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Boston Celtics (50-24) at Atlanta Hawks (42-33)
Monday, March 30, 2026
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #75 Road Game #38
TV: NBCSB, FDSNSE, NBA-LP
98.5 Sports Hub, 92.9 The Game, Sirius XM
State Farm Arena
Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard
vs
Derrick White vs CJ MCCollum
Shooting Guard 
vs
Jaylen Brown vs Nickeil Alexander-Walker
Small Forward 
vs
Sam Hauser vs Dyson Daniels
Power Forward 
vs
Jordan Walsh vs Jalen Johnson
Center 
vs
Neemias Queta vs Onyeka Okongwu
Celtics ReservesPayton Pritchard
Hugo Gonzalez
Luka Garza
Amare Williams
Jordan Walsh
Baylor Scheierman
Max Shulga
Charles Bassey (10-Day)
2-Way PlayersRon Harper, Jr
Injuries/OutNikola Vucevic (finger) out
Jayson Tatum (Achilles) questionable
Jaylen Brown (Achilles) questionable
Derrick White (knee) questionable
Head CoachJoe Mazzulla
Hawks ReservesMouhamed Gueye
Buddy Hield
Caleb Houston
Corey Kispert
Jonathan Kuminga
Jock Landale
Asa Newell
Zaccharie Risacher
Gabe Vincent
Keaton Wallace
2-Way Players Rayj Dennis
Keshon Gilbert
Christian Koloko
Injuries/Out None Listed
Head CoachQuin Snyder
Game Notes The Celtics continue their road trip after a win over the Hornets. This is the 4th of 4 games between these two teams this season. The Celtics won the first game 132-106 in Atlanta on January 17. They lost the second game 117-106 in Boston on January 28. they won the 3rd game 109-102 in Boston on March 27. The Celtics are 247-152 overall all time and they are 114-95 in games played in Atlanta. The Celtics are playing on the second night of back to back games. They are 7-4 in the 2nd of back to back games.
Atlanta has won 12 straight home games with 9 of those wins coming in the month of March. They are 12-2 overall in the month of March, which is the most wins in the East in March. They have had 45 games with 30 or more assists this season and they have had 37 games with 10 or more steals this season. Both of these are the most in the NBA this season. Since the All Star break, the Hawks are 16-2, the best record amongst all Eastern Conference teams.
The Celtics are 2nd in the East, 4 games behind 1st place Detroit. They are 2.5 games ahead of 3rd place New York, 4 games ahead of 4th place Cleveland, 8 games ahead of 5th place Toronto, 8.5 games ahead of 6th place Atlanta, and 9 games ahead of 7th place Philadelphia. The Celtics are 31-14 against Eastern Conference opponents. They are 24-13 on the road and 7-3 in their last 10 games. They have won their last 3 games.
The Hawks are 6th in the East, 12.5 games behind 1st place Detroit, and 4.5 games behind 4th place Cleveland. They are tied with 5th place Toronto, half a game ahead of 7th place Philadelphia, and 2 games ahead of 8th place Orlando. They are 23-22 against Eastern Conference teams. They are 22-16 at home and 8-2 in their last 10 games. They are coming off a win in their last game.
After completing a 3 game home stand, The Celtics are on the road for a 4 game trip that began with a win in Charlotte and will finish up in Miami and Milwaukee. They will then play two games at home against Toronto and Charlotte before one game on the road at New York. They will finish the season with 2 games at home against New Orleans and Orlando.
This is the 2nd straight home game for Atlanta. They beat Sacramento on Saturday and complete the home stand against Boston. Then they play at Orlando and at Brooklyn. They then have a game at home against New York before a home and home series against Cleveland. They will finish the season on the road at Miami.
With this being the second of back to back games, the injury list is a little hard to guess at. I'm guessing that Jayson Tatum will sit this one out and that Jaylen Brown will return. Beyond that, I guess that Derrick White (knee) and Neemias Queta (thumb) will be questionable once again. Nikola Vucevic (finger) is out. For the Hawks, I'm guessing that they will have everyone available. I took a wild guess at the starters.
