at
Boston Celtics (28-16) at Chicago Bulls (22-22)
Saturday, January 24, 2026
8:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #45, Road Game #25
TV:  NBCSB, Chicago Sports Network, NBA-LP
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 670 AM, Sirius XM
United Center


Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard
vs
Derrick White vs Coby White

Shooting Guard
vs
Payton Pritchard  vs  Isaac Okoro

Small Forward
vs
Jaylen Brown vs Matas Buzelis

Power Forward
vs
Sam Hauser vs  Jalen Smith

Center
vs
Neemias Queta vs Nikola Vucevic

Celtics Reserves
Anfernee Simons
Chris Boucher
Xavier Tillman
Hugo Gonzalez
Luka Garza
Baylon Scheierman
Jordan Walsh

2-Way Players
Ron Harper, Jr
Max Shulga
Amari Williams

Injuries/Out
Jayson Tatum (Achilles) out
Josh Minott  (ankle) questionable

Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla

Bulls Reserves
Jevon Carter
Ayo Dosunmo
Josh Giddey
Kevin Huerter
Julian Phillips
Dalen Terry
 
2 Way Players
Yuki Kawamura
Emanuel Miller
Lachlan Olbrich

Injuries/Out
Zach Collins (toe) out
Noa Essengue (shoulder) out
Tre Jones (hamstring) out
Josh Giddey (hamstring) probable
Lachlan Olbrich (back) probable
Patrick Williams (ankle) probable

Head Coach
Billy Donovan

Game Notes
The Celtics complete their 2 game road trip with a visit to Chicago to take on the Bulls in the second of back to back games.  This is the 2nd of 3 games between these two teams this season.  The Celtics won the first game 115-101 in Boston on January 5.  They will meet for the 3rd and final time in Boston on February 11.  The Celtics won the series 3-1 last season, with the loss coming in Boston.   The Celtics are 138-110 overall, all time against the Bulls and they are 55-69 in games played in Chicago.  The Celtics are playing on the second night of back to back games.  They are 4-2 so far in the 2nd of back to back games. 

Unlike the Celtics, who have 8 new players this season, the Bulls haven't changed their roster all that much since last season.  They made one trade that sent Lonzo Ball to the Cavaliers in exchange for Isaac Okoro.  They had signed Ball to a 2 year extension in February but traded him in the off season.  The Bulls also drafted noa Essengue with the 12th pick in the draft and they chose Lachlan Olbrich with the 55th pick, and signed him to a 2 way contract. 

The Celtics are 2nd in the East, 4.5 games behind 1st place Detroit. They are 2 games ahead of 3rd place New York and 4th place Toronto, 3 games ahead of 5th place Cleveland and  4 games ahead of 6th place Philadelphia and 5 games ahead of 7th place Orlando. The Celtics are 21-10 against Eastern Conference opponents. They are 15-9 on the road and 6-4 in their last 10 games. They have won their last 2 games.

The Bulls are 9th in the East, 11 games behind first place Detroit, 2.5 games behind 6th place Cleveland, 1.5 games behind 7th place Orlando and 2 games behind 8th place Miami.  They are 2 games ahead of 10th place Atlanta and 3.5 games ahead of 11th place Milwaukee.  The Bulls are 14-15 against Eastern Conference opponents.  They are 14-9 at home and 5-5 in their last 10 games.  They have won their last 3 games. 

The Celtics had one game at home after a 4 game road trip. They are playing in their 2nd straight game on the road in back to back games. Next, they will then have a 4 game home stand where they will host Portland, Atlanta, Sacramento and Milwaukee. Then, they are on the road at Dallas and Houston before playing Miami, New York, and Chicago at home, taking them into the All Star Break.

The Bulls will host the Los Angeles Lakers next before playing one game on the road at Indiana.  They will return home to host Miami before playing Miami on the road in back to back games.  They will then complete a 4 game road trip with games at Milwaukee and Toronto.   After playing Denver at home they will go on the road at Brooklyn and Boston before the All Star break. 

Jayson Tatum remains out for the Celtics as he continues to rehab from the Achilles tear he suffered in last year's playoffs. Josh Minott is questionable due to a sprained ankle.  Derrick White missed Friday's game due to rest but should be back in the starting lineup for this game.  For the Bulls, Noa Essengue is out with a shoulder injury,  Zach Collins is out with a toe injury and Tre Jones is out with a hamstring injury.  Josh Giddey (hamstring), Lachlan Olbrich (back) and Patrick Williams (ankle) are all probable.   

