzz.

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #11 on: December 27, 2017, 11:31:50 AM »

Offline Phantom255x

  • Larry Bird
  • *****************************
  • Posts: 29510
  • Tommy Points: 2923
  • On To Banner 18!
Starting to think Morris simply played on Monday just to play against his twin and having the headline of "Twins playing each other on Christmas Day".

He didn't look ready at all Monday. Not just rust, but he struggled mightily and seemed lost at times.

As for this game.. idk, should be a winnable game, but as we've seen recently, some no-name from the Hornets will probably drop 30+ tonight and our defense/rebounding may continue to look bad...  :(

And yikes.. we play the Rockets tomorrow...  :o
"Tough times never last, but tough people do." - Robert H. Schuller

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #12 on: December 27, 2017, 11:56:38 AM »

Offline dwlefty13

  • Don Chaney
  • *
  • Posts: 1628
  • Tommy Points: 3
3rd straight loss coming up...I really dont see us winning this one.
The way we have been playing and with the defense looking more and more atrocious each day...yup..this qill be a blow out for the Buzzzz.

We beat the Bulls by 25 on Saturday....would only be our 2nd straight loss if we do. But I got a Celtics victory tonight!
Let's Go Celtics!!

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #13 on: December 27, 2017, 12:04:09 PM »

Online jpotter33

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 47893
  • Tommy Points: 2906
Well since the Brown injury thread got locked, the latest I saw from ESPN said that he has RIGHT knee soreness.  The achilles issue is on his left foot.  So I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, but hopefully it's a minor issue and maybe a blessing in disguise - rest up and rehab the left leg while doing the same for the right.

Also, why the heck did Morris play yesterday if he was going to sit out this game?  Did they bring him back too early again or is it a precautionary measure?  He's of little use to us if this continues, since he's just going to be rusty and ineffective every time he comes back.

This game will need a lot of Baynes to block out Howard and help with the boards.

http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2017/12/boston_celtics_injuries_jaylen_3.html

Ugh, Brown could have strained ligaments in his knee. Doubt we see him anytime soon.

As for Morris, I think this was the plan all along. He’d come back slowly playing mainly in home games, e.g. he’s missing Charlotte’s game but planning to play against Houston.

Re: Celtics (27-10) at Hornets (12-21) Game 38 12/27/17
« Reply #14 on: December 27, 2017, 06:27:09 PM »

Offline CelticSooner

  • Ed Macauley
  • ***********
  • Posts: 11495
  • Tommy Points: 866
  • GOT IT!!!
Hitting the biggest the slump of the season and the injuries continuing to pile up will certainly not help.