Celtics (5-0) at Timberwolves (3-2) Game #6 11/6/23

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
Boston Celtics (5-0) at Minnesota Timberwolves (3-2)
Monday, November 6, 2023
8:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #6, Road Game #4
TV: NBCSB, BSN, NBA-LP
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, Rock 92.9
Target Center



Probable Celtics Starters
PG SG SFPF C
PG:  Jrue Holiday
SG:  Derrick White
SF:  Jaylen Brown
PF:  Jayson Tatum
C:   Kristaps Porzingis

Celtics Reserves
Delano Banton
Oshae Brissett
Sam Hauser
Al Horford
Luke Kornet
Svi Mykhailiuk
Payton Pritchard
Lamar Stevens
Jordan Walsh

2 Way Players
JD Davison
Nathan Knight
Neemias Queta

Injuries/Out
Neemias Queta (foot) doubtful
Derrick White (personal) probable

Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla


Probable Starters
PGSGSF PF C
PG:  Mike Conley
SG:  Anthony Edwards
SF:  Jaden McDaniels
PF:  Karl Anthony-Towns
C:    Rudy Gobert

Timberwolves Reserves
Nickeil Alexander-Walker
Kyle Anderson
Troy Brown, Jr
Jordan McLaughlin
Leonard Miller
Shake Milton
Josh Minott
Wendall Moore, Jr
Naz Reid

2 Way Players
Jaylen Clark
Luka Garza
Daishen Nix

Injuries/Out
Jaylen Clark (Achilles) out

Head Coach
Chris Finch

Game Notes
The Celtics continue their road trip with a stop in Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves.  This is the first of 2 games between these two teams this season.  They will face each other again on January 10 in Boston.  The Celtics won the series against the Timberwolves 2-0 last season.  The Celtics are 44-21 overall all time against the Timberwolves and 20-13 all time in Minnesota. 

The Celtics are looking for their 6th straight win.  The Celtics have started the season 5-0 for the 11th time in Celtics history.  Of the previous 10 teams that started out 5-0, all 10 made the Eastern Conference Finals.  8 of those teams made it to the NBA Finals.  5 of those teams went on to become champions.  The Celtics started 6-0 9 times including 2008 when they won their last title. 

The Timberwolves are playing in the 3rd game of a 4 game home stand.  They beat the Denver Nuggets and the Utah Jazz in their first two games of this home stand.  They will close it out on Wednesday against the New Orleans Pelican before heading out on a 5 game road trip.  The Celtics are playing in the 2nd game of a 3 game road trip and will face the 76ers on Wednesday to close it out. 

The Celtics still list two way player Neemias Queta as doubtful for this game.  Derrick White missed Saturday's game for the birth of his child but he is expected back for this game.   The Timberwolves also list a two way player out for this game.  Jaylen Clark is out due to an Achilles injury. 

Key Matchups
  vs 
Derrick White  vs  Anthony Edwards
Edwards is averaging 26.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game.  He is shooting 50.0% from the field and 53.6% from beyond the arc.  He was the best player on the recent US Men's team and is capable of having a big game and the Celtics need to pay attention to him, both in the paint and on the perimeter, where he has been shooting very well.  Hopefully Derrick White will be back to defend him. 

vs
Jayson Tatum vs Karl Anthony-Towns
Towns is averaging 18.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game.  He is shooting 39.1% from the field and 25.9% from beyond the arc.  In spite of the low 3 point percentage, the Celtics must guard him beyond the arc because he has won a 3 point contest in 2022.  Jayson Tatum has been playing very well, but Towns will have a size advantage in this game. 

Honorable Mention
Kristaps Porzingis vs Rudy Gobert   
This will be a matchup of 2 very tall centers.  Gobert is averaging 11.6 points, 12.4 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 2.6 blocks.   He is shooting 45.7% from the field and hasn't hit any 3 pointers.  Porzingis, on the other hand, is shooting 45.5% on 3 pointers and hopefully can pull Gobert away from the basket as he is a very good rebounder and rim protector. 

Keys to the Game
Defense Defense Defense!!  Defense is the key to winning every game.  The Timberwolves average 109.2 points per game (21st) while the Celtics average 126.4 points per game (1st).  The Celtics have a defensive rating of 106.5 (7th) while the Wolves have a defensive rating of 101.2 (1st).  This is a matchup of the top offense of the Celtics against the top defense of the Timberwolves.  The Celtics have got to play tough team defense if they hope to get a win in this game. 

