Hornets (18-14) at Celtics (24-6) 12/31

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 

New Orleans Hornets (18-14) at Boston Celtics (24-6)
Friday, December 31
3:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #31 – Road Game #15
TV: CSN-NE,  CST, NBA-LP 751
Radio:  WEEI,  KMEZ
TD Garden 



ProbableStarters
PG   Rajon Rondo 11.2 PPG   13.8 APG  2.4 SPG

SG    Ray Allen  16.8 PPG  3.3 APG  .415 3P%

SF Paul Pierce 18.8 PPG  5.1 RPG   3.7 APG

PF Glen Davis 12.1 PPG   5.7 RPG    0.4 BPG

C Shaquille O'Neal  10.4 PPG     5.5 RPG  0.9 BPG

Reserves
Jermaine O'Neal
Marquis Daniels
Von Wafer
Nate Robinson
Luke Harangody
Avery Bradley

Injuries
Kendirck Perkins  (knee) out
Delonte West (wrist) out
Kevin Garnett (calf)  out
Semih Erden  (groin and flu) day to day
Rajon Rondo (ankle)  day to day





Probable Starters
PG    Chris Paul 16.6 PPG   9.6 APG  2.8 SPG

SG    Marco Belinelli    11.2 PPG  1.3 APG  .376 3P%

SF  Trevor Ariza   10.3 PPG  5.5 RPG  2.1 APG

PF    David West  18.9 PPG   6.9 RPG    0.8 BPG

C  Emeka Okafor   10.4 PPG   9.6 RPG    1.8 BPG

Reserves
Marcus Thornton
Jason Smith
Jarrett Jack
D.J. Mbenga
Quincy Pondexter
David Andersen
Willie Green
Marcus Banks
Aaron Gray

Injuries
Pops Mensah Bonsu  (elbow) out
David West (ankle) day to day

Team Connections
Emeka Okafor and Ray Allen are former UConn Huskies
Marcus Thornton, Glen Davis and Shaquille O’Neal all
attended Louisiana State University
Quincy Pondexter and Nate Robinson attended the University of Washington
Kevin Garnett and Marcus Banks were teammates in Minnesota during the 2006‐07 season
Marcus Banks played for the Celtics from 2003‐06…
Jarrett Jack and Marquis Daniels were teammates in Indiana during the 2008‐09 season

Game Notes
This is the first meeting between these two teams this season.  Doc has said that Rondo might be back for this one but it will probably be a game time decision.   I'm being optimistic by putting him in the starting lineup.   

Both starting power forwards suffered injuries in their last games.  West rolled an ankle and KG injured his calf.  West is listed in their starting lineup and may be a game time decision.  KG is definitely out for this one and Doc has said that he will probably start Big Baby in his place.  The Ticket Stub has done well in the past when starting in place of KG and hopefully he can fill in the void again until KG is ready to return. 

Both teams are coming off a loss.  The Celtics lost to the Pistons on the road while the Hornets were blown out at home by the Lakers.  Both teams last played on Wednesday.  Boston is 8-2 in their last 10 games while the Hornets are 4-6 in their last 110 games.  The Celtics have done well to protect their home court with a 13-1 record at home while the Hornets have struggled on the road with a 5-10 record. 

The Celtics have to deal with yet another injury.   It was hoped that Rondo would be ready to play in this one, but it will be a game time decision.  Their depth will be tested as they struggle to get players healthy for the stretch run. 

Key Matchups
or vs 
Whether Rondo or Nate starts, the PG matchup will be key.  Chris Paul is the focal point of the New Orleans offense.  Boston has struggled offensively with Rondo out.   Whoever is at the point will need to defend Paul to keep him from taking over the game and they must also be more efficient with their offense.   

vs
Paul Pierce has been taking on more and more of the burden with each additional injury.  He has tried to increase his rebounding and has been distributing the ball and now he will need to increase his defensive intensity with KG out.  Ariza is a good defender and will be a tough matchup for Pierce.   If Ariza makes things tough for Pierce, others must step up. 

Honorable Mention
Glen Davis vs David West
Big Baby has been very effective in the starting lineup in the past and he has been playing very well this season so far.  But KG leaves some very big shoes to fill, especially on defense and especially without Perk to anchor the defense with KG out.  Big Baby will need to raise his game even further to fill the void left by KG's injury.  West is their leading scorer and the Celtics will need their team defense to help Big Baby slow him down. 