Key Matchups
vs
Derrick White vs Coby White 
White is averaging 18.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game while shooting 45.5% from the field and 35.2% from beyond the arc.  Over his career against the Celtics, he has averaged 11.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game.  In the January 5 game against the Celtics, he finished with 5 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists while shooting 28.6% from the field and 20% from 3.   The Celtics need to defend him on the perimeter because, although he is streaky,  he can catch fire from out there. 

vs
Neemias Queta vs Nikola Vucevic
Vucevic is averaging 16.8 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game while shooting 50.4% from the field and 37.3% from beyond the arc.   Over his career against Boston, he has averaged 16.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.2 assists.  In the first game against the Celtics this season he finished with 15 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists and 1 steal while shooting 42.9% from the field and 60% from beyond the arc.   The Celtics need to keep him out of the paint and off the boards, but they also need to defend him on the perimeter as he is a good 3 point shooter.

Honorable Mention
Jaylen Brown vs Matas Buzelis
Buzelis is averaging 14.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 blocks per game while shooting 47.8% from the field and 35.7% from beyond the arc.  Over his career against the Celtics, he averaged 9.8 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1 steal per game.  In the first game against the Celtics this season, he finished with 26 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block while shooting 75% from the field and 75% from beyond the arc.  The Celtics need to do a better job of defending him in this game.

Keys to the Game
Defense -  Defense is always a key to winning.  The Celtics are 12th in the league with a defensive rating of 113.7.  The Bulls are 24th with a defensive rating of 116.6.  The Bulls are 16 with an offensive rating of 114.4 while the Celtics are 2nd with an offensive rating of 121.3.  The Celtics need to get a strong defensive effort from every player on the court and they need to make defense a priority for all 48 minutes with no slacking off.  The Celtics need to especially guard the 3 point line as the Bulls attempt 39.4 threes per game (10th) and they make 14.4 threes per game (9th). 

Rebound - The Celtics must box out and crash the boards.  They can't score without the ball and it will take extra effort on their part to beat the Bulls on the boards.  The Celtics are averaging 45.1 rebounds per game, which is 10th in the league. The Bulls are averaging 45.3 rebounds per game, which is 9th.  The Celtics have to put out more effort to get to the rebounds before the Bulls and give themselves extra possessions and limit those possessions for the Bulls.

Energy and Effort for 48 Minutes - The Celtics have to start the game with energy and have to play harder than the Bulls from the opening tip until the final buzzer.  The Bulls have beaten some very good teams, among them the Pistons, Knicks, 76ers, Nuggets, Mavericks, Lakers and Clippers.  The Celtics can't expect to win with less than 100% effort for all 4 quarters. They have to be the more aggressive team, getting off to a fast start and playing hard right up to the final buzzer with no let up. They will get the Bulls best effort and so the Celtics must work harder than the Bulls with no let up.

Three Point Shooting - The Celtics often shoot 3s at a historic rate but there are times when their shots just aren't falling.  The Celtics are 2nd in the league,  taking 42.4 threes per game.  The Bulls are 10th, taking 39.4 threes per game.  The Celtics make 15.6 threes per game while the Bulls make 14.4 threes per game.  The Celtics need to focus on taking good shots and they need to move the ball so as to get open shots.  If the 3s aren't falling, they need to get to the basket or take mid-range shots.  They also must defend the perimeter because the Bulls can get hot and put up a lot of 3 pointers if left open.   

X-Factors
Road Game and Back to Back -  The Celtics are playing on the road and will have the distractions of travel and a hotel stay and playing in front of hostile fans in an unfamiliar arena.  The Bulls lost the first game between these two teams and will be motivated to avenge that loss in this game.  The Celtics are playing on the second night of back to back games and are coming off a double overtime win on Friday and so fatigue may become a factor down the stretch. 

Officiating -  The officiating is always an x-factor.  Sometimes a crew will call the game tight and blow a whistle on every play.  Other times they will let them play and let the game get physical and then change that midway and tighten it up.  Sometimes they will favor one team over the other and other times they will call it even.  Sometimes they are just bad.   The Celtics need to adjust to the way the game is called and not let missed calls or bad calls affect their focus.  If the calls are bad, they just need to play harder to make up for them and not waste time arguing with the officials.  Most of all, they need to play hard enough to be far enough ahead that a bad call or two won't make a difference.