Lakers (17-35) at Celtics (31-18) Game #50 2/3/17

[FLCeltsFan]

at
Los Angeles Lakers (17-35) at Boston Celtics (31-18)
Friday, February 3, 2017
8:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game [HASH]50, Home Game [HASH]26
TV: ESPN, CSNNE, Spectrum Sportsnet
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 710 AM ESPN
TD Garden



Probable Starters
Point Guard: Isaiah Thomas ---------------- Shooting Guard: Jaylen Brown


Center: Amir Johnson


Small Forward: Jae Crowder ------------------ Power Forward: Al Horford


Celtics Reserves
Marcus Smart
Gerald Green
Terry Rozier
James Young
Jonas Jerebko
Tyler Zeller
Kelly Olynyk
Demetrius Jackson
Jordan Mickey

Injuries
Avery Bradley (Achilles) game time decision
Kelly Olynyk (shoulder) game time decision

Head Coach
Brad Stevens




Probable Starters
Point Guard: D'Angelo Russell -------------------- Shooting Guard: Nick Young


Center: Timofey Mozgov


Small Forward: Luol Deng -------------------- Power Forward: Tarik Black


Lakers Reserves
Jose Calderon
Jordan Clarkson
Marcelo Huertas
Brandon Ingram
Thomas Robinson
Lou Williams
Metta World Peace
Ivica Zubac
Larry Nance, Jr

Injuries
Julius Randle (pneumonia) game time decision

Head Coach
Luke Walton

Game Notes
Historical rivals clash as the Celtics host the Los Angeles Lakers for the first of 2 games this season and the first meeting in the Post-Kobe era. Last season the series was tied 1-1 with each team winning on the opponent's court. Both franchises come into this game tied with 3,251 wins so the winner of this game will take the lead as the franchise with the most all time wins.

The Celtics have won their last 5 games and 7 of their last 10 games. The Lakers have lost 2 straight games and ave won just 2 of their last 10 games. The Celtics are 17-8 at home while the Lakers are 5-22 on the road. The Celtics are in 2nd place in the East, 1.5 games ahead of the Raptors, who are playing in Orlando on Friday.

For the second game in a row, the Celtics are facing an opponent who played the night before and had to travel after the game. The Lakers lost to the Wizards on Thursday night while the Celtics were idle. The Lakers are 3-8 on the second night of back to back games.

Avery Bradley is reportedly close to a return to the Celtics but is still listed as a game time decision. Kelly Olynyk missed Wednesday's game with a sore shoulder and is listed as a game time decision for this game. Julius Randle is close to a return from pneumonia and is also a game time decision for the Lakers.

I've listed the same starters that started the last game but there's a chance that Avery will return to the starting lineup. Also, Brad Stevens has said that Jonas Jerebko may start some games depending on the matchups but I think Amir will remain with the starters for this game.

Key Matchups
vs
Isaiah Thomas vs D'Angelo Russell
The reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Month will face D'Angelo Russell, who will be playing in the Rising Stars game. Russell is averaging 14.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists a game. Isaiah has been on fire over the month of January and hopefully that will carry over into this game.

vs
Marcus Smart vs Lou Williams
Williams is averaging 18.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 3.1assists off the bench. He is capable of getting hot in any given game and can hit from beyond the arc if left open. Marcus will need to keep him from going off in this game.

Honorable Mention
Bench vs Bench
The Celtics reserves will have to play well to offset the Lakers' reserves, who lead the league in bench scoring. I already mentioned Lou Williamns who is averaging 18.3 points per gameThey also have Jordan Clarkson who is averaging 14.0 points per game and Brandon Ingram who is averaging 7.9 points.

Keys to the Game
Focus - The Celtics need to keep their focus on playing their game and not underestimate the Lakers. Last season, the Celtics lost to the Lakers at the TD Garden because they underestimated them. They have to stay focused and not allow the Lakers to play harder than them.

Defense - The Lakers are last in the league with a defensive rating of 110.3. The Celtics have struggled defensively this season and have a defensive rating of 106.2 (20th). The Celtics defense has been improving somewhat recently and they need to play tough team defense in this one and not allow the Lakers to score at will. Defense wins games.

Move the Ball and Play as a Team - When the Celtics play as a team and make the extra pass to find the open man, they play very well. When they slow the game down and play hero ball, things don't usually go as well. They have to move the ball and play as a team.