Key Matchups vs
Jordan Walsh vs Jalen Johnson
Johnson is averaging 22.9 points, 10.2 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He is shooting 49.3% from the field and 35.3% from beyond the arc. In the first 3 games against the Celtics, he averaged 20 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 6 assists while shooting 37.3% from the field and 45.5% from beyond the arc. The Celtics need to defend him well and keep him off the boards. If I am wrong and Tatum plays, he would start here.
vs
Jaylen Brown vs Nickeil Alexander-Walker
Alexander-Walker is averaging 20.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 45.1% from the field and 39.1% from beyond the arc. In the first 3 games against the Celtics, he averaged 19.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 2.0 steals while shooting 43.2% from the field and 42.3% from beyond the arc. He is a good 3 point shooter and the Celtics need to stay with him on the perimeter. If Jaylen remains out, it will likely be Baylor Scheierman starting here.
Honorable MentionDerrick White vs CJ McCollum
McCollum is averaging 18.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game. He is shooting 45.5% from the field and 36.9% from beyond the arc. In 5 games against the Celtics this season, he is averaging 14 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game while shooting 35.6% from the field and 21.9% from beyond the arc.
Keys to the Game Defense - Defense is always a key to winning games. The Celtics have an offensive rating of 119.3 (2nd) while the Hawks have an offensive rating of 114.8, which is 14th. The Celtics have a defensive rating of 111.5 which is 4th while the Hawks have a defensive rating of 113.2, which is 11th. The Celtics have been hot and cold on defense this season. Sometimes they can shut down the other team (See OKC) and sometimes they allow them to score at will (see Minnesota). The Celtics need to defend the perimeter because the Hawks are 6th, shooting 36.8% on threes. They also have to defend the paint as the Hawks are 10th with 51.9 points in the paint per game. The Celtics must make defense a priority in this game and they have to play that tough defense for 48 minutes and not let up.
Rebound - Next to defense, rebounding is the key to winning. When the Celtics put out the extra effort on the boards, it usually carries through to the rest of their game. The Hawks are averaging 43.4 rebounds per game (18th) while the Celtics are averaging 46.5 rebounds per game (4th). When the Celtics have more rebounds then their opponents, they are 38-10 when they have fewer rebounds, they are just 9-13. The Celtics need to aggressively go after every rebound. They can't afford to give the Hawks extra possessions and 2nd chance points by allowing them to beat them to rebounds.
Move the Ball Carefully - When the Celtics move the ball and find the open man, they are tough to beat. When they hold the ball and try to play iso ball, they become predictable and struggle. When the Celtics have more assists than their opponents they are 30-0 and when their opponents have more assists than the Celtics, they are just 17-22. The Hawks average 30.3 assists per game so getting more assists will not be easy. The Celtics need to move the ball, but they have to make careful passes because the Hawks are 3rd in the league with 20.2 points off turnovers per game.
Effort and Focus for 48 Minutes- The Celtics have to play with extra effort overall for all 4 quarters. In most of their losses and even in some of their wins, they have allowed their opponents to play with more energy than them for periods of time during the game. They play well for stretches but let up and allow their opponents to surge ahead, especially down the stretch as they did against Minnesota. They have to stay focused for all 48 minutes and be ready for their opponents to play harder in the second half and they need to match that effort. They also have to come out with more effort and energy to start the game and not dig themselves into a hole. The Hawks have been playing the best of any team in the league and will be looking to avenge their loss in the March 27th game. The Celtics will need maximum effort for all 48 minutes to beat them.
X-Factors
Road Game and Fatigue - The Celtics are playing in the second of back to back games 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 Celtics may be playing short handed for the second straight game and so fatigue due to the missing players, travel and playing back to back can be a factor down the stretch.
Officiating - Officiating is always an x-factor in every game. Every crew officiates differently. Some call it tight, others let them play. 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 from playing the game the right way. We have seen how much of an x-factor officiating can be in a few games this season. The Celtics have to play so well all game that the officiating, no matter how bad, can't influence the outcome.
Topic: Celtics (50-24) at Hawks (42-33) Game 75 3/30/26 (Read 780 times)