Celtics (5-9) at Wizards (2-13) 1/22

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
Boston Celtics (5-9) at Wizards (2-13)
Sunday, January 22
1:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #15,  Road Game #6
TV:  CSN-NE, Comcast Sportsnet, NBA-TV, 
Radio:  WEEI,  KTAR
Verizon Center 




Probable Starters
PG SG SF PF C
Rajon Rondo...Ray Allen...Paul Pierce...Kevin Garnett... Jermaine O'Neal

Boston Bench Mob
Brandon Bass
Sasha Pavlovic
JaJuan Johnson
E'Twaun Moore
Marquis Daniels
Avery Bradley
Greg Steimsma
Mickael Pietrus

Injured
Chris Wilcox (calf)  day to day
Keyon Dooling (knee)  day to day
Rajon Rondo (wrist)  game time decision




Probable Starters
PG SG SF PF C
John Wall...Nick Young....Chris Singleton...Andary Blatche...JaVale McGee


Wizards Bench
Tevor Booker
Jordan Crawford
Shelvin Mack
Roger Mason
Hamedy Ndiaye
Kevin Seraphin
Rashard Lewis
Maurice Evans
Jan Vesely

Injured
Ronny Turiaf (hand)  out

Team Connections
Wizards Assistant Coach Sam Cassell played for the Celtics during the 2007‐08 season and was a member of the
2008 NBA Championship team
Rashard Lewis and Ray Allen were teammates in Seattle from 2003‐07
Kevin Garnett played for Wizards head Coach Flip Saunders in Minnesota from 1995‐2005 He 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
Avery Bradley and Maurice Evans both attended the University of Texas.

Game Notes
This is the 3rd meeting between these two teams this season.  The Celtics have already won a home and home series earlier this season.   Both teams are coming off a loss and the Celtics only have 3 more wins than the struggling Wizards, who where the last team to record a win this season. 

Rajon Rondo missed the Celtics' last game with a sore wrist.  He made the trip with the team and his availability for this game will be a game time decision.  Keyon Dooling also made the trip but there hasn't been any word on whether he's even close to playing.  If Rondo can't go again,  Doc will more than likely go with Bradley in the starting lineup again and Moore as the backup.  But, the Celtics have proved that they need Rondo.  In the loss to the Suns they matched their lowest offensive output in 8 years without Rondo to run the offense.

Rondo averaged 13.5 assists as Boston posted a pair of eight-point victories in the previous 2 games with Washington Jan 1 and 2. The Celtics' lone road victory in five tries was their 94-86 win at the Verizon Center to open that set as Rondo had a triple-double.

The Celtics have yet to beat a contending team but they absolutely must beat these struggling teams until they can get it together to beat the top teams as well.   The Celtics need a win in this game, with or without Rondo at the point.   

Key Matchups
vs
Rajon Rondo (or Avery Bradley) vs John Wall
 The point guard position is important for every team but is proving even more important for the Celtics.  Wall is a young and exciting point guard, and Rondo or Bradley must play him tough and set the pace of the game for the Celtics to win.   

vs
Jermaine O'Neal vs Javale McGee
Jermaine O'Neal was absolutely abused by Marcin Gortat in the last game. He made a big point of saying that defense and rebounding are his role on the team and he did neither against the Suns.  He must give the team more of a presence in the paint. 

Honorable Mention
Kevin Garnett vs Andray Blatche
Kevin Garnett may have lost a step over the years, but he still has enough to get the better of Andray Blatche.  The Celtics will need aggressive play from KG on the offensive end as well as on defense. 

Keys to the Game
Rebound  The Celtics must crash the boards and keep the Wizards from getting second chance points, fast break opportunities and extra possessions.   As I have said before, when the Celtics put out the effort necessary to win the battle of the boards, that effort seems to pick up every area of their game as well.   

Defense    Defense always wins games.  The Celtics have to make defense their priority and shut down the paint as well as staying on their outside shooters. In their first 4 games, the Celtics have played defense in spurts but they have allowed way too many easy baskets.   When the Celtics clamp down on defense the rest of their game picks up. 

Be Aggressive  The Celtics need to play aggressively.  They need to take the ball to the hoop and try to get to the line early and often.   Make the officials call the fouls.  By being aggressive going to the basket, it could help to jump start their offense that has been very anemic.   They also have to go for every loose ball and battle for all the rebounds.   If they play passively, they could be facing another loss to a team that they should beat.

Limit Turnovers - The Celtics have turned the ball over too much in games so far.  The tend to make lazy passes and lose focus from time to time and give their opponents easy scoring opportunities because of it. It seems that they go on a run and then blow it with 4 or 5 turnovers in a row.  They have to take better care of the ball.   

X-Factors
Offense and Focus
Obviously this game is easier if Rondo plays,  but whether he plays or not, the Celtics should beat this team.  They have to find their focus to hit their shots and run the offense.  There is no explanation as to why they haven't  been able to hit their shots, and that includes layups.  It seems that they lead the league in missed layups.   Whether it is focus, conditioning or whatever,  they simply have to get their offense working. 

