Celtics (6-1) at Spurs (5-3) Game 8 11/9/19

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
Boston Celtics (6-1) at San Antonio Spurs (5-3)
Saturday, November 9, 2019
5:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #8 Road Game #5
TV:  NBCSB, FSSW-SA, NBA League Pass 751 DTV, 752 xfinity
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, WOAI 1200 AM
AT&T Center



Probable Starters
PG SG SF PF C
PG: Kemba Walker
SG: Jaylen Brown
SF:  Gordon Hayward
PF:  Jayson Tatum
C:   Daniel Theis

Celtics Reserves
Carsen Edwards
Javonte Green
Semi Ojeleye
Vincent Poirier
Marcus Smart
Brad Wanamaker
Grant Williams
Robert Williams III

Injuries/NWT
Romeo Langford  (G League)  out
Enes Kanter (knee)  out

Two Way Players
Tremont Waters
Tacko Fall

Head Coach
Brad Stevens




Probable Starters
PG SG SF  PF C
PG:  DeJounte Murray
SG:  Bryn Forbes
SF:  DeMar DeRozan
PF:   LaMarcus Aldridge
C:    Trey Lyles

Spurs Reserves
Marco Bellinelli
DeMarre Carroll
Rudy Gay
Keldon Johnson
Chimezie Metu
Patty Mills
Jakob Poeltl
Luka Samanic
Lonnie Walker IV
Derrick White

Injuries
None

Two Way Players
Drew Eubanks
Quinndary Weatherspoon 

Head Coach
Gregg Popovich

Game Notes
The Celtics complete their 3 game road trip in San Antonio as they take on the San Antonio Spurs.  This is undoubtedly the toughest game of the trip.  The Celtics have only beaten the Spurs one time in the past 8 years.  Their last win in San Antonio was in 2011 and they have dropped 14 of their last 15 games to the Spurs since then.

The Spurs have pretty much always had the Celtics number,  leading the series 44-13 ince 1990.   Brad Stevens has only won once against Pop in his tenure with the Celtics and that was in October of 2017 in Boston.   The last game between these two teams was a 115-96 win by the Spurs on March 24, 2019.  Both teams are coming off a win on Thursday and had Friday off. 

The Celtics are 3-1 on the road, with their only loss coming on opening night in Philadelphia.  The Spurs are 4-1 at home, losing on November 3 to the Los Angeles Lakers.  The Celtics are looking for their 7th straight win while the Spurs are looking for their 2nd win in a row. 

The Celtics are mostly back to full health with Enes Kanter as the only player still on the injured list with the knee contusion.  He was upgraded to questionable  for Thursday's game but has already been ruled out for this game.  Romeo Langford remains with the Maine Red Claws.  The Spurs have no injuries reported. 

Key Matchups
vs
Gordon Hayward vs DeMar DeRozan
DeMar DeRozan has had some big games against the Celtics in the past and so the Celtics need to stay with him.  He isn't a threat from deep but is shooting 51.4% from the field.  He is leading the Spurs with 20.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.1 steals.  He isn't known for tough defense so hopefully we will see another big game from Gordon.

  vs 
Aldridge  is coming off a 39 point game and has the length to give the Celtics a problem.  In the last game between these two teams, Aldridge had 48 points and 13 rebounds.  He is averaging 16.1 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and  2.3 blocks. 

Honorable Mention
Kemba Walker vs Dejounte Murray
Murray is averaging 12.2 points, 8.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.8 steals per game.  Kemba is coming off a very emotional game against his former team and will hopefully bounce back with a big game in this one.

Keys to the Game
Defense - Defense wins games and so the Celtics need to continue to make defense a priority.  The Celtics are 3rd with a defensive rating of 100.0 while the Spurs are 16th with a defensive rating of 106.4   Since they are very close on offense with the Celtics scoring 110.3 points per game and the Spurs averaging 111.0 points per game, defense will likely decide the winner of this game.

Rebound - The Celtics can't score if they don't have the ball, and they will struggle if they  give up second chance points to the Spurs.   The Celtics are averaging 47 rebounds per game while the Spurs are averaging 48.8 rebounds per game.  Rebounding takes effort and when they put forth the extra effort on the boards, that tends to spread to other areas of the game as well.   

Move the Ball - When the Celtics move the ball they play very well.  When the ball stops moving, the Celtics struggle to score and the rest of their game slows down as well.  They need to keep moving the ball and make the extra pass to find the best shot.  They have to play team ball. 

