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Washington Wizards (2-6) at Boston Celtics (8-2)
Wednesday, November 17
7:30 PM ET
Game #11, Road Game #5
TV: CSNNE, Comcast Sportsnet, NBA-LP 752/753
Radio: WEEI, WJFK
TD Garden 
Probable Starters 
PG: Rajon Rondo 10.8 PPG, 15.1 APG, 2.7 SPG
SG: Ray Allen 18.8 PPG, 2.4 APG, .459 3P%
SF: Paul Pierce 21.0 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 2.8 APG
PF: Kevin Garnett 15.4 PPG, 10.4 RPG, 0.6 BPG
C: Shaquille O'Neal 9.8 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 0.4 BPG
Boston Bench Mob Delonte West
Glen Davis
Luke Harangody
Nate Robinson
Von Wafer
Semih Erden
Avery Bradley
InjuredKendrick Perkins (knee) out
Jermaine O'Neal (knee) out
Marquis Daniels (family matter) questionable
Probable Starters 
PG: John Wall 18.1 PPG, 9.8 APG, 3.3 SPG
SG: Kirk Hinrich 11.0 PPG, 4.6 APG, .406 3P%
SF: Al Thornton 13.0 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.1 APG
PF: Andre Blatche 16.4 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 0.3 BPG
C: JaVale McGee 7.5 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 2.9 BPG
Wizards BenchHilton Armstrong
Gilbert Arenas
Nick Young
Trevor Booker
Cartier Martin
Kevin Seraphin
Injured John Wall (foot) questionable
Yi Jianlian (Knee) questionable
Josh Howard (knee) out
Team Connections Wizards Assistant Coach Sam Cassell played for the Celtics during the 2007-08 season
Kevin Garnett played for Wizards Head Coach Flip Saunders in Minnesota from 1995-2005
KG also played for Wizards Assistant Coach Randy Wittman in Minnesota in 2007
Garnett and Cassell were teammates in Minnesota from 2003-05
John Wall and Rajon Rondo both attended the University of Kentucky
Hilton Armstrong and Ray Allen both attended UConn
Paul Pierce and Kirk Hinrich both attended the University of Kansas
Von Wafer and Al Thornton both attended Florida State University
Wafer and Cassell were teammates on the Clippers during the 2006-07 season
Key Matchups
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Rajon Rondo vs John Wall
This matchup may or may not come to fruition. Wall injured his foot in a game on Saturday and is questionable for this game. Wall leads all rookies in scoring and assists and tops the league in steals. He also leads the NBA in turnovers. I'm hoping he plays as this will be a great matchup.
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Ray Allen has been on a roll recently but he faces a good defender in Kirk Hinrich. The question will be whether Hinrich feels like chasing Ray around all the screens to keep him from getting open. Hopefully Ray will continue his strong shooting in this one.
Honorable Mention 
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This is finally Delonte's first game back in green. Assuming that Wall is able to start, Delonte will be playing against Gilbert Arenas and this should be an interesting matchup. If Wall isn't able to go, we will see Rondo matched up with Arenas and Delonte will have a much easier time in his first game.
Game Notes Last season, the Celtics won the series 3‐1. The Celtics won both games in Washington and were 1-1 at home. Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo both averaged 17.5 points per game against the Wizards last season. Rondo also chipped in with 10.5 assists per game. Andray Blatche averaged 20.0 points and 6.8 rebounds in his four games against Boston. Gilbert Arenas scored 25 points and handed out eight assists in his only game against Boston last season.
The story of this game will be the long awaited debut of Delonte West. Hopefully he fits in with the bench seamlessly and gives the team a boost on both ends of the court. His presence should give both Ray and Rondo a little more rest.
John Wall, the first pick in last year's draft is leading all rookies in scoring and assists He also is first in the league in steals. But he has been inconsistent. In 2 losses to Cleveland and NY, He had 15 turnovers and just 9 field goals but in a win over Houston he put up 19 points, 13 assists, 6 steals and just 1 turnover.
The Celtics have had 3 days off after their road trip and should be rested and raring to go. The Wizards are playing in the second of back to back games, having hosted the Raptors the night before. The Celtics are 4-0 at home while the Wizards are 0-4 on the road. This should be an easy win, but it could just as easily be a trap game if they don't take the Wizards seriously and come to play.
Keys to the Game Play 48 Minutes After 3 days off, they may be a bit rusty, but they have to come out ready to play. If they come out and play hard, they could very well build a big lead. They must stop giving up big leads in the 4th quarter and not get complacent once they get a lead.
Take Care of the Ball The Celtics have been doing better in limiting turnovers and they have to keep that up.
Defense The Celtics need to get back to making defense their top priority. Defense always wins games and it will win the championship as well.
Rebound The Celtics must crash the boards to limit the Wizards fast breaks and second chance points.
Odd FactThe team was originally called the Bullets because of Baltimore's original NBA team that played in an Armory. In 1996 owner Abe Pollin decided to change it due to a number of recent high profile shooting deaths. The name Wizards was chosen over other finalists like Dragon, Express, Seadogs and Stallions in various focus groups.
I should mention the irony of Delonte coming back from his suspension for gun possession against a team formerly called the Bullets. And against a team who last year had not one, but 2 players suspended for gun play in the locker room.
X-FactorDelonte's Debut
Will it have a positive effect on the team, a negative effect on the team, or no visible effect?
Topic: Wizards (2-6) at Celtics (8-2) 11/17 (Read 8272 times)