[ACF]

TP. Go Celtics!

[Q_FBE]

I think the Celtics will continue to struggle and I would not be surprised to see them drop this game. Scoring only 71 points against the Phoenix Suns is purely struggling. It is on the Celtics to improve in all facets of the game. Otherwise, changes will be made.

[FLCeltsFan]

Word from A Sherrod Blakely is Rondo is out again today.  Expect Avery to get the start once again. 

[FLCeltsFan]

Get ready for referee frustration....   

Joe Crawford, Kevin Fehr, Violet Palmer   

[ManUp]

Is Rondo playing?

[heitingas]

let's tank.

[Q_FBE]

Get ready for referee frustration....   

Joe Crawford, Kevin Fehr, Violet Palmer   

Maybe Violet Palmer will keep Joey Crawford in check 

Rondo will not play according to Gary Washburn. The Celtics need to just go out and play.

[Who]

Nick Young has started to pick it up after a slow start. Looks like he's finally found his sea legs after missing most of training camp due to contract negotiations.

Ray Allen is going to have to stay on his toes defensively tonight. Keep tight on Young. Make sure he doesn't go off and make this a difficult game for Boston to win.

Ray's defense on Young could be very important today

[The DarkPassenger]

How the Celtics play in this game I think will decide how quickly Ainge blows this team up.

[FLCeltsFan]

Official Report
Joey Crawford
Crawford has been officiating games since 1977 and has officiated more play-off games (278) and NBA Finals Games (46) than any other active referee. There is no shortage of controversy surrounding Joey Crawford, the biggest of which was a suspension for tossing Tim Duncan for laughing on the bench and then challenging him to a fight. He is known for his quickness to call technical fouls but also doesn't tend to be influenced by the home crowd as much as many other refs seem to be. In the 2008 Playoffs, Crawford was chosen to officiate Game 4 of the Western Conference final between the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers. In the closing seconds of the game, there was a no-call where the Spurs' Brent Barry was unquestionably fouled by Derek Fisher. Crawford was the closest official to the call, and the NBA later apologized for the lack of a call. Crawford was also one of the refs who was involved in the income tax evasion convictions and was suspended at that time as well. And in the Suns 2010 first round against the Blazers, Crawford made what was possibly the worst call of all time when he called Marcus Camby for a foul and put Steve Nash on the line. Camby was nowhere near Nash at the time. But it put Camby into foul trouble and put one of the best free throw shooters in the game on the line. Crawford officiated the Christmas day loss to the Knicks. The Celtics are 5-5 in their last 10 games with Crawford. The Wizards are 3-7 in their last 10. His home W/L record this season is 6-5.

Kevin Fehr
Fehr has officiated over 630+ regular season games. Before becoming an official, Kevin Fehr’s athletic ability landed him in the St. Louis Cardinals’ organization in 1981 and 1982. After his baseball career ended he took up officiating and is now in his 17th NBA season with 949 regular season games of experience. Fehr spent five years officiating in the CBA and also has seven years of collegiate officiating experience. He officiated the SEC and OVC Tournaments. Fehr has high school officiating experience in Alabama, where he worked the State Tournament in 1988 and 1989. Fehr was also a member of the crews that officiated 2003 NBA All-Star Saturday and the 1999 Mexico Challenge. The Celtics are 7-3 in their last 10 games with him. The Wizards are 5-5 with Fehr on the court. His home W/L record this season is 8-2.

Violet Palmer
Violet Palmer is the only woman officiating in the NBA. She has been there for 14 seasons already. Before joining the NBA, Palmer officiated in the WNBA during the league’s inaugural season, including the 1997 WNBA Championship. She has two years of CBA officiating experience and nine years of collegiate officiating experience including five NCAA Final Fours and two NCAA Championship games. At one time Violet was the worst ref in the league. In one game Cedric Maxwell was moved to urge her to go back into the kitchen because her calls were so bad. She has had Tommy close to exploding many times as well. She's improved a lot over the years and is no longer the worst ref in the league (that honor goes to Bennett Salvatore) but she's still not a good ref. Although, after getting a hug from Pierce after he ran into her in win over the Pacers last season, the Celtics took 20 more free throws than the Pacers. The Celtics are 6-4 over their last 10 games with Violet on the court. The Wizards are 3-7 over their last 10 with Violet. Her home W/L record this season is 4-7.

[dark_lord]

Official Report
Joey Crawford
Kevin Fehr
Violet Palmer

[BASS_THUMPER]

10am in cali...

too early to drink but for the celtic's ill make an exception

[snively]

Word from A Sherrod Blakely is Rondo is out again today.  Expect Avery to get the start once again. 

Well, Wall/Bradley will be interesting at least. 

Hope to get better play out of Moore today.

[ACF]

10am in cali...

too early to drink but for the celtic's ill make an exception

Cheers, Bassy!

Official Report
Joey Crawford

Well, now we know it's going to be a close game  Wizards will probably win on a pair of FTs a few seconds from time.

*sigh*