The Celtics begin a 3 game road trip with a stop in New Orleans to take on the Pelicans. This is the 2nd, and final, game between these two teams this season. The Celtics won the first game 120-119 in Boston on January 12 when a CJ McCollum potential game winner rimmed out. The Celtics won the series 2-0 last season. The Celtics are 27-21 overall all time against the Pelicans and 11-13 on the road.
The Pelicans were active in the offseason. Their biggest move was to trade Dyson Daniels, Cody Zeller, EJ Liddell and Larry Nance, Jr to Atlanta for Dejounte Murray. They signed former Celtic Daniel Theis and Antonio Reeves as free agents. They claimed Brandon Boston off waivers and signed him to a 2 way contract. They drafted Yves Missi with the 21st pick.
The Celtics remain 2nd in the East, 5.5 games behind the first place Cleveland Cavaliers. They are just 1 game ahead of 3rd place New York, who has won their last 5 games. They are 5.5 games ahead of 4th place Milwaukee. They are 17-6 on the road and 6-4 in their last 10 games. They are 9-6 vs Western Conference opponents and are coming off a win in their last game.
The Pelicans are 14th in the West. They are 26 games behind the first place Oklahoma City Thunder. They are 12.5 games behind 10th place Sacramento and the last play in spot. They are half a game ahead of 15th place Utah. They are 8-17 at home and 5-5 in their last 10 games. They are 6-15 against Eastern Conference opponents. They have lost their last 4 games.
The Celtics just completed a 1-1 home stand, losing to the Rockets and beating the Bulls. After this game at the Pelicans, they will play 2 more road games, playing at Philadelphia and Cleveland. Then one game at home against Dallas before playing at New York and at Miami and finally, at home against San Antonio before the All Star Break.
The Pelicans are playing in the second straight home game, losing to Dallas at home on Wednesday. They will head out on a 4 game road trip after this game playing 2 straight games at Denver and then at Sacramento and Oklahoma City. They will then play 2 games at home against, both against Sacramento. Then, after the All Star Break, they will play at Dallas and 2 more games at home against Sacramento followed by 2 games at Phoenix, back to back.
Al Horford missed the last 2 games against Houston and Chicago with a left toe sprain but has been upgraded to probable for this game. Sam Hauser also missed the Celtics’ last 2 games with a pinched nerve in his right hip. He is questionable for this game and will be a game time decision. Jayson Tatum was listed as questionable for the Bulls game with right knee tendinopathy but played in that game and is not on the injury report at this time.
For the Pelicans, Brandon Ingram is out with an ankle sprain. He hasn’t played since December 7 and has not yet been cleared for contact. Herb Jones is out with a labrum tear in his shoulder. Jordan Hawkins is questionable with a non-covid illness and is considered to be a game time decision.
Key Matchups
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Jayson Tatum
Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images
Zion Williamson
Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Jayson Tatum vs Zion WilliamsonWilliamson is averaging 23.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.2 blocks per game. He is shooting 52% from the field and 18.2% from beyond the arc. In the first game against the Celtics, he finished with 16 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 5 steals while shooting 33.3% from the field with no 3 pointers. The Celtics will need to defend him very closely in the paint and midrange. He is very hard to stop when he gets a head of steam heading to the hoop.
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Jaylen Brown
Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images
Trey Murphy III
Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
Jaylen Brown vs Trey Murphy IIIMurphy is averaging 21.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 3.0 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He is shooting 45.6% from the field and 35.7% from beyond the arc. In the first game he finished with 30 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists off the bench while shooting 58.8% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc. The Celtics definitely need to defend him better in this game.
Honorable MentionDerrick White vs CJ McCollum McCollum is averaging 22 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game. He is shooting 44.9% from the field and 37.2% from beyond the arc. In the first game against the Celtics, he finished with 13 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1 block. He shot 33.3% from the field but just 16.7% from beyond the arc. McCollum can score both inside and out and so the Celtics need to defend him wherever he is on the court. In his last game he passed Jrue Holiday for the franchise all time 3 point leader with 629 threes as a Pelican.
Keys to the GameDefense – Defense will always be the key to winning. The Pelicans average 109.1 points per game (24th) while the Celtics average 117.2 points per game (5th). The Celtics are 5th in the league with a defensive rating of 109.5. The Pelicans are 28th with a defensive rating of 117.9. They have to play tough lock down defense for all 48 minutes if they want to win this, or any other, game.
Rebound – The Celtics have to crash the boards as a team. Rebounding takes effort and when they put that extra effort out to dominate the boards, it often translates to all other areas of the game as well. The Pelicans are averaging 43 rebounds (24th) and the Celtics are averaging 45 rebounds per game (11th). The Pelicans are 5th in the league with 15.5 second chance points and so the Celtics are going to have to work hard to keep them off the boards to keep them from scoring second chance baskets.
Move the Ball – The Celtics are at their best when they keep the ball moving and they find the open man. They had 32 assists against the Bulls and won by 22 points. They are 13-0 when they have 30 or more assists in a game. On the other hand, when they lapse into iso ball, they struggle to score and the offense stalls out. They need to keep the ball moving and play team ball.
Be Aggressive – The Celtics have got to be aggressive in going to the basket, playing defense, diving for loose balls and just playing harder. Their effort and aggressiveness can make them very tough to beat and their lack of it can make them vulnerable as we have seen several times this season already. They are once again facing a team that plays hard and are aggressive in spite of their losing record. Too often, the Celtics show a lack of effort against bad teams and it often comes back to bite them. They can’t afford to come out with less than 100% effort or to let up before the final buzzer.
X-Factors On the Road – The Celtics are playing on the road once again. Whether it is the travel, hotel living, or an unfamiliar arena and hostile fans, there are plenty of distractions to hinder a team playing on the road. The Celtics need to come in focused and not allow the distractions of playing away from home to keep them from playing their best.
Officiating – Officiating always has the possibility to be an x-factor. Every crew calls the game differently. Some call every bit of contact while some let them play. Some favor the home team and some call it evenly and some are just bad. Hopefully the Celtics get a crew that calls it even and lets both teams play. However the game is called, they need to focus on the game and not allow bad or no calls to take that focus away.
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