After 5 games against Western Conference teams, the Celtics host the Chicago Bulls. This is the 4th, and final, game between these two teams this season. The Celtics won the first game in Chicago on 11/29. They lost the 2nd game in Boston on 12/19 and won the 3rd game in Chicago on 12/21.
The Celtics won the series 3-0 last season, winning 2 games at Chicago and 1 game at Boston. The Celtics are 136-110 overall all time against the Bulls. They are 75-40 in games played in Boston.
The Celtics remain 2nd in the East. After moving to within 4.5 games of 1st place Cleveland, the Celtics have slipped back to 5.5 games out of first place. They are just 1 game ahead of 3rd place New York, who have won their last 4 games. They are 15-9 at home and 5-5 in their last 10 games. They are 23-9 against Eastern Conference teams. They are coming off a loss in their last game.
The Bulls are 10th in the East and in the final play in spot. They are 17.5 games behind first place Cleveland and 4 games behind 6th place Miami and the last guaranteed playoff spot. They are 1.5 games ahead of 11th place Philadelphia. They are 11-11 on the road and 3-7 in their last 10 games. They are 15-16 against Eastern Conference teams and won their last game.
The Celtics are playing in the second straight home game a 4 game road trip where they went 3-1. After this home game they will have another 3 game road trip through New Orleans, Philadelphia and Cleveland. Then one game at home against Dallas before playing at New York and at Miami and home against San Antonio before the All Star Break.
The Bulls are playing in the first game of a 3 game road trip that will continue through Toronto and Detroit. They then face Miami at home before one game on the road at Minnesota. They will then play Golden State and 2 games against Detroit at home before the All Star Break.
Al Horford was questionable before Monday’s game with a toe injury and then was listed as available, but he ended up sitting it out. He is once again questionable for this game. Sam Hauser missed Monday’s game and is questionable for this game with a right hip impingement. Jayson Tatum played almost 42 minutes on Monday and is questionable for this game with right knee tendinopathy.
For the Bulls, Torrey Craig has missed a month due to a sprained right ankle and remains out for this game. Zach LaVine is out for this game and is expected to miss the Bulls 3 game road trip due to paternity leave. Coby White is listed as questionable with an ankle sprain.
Probable Celtics Starters
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Celtics ReservesLuke KornetPayton PritchardNeemias QuetaBaylor ScheiermanJaden SpringerJordan WalshXavier Tillman
2 Way PlayersJD DavisonDrew PetersonAnton Watson
Injuries/OutSam Hauser (hip) questionable Jayson Tatum (knee) questionable Al Horford (toe) questionable
Head CoachJoe Mazzulla
Probable Bulls Starters
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Chicago Bulls Reserves Matas BuzelisJevon CarterChris Duarte Talen Horton-TuckerJulian PhillipsJalen SmithDalen Terry
2-Way PlayersEJ LiddellAdama SonogoEmmanuel Miller
Injuries/Out Coby White (ankle) questionable Zach LaVine (personal) outTorrey Craig (ankle) out
Head CoachBilly Donovan
Key Matchups
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Kristaps Porzingis
Photo by Brian Fluharty/Getty Images
Nikola Vucevic
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Kristaps Porzingis vs Nikola VucevicVucevic is averaging 20.1 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 3.5 assists. He is shooting 54.9% from the field and 47.5% from beyond the arc. In the first game against the Celtics, he finished with 32 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 block while shooting 68.8% from the field and 39.8% from beyond the arc. The Celtics need to keep Vucevic off the boards and limit his shots both in the paint and on the perimeter, as he shoots the ball very well.
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Jaylen Brown
Photo by Harry How/Getty Images
Ayo Dosunmu
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Jaylen Brown vs Ayo DosunmuDosunmu is averaging 12.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game. He is shooting 48.9% from the field and 33.8% from beyond the arc. Over his career against the Celtics, he averaged 12.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists.
Honorable MentionJrue Holiday vs Josh GiddeyGiddey is averaging 11.5 points, 7.4 rebounds, 6.7 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He is shooting 44.1% from the field and 33.1% from beyond the arc. Over his career, he has averaged 16.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.0 steals. He always seems to get up to play the Celtics.
Keys to the Game Defense – Defense is always a key to winning. The Celtics are 5th in the league with a defensive rating of 109.8. The Bulls are 24th with a defensive rating of 115.3. The Bulls are 7th, scoring 116.7 points per game while the Celtics are 5th, scoring 117.5 points per game. The Celtics need to win this game with their defense and not try to win a shoot out. The Celtics need to get a strong defensive effort from every player on the court and they need to make defense a priority for all 48 minutes with no slacking off. The Celtics need to especially guard the 3 point line as the Bulls attempt the 2nd most threes per game (43) and make the second most threes per game (16.0).
Rebound – The Celtics must box out and crash the boards. They can’t score without the ball and it will take extra effort on their part to beat the Bulls on the boards. The Celtics are averaging 45 rebounds per game, which is 11th in the league. The Bulls are averaging 45.8 rebounds per game, which is 4th. The Celtics have to put out more effort to get to the rebounds before the Bulls and give themselves extra possessions and limit those possessions for the Bulls.
Three Point Shooting – The Celtics often shoot 3s at a historic rate but there are times when their shots just aren’t falling. The Celtics are first in the league, taking 48.7 threes per game. The Bulls are 2nd, taking 43 threes per game. The Bulls are more efficient, shooting 37.2% from beyond the arc (9th) while the Celtics shoot 36.4% from beyond the arc (13th). The Celtics need to focus on taking good shots and they need to move the ball so as to get open shots. If the 3s aren’t falling, they need to get to the basket.
Focus and Effort for 48 Minutes- The Celtics have lost 9 games so far this season after leading by double digits in the 4th quarter. The Celtics have to keep their focus and their effort at 100% and especially not lose focus down the stretch. The Celtics have to play hard and give maximum effort and not under perform because the Bulls are under .500.
X-Factors Home Game – The Celtics are at home and will have the crowd behind them to give them extra motivation. However, the Celtics haven’t been playing their best at home this season and need to try to turn that around. The Bulls have all the distractions of playing on the road including travel, staying in hotels, playing in front of a hostile crowd and on an unfamiliar court.
Officiating – The officiating is always an x-factor. Sometimes a crew will call the game tight and blow a whistle on every play. Other times they will let them play and let the game get physical. Sometimes they will favor one team over the other and other times they will call it even. Sometimes they are just bad. The Celtics need to adjust to the way the game is called and not let missed calls or bad calls affect their focus. If the calls are bad, they just need to play harder to make up for them and not waste time arguing with the officials.
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