Be Aggressive - The Celtics need to play hard and be the more aggressive team.  They have to go after rebounds, loose balls,  and 50/50 balls.  They have to be aggressive on defense and in getting to the basket. They have to be the team that works harder and wants it more. 

Play 48 Minutes - The Celtics have yet to put together a game where they play well for 48 minutes.  They are getting better starts but still seem to bog down at times.  They need to come out strong and play hard until the final buzzer.  They will need consistent effort from start to finish if they want to beat the Spurs.

X-Factors
Road Game - The Celtics are playing in the final game of a 3 game road trip.  The AT&T Center is a very tough place to play.  The Celtics have to block out all distractions and focus on playing their game.   The Celtics, especially the young players,  have to dig deep down and keep their focus. 

Coaching - Gregg Popovich is considered by many to be the best coach in the league.  Brad Stevens is considered to be the best young coach in the league and the heir apparent to Popovich's crown.  Matchups and coaching strategy should come into play in this game. Will master or pupil come out on top? 

Officiating - Officiating is always an X-Factor.  Every crew officiates differently and teams need to adjust to the way the game is called.  Marcus Smart was fined for complaining about the officiating against the Hornets and that could either cause a backlash from the refs or maybe better officiating.  It's a toss up.  Hopefully we get fair officiating and they let them play. 

[LilRip]

Let’s go C’s!!!!

EDIT: oh snap, I actually commented first?? Haha

[FLCeltsFan]

TP to LilRip   for being the first to post in the game thread. 

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Celtics!!!!!!!

[Ogaju]

GO CELTICS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! TP FLCF

[bdm860]

The Celtics have only beaten the Spurs one time in the past 8 years.  Their last win in San Antonio was in 2011 and they have dropped 14 of their last 15 games to the Spurs since then.

The Spurs have pretty much always had the Celtics number,  leading the series 44-13 since 1990.   Brad Stevens has only won once against Pop in his tenure with the Celtics and that was in October of 2017 in Boston.

I believe this is the only NBA city Stevens has never won an NBA game in.

Let's put an end to that!


Looking it up, it looks like the teams where Stevens has a poor record as the visting team are HOU (1-5), LAC (1-5), and TOR (1-11).  Toronto is surprising just for the sheer number of games and how much better Stevens has fared at home (9-4).  But overall, Stevens has as many wins in Golden State (3) during their dominant era as he does in TOR, HOU, LAC, and SAS combined.

[Somebody]

Go Celtics!

[blink]

cmon Celtics!  get the win in SA

[gouki88]

Should be a good one!

[Csfan1984]

I don't expect a win so if it's a good fight I will be happy.

Let's go C's

[SHAQATTACK]

I don't expect a win so if it's a good fight I will be happy.

Let's go C's

yeah i know what ya mean,   its been so long since we won a game at their house , my memory fails me.    I just assume a loss  , whats it been 10 years? 

[Celtics4ever]

Go C's!

[PAOBoston]

Curious to see how they matchup. Rebounding will be key here. Aldridge obliterated the Cs last year.

[Surferdad]

The Celtics have only beaten the Spurs one time in the past 8 years.  Their last win in San Antonio was in 2011 and they have dropped 14 of their last 15 games to the Spurs since then.

The Spurs have pretty much always had the Celtics number,  leading the series 44-13 since 1990.   Brad Stevens has only won once against Pop in his tenure with the Celtics and that was in October of 2017 in Boston.

I believe this is the only NBA city Stevens has never won an NBA game in.

Let's put an end to that!


Looking it up, it looks like the teams where Stevens has a poor record as the visting team are HOU (1-5), LAC (1-5), and TOR (1-11).  Toronto is surprising just for the sheer number of games and how much better Stevens has fared at home (9-4).  But overall, Stevens has as many wins in Golden State (3) during their dominant era as he does in TOR, HOU, LAC, and SAS combined.

FlCelts, you could have easily put Stevens vs. Popovich as a key matchup.  Pop knows how to get the best out of his players and that scares me more than individual player matchups (though Aldridge is always tough on us).

[Chef Parish]

Aldridge just had a monster game his last game. And he usually does well against the Celtics. I think the only way he's not going to kill the Celtics is if he has a bad night himself.

However the Spurs are going to have a hard time containing our Big 4 on offense.

[slamtheking]

another great thread FL!!  TP