Keys to the Game
Take Care of the Ball -  The Celtics turned the ball over 21 times vs the Pistons and 17 of those 21 turnovers were by the starters.   Some of this can be attributed to the absence of Rondo and Ray and Paul having to handle the ball more.  But they must take better care of the ball and not force passes and not make sloppy passes. 

Rebound -    It takes effort to rebound and the Celtics must put forth that effort if they want to win this game.  They can't allow the Hornets to get second chance baskets.  They allowed the Pistons to grab 1 more rebound than them in the last game.  They must be the team that wants it more if they expect to win this game and that effort and desire will show itself on the boards.

Focus and Effort - Especially with all the inuries, each player must come into the game focused and they must put out 100% effort from the opening tip to the final buzzer.  If they lose their focus or play with less than 100% effort, they won't be able to overcome the injuries and beat a Hornets team that is very capable of winning on any given night. 

X-Factor
Injuries
A lot will ride on whether Rondo plays in this one and how effective he can be in his first game back if he does play.  The Celtics have been winning through injuries during the past two months, but KG and Rondo both out is a lot to overcome.   

[Who]

New Orleans should win this one.

Without Garnett, it'll be extremely difficult for Boston to stop Chris Paul in the pick and roll. Paul should be able to take advantage of Nate Robinson all night long and create high percentage shots for his teammates. I'd expect the Hornets to have a big scoring night.

Meanwhile, without Rondo on the other end of the floor (if he doesn't play), the Celtics offense will likely continue to disappoint ... and be unable to keep up the pace with Hornets high functioning offense.

[Kiorrik]

TP FL

And I just hope we look good. I don't care if we lose to a team that plays a lot better than we do, as long as we play hard, and don't look like what we looked like yesterday.

Oh man, I'm still in shock over what happened to KG yesterday

[celticinorlando]

if rondo is back...boston wins

[Kiorrik]

if rondo is back...boston wins

I hope he will be. Honestly, this team has been a lot less fun to watch with him out, and will be even less fun now that KG is out.

(I tried to avoid the word "frustrating" in regards to our team's play without Rondo, but still think it's worth the mention :p)

[j804]

I think the opposite well come out fired up looking to get on track, with the right mindset playing with a edge. Also with KG in mind I expect us to play hard. 

Let's get this W even without Rondo we're too talented.

[Edgar]

For tomorroy i will take a sabatical
paint my kid room making it ready for his bro or sis
clean the house
make dinner for my parent and my wife relatives
take a bath
I am coming back from the beach and playing the hippi road
lol
kiddkin
 
not really 
So.......
I am not going to dedicate my time to the Cs tomorrow

yeah right Edgar,

Moreso, i will use that time to clean the Bar while I watch my beloved ones WIN tomorrow

Go Cs.And over all


THE BEST 2011 for all of you Out there

HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[hwangjini_1]

another great game thread. thanks and a tp to help you bring in the new year. 

[letsgoblue86]

I don't expect Garnett being out to be an excuse for losing games.  This team needs to buckle down and guys need to step up.

[dark_lord]

I don't expect Garnett being out to be an excuse for losing games.  This team needs to buckle down and guys need to step up.

this team hasnt made excuses, so i dont expect them to start now

[ACF]

TP. Go Celtics!

[jbsprinter1]

i feel like this game will determine if this team is really different from last year's. so far it seems like they're playing much harder, so i doubt kg's absence will cause them to fall apart. hopefully they don't let me down. i don't think anyone here needs to endure another post-christmas slump.

go celtics!

[Datruthtakesover34]

1 word: rooooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnndoooooooooooooo

[PosImpos]

If Rondo isn't playing, Chris Paul will tear the Celtics a new one.  If Rondo plays, we have a good chance.  It sounds like he probably won't play, though, so I'm not optimistic.

The Celtics are not a good team without Rondo or KG.

[Who]

The Celtics are not a good team without Rondo or KG.

I think the Celtics can play .500 basketball without Rondo and KG. They still have good quality on the wings and a bunch of useful role players throughout the rotation. Shaq, JO, BBD, Marquis, Nate.

The Hornets are another tier up though. A 45-48 win team.