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Boston Celtics (0-0) at New York Knicks (0-0)
Sunday, December 25
12:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #1 – Road Game #1
TV: TNT
Radio: WEEI (850AM)
Madison Square Garden
Probable Starters
PG: #9 Rajon Rondo .................................................... SG: #20 Ray Allen
C: #7 Jermaine O'Neal
SF: #11 Sasha Pavlovic ............................................... PF #5 Kevin Garnett
Celtics Reserves Avery Bradley
Marquis Daniels
Chris Wilcox
Brandon Bass
Keyon Dooling
E'twaun Moore
Greg Stiemsma
JaJuan Johnson
Injuries Paul Pierce (heel) day to day
Probable Starters
PG: #23 Toney Douglas ............................................ SG:#2 Landry Fields
C: #6 Tyson Chandler
SF: #7 Carmelo Anthony ............................................. PF: #1 Amar'e Stoudamire
Knicks ReservesBill Walker
Steve Novak
Mike Bibby
Iman Shumpert
Renaldo Balkman
Jerome Jorndan
Josh Harrellson
InjuriesJared Jeffries (calf) questionable
Baron Davis (back) out
Team ConnectionsDoc Rivers played for the Knicks from 1992‐95
Bill Walker was a member of the Celtics from 2008‐10
Chris Wilcox played for the Knicks during the 2008‐09 season…
Josh Harrellson and Rajon Rondo both attended Kentucky
Steve Novak and Doc Rivers both attended Marquette
Key Matchups 
vs
Kevin Garnett vs Amar'e Stoudamire
KG is healthy and anxious to play as could be seen by his clapping and antics in the preseason games. Amar'e is one of the tougher opponents for KG at the power forward position and he'll be looking to avenge their loss in the playoffs. This will be a fun matchup to watch.
vs
Jermaine O'Neal vs Tyson Chandler
Jermaine O'Neal is healthy and was called the preseason MVP by Doc Rivers. He was blocking shots and taking charges and playing very well in the preseason. He's facing one of the better centers in the league and a defending champion in Tyson Chandler. This will be a very important matchup for both teams.
Honorable Mention Rajon Rondo vs Toney Douglas
Rondo's play is always key to the Celtics. Hopefully he can take advantage of a young and less experienced point guard in Toney Douglas.
Keys to the Game Start Fast The Celtics have to come out of the gates quickly and not give the Knicks a chance to get a lead. It takes too much out of a team, especially an older team, playing catchup all game.
Chemistry - The Celtics have their starting lineup back, but they also have many new players learning the system. How quickly those players can learn the system and develop chemistry will be very important in getting early wins.
Don't Let Up - The Celtics must play 48 minutes and not let up. Last season they had a tendency to start quickly, but then to ease off and gave up big leads several times. They have to play hard from start to finish.
Defense - The addition of Tyson Chandler has people talking about a new defensively minded Knicks team. The Celtics have made defense their trademark since the Big 3 came together. They have to continue to stress team defense and not allow the Knicks to score easily.
Topic: Celtics (0-0) at Knicks (0-0) 12/25 (Read 53792 times)