Be Aggressive - The Celtics must be the more aggressive team. They have to be aggressive in going to the basket, in diving for loose balls, and on defense. They have to aggressively crash the boards and just play harder. They have to be the team that wants it more. Against the Raptors, they let the Raptors play harder in the first half and ended up down 18. When they finally started to be aggressive and play harder, they were able to pull the game out. They need to come out strong from the start and not let up.

X-Factors
Home Court - The Celtics are home with the Garden crowd behind them. They should get a lift from the crowd and be motivated to bring the Celtics another win in this storied rivalry. The Celtics are 156-128 all time vs the Lakers and 79-49 at home. This Celtics team needs to protect their home court and add to both of those win totals.

Trap Game - The Lakers are playing on the second night of back to back games and had to travel after the game. They are the 3rd worst team in the league. Last season the Celtics underestimated them and lost on their home court. They need to come into this game and play hard from the start to the finish and play as though they are facing the Warriors.

Officiating - Officiating is a factor in every single game played in the NBA. Every crew has their own biases and their own way of officiating and many times it affects the way the game is played. Kobe made the comment in an interview that he didn't know how the Lakers won game 7 of the 2010 Finals. It's very simple. After the referees allowed both teams to play in the first 3 quarters with the Lakers shooting 16 free throws to 11 for the Celtics, they called the 4th quarter completely one sided with the Lakers shooting 21 free throws to the Celtics 6. Hopefully they will call this one fairly and let them play.

[jmost]

I want the Lakers to be bad enough so they hold onto their pick - which is top 3 protected. Otherwise it goes to Philly and they are going to be enough of a handful without another high pick. It will be interesting to see the young Lakers and get a sense of how good their young core could be. So far they have 3 Top 7 picks in the last few years. and still stink.

[jmost]

Jaylen's shooting is really improving. I don't know that he'll ever be a good ball handler though.

[mev17]

Normally I wouldn't harp after beating the Lakers, but I have to admit to being a bit underwhelmed. We were up 17 in the third after 2 IT free throws, then when he goes to the bench we are outscored something like 11-2, with no baskets made. Then in the fourth IT has another big quarter yet a struggling team like the Lakers still outscores us for the quarter. Too much seems to be revolving around IT - we need other guys to step up more often and we need our defense to be more consistent (we contained LA in the 2nd and 3rd quarters but not in the 1st and 4th).

Luckily, Toronto can't seem to beat Orlando so we gained a game on them, plus we are [HASH]1 in all time wins and Stevens is the all-star coach, so there is reason to be happy tonight. I just wish we wouldn't have so many ups and downs.

It will be interesting to see how we do agains the "other" team in LA (which is not the best team in LA).

[mev17]

Feb 3, 2017 10:35:02 GMT -5 jmost said:

I want the Lakers to be bad enough so they hold onto their pick - which is top 3 protected. Otherwise it goes to Philly and they are going to be enough of a handful without another high pick. It will be interesting to see the young Lakers and get a sense of how good their young core could be. So far they have 3 Top 7 picks in the last few years. and still stink.

Maybe it's from living in LA during the Bird vs Magic years and when Shaq won his titles in LA, but I am hoping for the opposite. Philly is no where near matching us in titles, whereas the Lakers are only one behind us after we gave away the 2010 championship to them (which will bug the hell out of me until the day I die). So I want LA to not get another pick and have their rebuild drag on for a decade or two, so we can add some space in most wins and most championship. I could much better stomach a good team in Philly than a good team in LA.

Besides, being a Bruin alum I LOVE watching Lonzo Ball play - love everything about his game (even that ugly looking jumper that actually goes in at a good rate). It would make me sick seeing him in that wretched "royal purple" and gold.

[jmost]

Hey, mev17, I hate the Lakers and only feel a rivalry with the Sixers, but I think the Sixers are in a much stronger position to be really good than the Lakers are. And unless the Lakers became great they're not getting past GS or SA anytime soon. I've wondered if the Lakers would take another PG like Ball given that they already have Russell. I totally get the Laker thing though. I went to school with mostly Knick fans, and this was during the one time they won championships , and I can't stand them either. Of course Spike Lee doesn't help me like them any better.

[Roadrunner]

Good win. BOS has a solid team. I really wish that the Bradleys, KOs of the world wouldn't be hurt every other game.