Rebound -  The Celtics are averaging 51.8 rebounds per game (1st) to 47.4 rebounds per game for the Timberwolves (5th). The Celtics will need to crash the boards to keep the Wolves from getting extra possessions and second chance points.  Much of rebounding is effort and the Celtics have got to work harder on the boards than the Wolves, given the Wolves' big front line. 

Focus - The Celtics must come into the game focused on playing the right way as a team.  They need to focus on moving the ball and moving without the ball as they rank 24th in assists per game.  They have to focus on taking good shots and making them. They have to focus on making good passes and not get sloppy handling the ball because the Timberwolves average 17.4 points off turnovers per game.  They have to stay focused on playing tough team defense and not miss defensive assignments because they aren't paying attention.

Bench Play - If there is one recurring concern about the Celtics, it is that they lack depth. In some games,  the reserves have come up big and in other games they have struggled.  The Celtics must get more from their bench.  This isn't even a case of if someone gets hurt,  it is a matter of getting contributions from the reserves in every game to keep the starters from burning out. 

X-Factors
On the Road - The Celtics are playing in their 2nd straight road game.  They need to focus on the game and on playing with effort and not on the distractions of playing on the road.  They can't let the travel and staying in hotels and playing in front of a hostile crowd take away from their focus on the game. 

Officiating - Officiating always has the potential to be an x-factor.   Each officiating crew calls the game differently.  Some refs call it tight and constantly call fouls while others let them play with few fouls called.  The Celtics need to adjust to how the refs are calling the game and not allow bad calls or no calls to take away their focus.  The Celtics can't afford to allow the other team to go on playing while Celtics players are hanging back and complaining about calls.   

[Goldstar88]

Let痴 go! TP to FLCeltsFan for the Game Thread!! 6-0!!!

[FLCeltsFan]

TP to  Goldstar88     for being the first to post in the game thread!!!!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Celtics!!!

Beat the Timberwolves!!!!!!!!

[Silas]

Let's go Cs and make it 6 in a row!

[Celtics Mike]

Let's Go CELTICS! Make it 6-0

[Birdman]

Another win!!!!!!

[celticinorlando]

Big week for the Celtics. Need to get off to a good start.

[radiohead]

Celtics favored by just 4.5 points. Interesting. This should be a tight game. I値l be happy as long as we get the W!

[Surferdad]

Expect to see a lot of double-big tonight.

Edwards shooting 53% from 3? Wow, he is a load.

[theswitch]

Expect to see a lot of double-big tonight.

Edwards shooting 53% from 3? Wow, he is a load.

I知 curious to see who guards him. I知 not sure White can physically handle it. Jrue probably can. Jaylen maybe but he should be able to theoretically.

[Kernewek]

Celtics favored by just 4.5 points. Interesting. This should be a tight game. I値l be happy as long as we get the W!

Have to make sure the gamblers are still interested, right?

I'd hope this should be a fairly easy W, but it's easy to get flashbacks to the Miami series when we talk about guys heating up from the three against us.

[Celtics2021]

White is a game time decision.  I hope he痴 available!

[Silas]

Expect to see a lot of double-big tonight.

Edwards shooting 53% from 3? Wow, he is a load.

I知 curious to see who guards him. I知 not sure White can physically handle it. Jrue probably can. Jaylen maybe but he should be able to theoretically.

Why not?  I believe they are about the same size, and White is a stud on defense.

[bdm860]

White is a game time decision.  I hope he痴 available!

Hoping for an extra bounce in his step coming off the highs of having a newborn.

But looking back at his last missed game due to birth of his child: 0-2 with a +/-  of -2 in 14 mins in a loss (following a 25 point blowout win when he was out).  Not what I was hoping to see.  Newborns are unpredictable though, maybe he got better sleep this time.

[theswitch]

Expect to see a lot of double-big tonight.

Edwards shooting 53% from 3? Wow, he is a load.

I知 curious to see who guards him. I知 not sure White can physically handle it. Jrue probably can. Jaylen maybe but he should be able to theoretically.

Why not?  I believe they are about the same size, and White is a stud on defense.

I could be well wrong -- White did great against Butler for the most part in the playoffs last year who is also a strong player. Edwards and White are both listed at 6'4 but Edwards is at 225 lbs v. White at 190 lbs. Edwards uses his strength to bully other guards which makes him such a matchup nightmare. Jrue at 6'4, 205 lbs makes almost half of it up. Jaylen at 6'6, 223 lbs is probably a bit "thicker" than Jrue but not as thick as Edwards (same weight, two inches taller).

I think White would be okay but feels like his skillset is better for running around with Mike Conley than trying to wrestle a guy who can outmuscle him. Just my gut, though. White is certainly a talented defender.