Post by FLCeltsFan on Nov 12, 2023 21:47:06 GMT -5
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New York Knicks (5-4) at Boston Celtics (7-2)
Monday, November 13, 2023
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game [HASH]10 Home Game [HASH]5
TV: NBA-TV, NBCSB, MSG
Radio: 98.5 The Sports Hub, 98.7 ESPN NY, Sirius XM
TD Garden
Probable Celtics Starters
PG
SG
SF
PF
C
PG: Jrue Holiday
SG: Derrick White
SF: Jaylen Brown
PF: Jayson Tatum
C: Kristaps Porzingis
Celtics Reserves
Delano Banton
Oshae Brissett
Sam Hauser
Al Horford
Luke Kornet
Svi Mykhailiuk
Payton Pritchard
Lamar Stevens
Jordan Walsh
2 Way Players
JD Davison
Nathan Knight
Neemias Queta
Injuries/Out
Neemias Queta (foot) out
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Probable Starters
PG
SG
SF
PF
C
PG: Quentin Grimes
SG: Jalen Brunson
SF: RJ Barrett
PF: Julius Randle
C: Mitchell Robinson
Knicks Reserves
Donte DeVincenzo
Ryan Arcidiacono
Miles McBride
Josh Hart
Immanuel Quickley
DaQuan Jeffries
Evan Fournier
Jericho Sims
Isaiah Hartenstein
Dylan Windler
2 Way Players
Jacob Toppin
Duane Washington, Jr
Charlie Brown, Jr
Injuries/Out
None listed
Head Coach
Tom Thibodeau
Game Notes
The Celtics host the Knicks for the 2nd of 4 meetings in the regular season. The Celtics beat the Knicks at Madison Square Garden in the season opener 108-104. They will play one more time in New York on February 24 and for the final time in Boston on April 11. They also played twice in the preseason with the Celtics winning in Boston and the Knicks winning in New York.
The Knicks are playing on the second night of back to back games. They beat the Charlotte Hornets 129-107 in New York on Sunday afternoon. This is the first game of a 5 game road trip for the Knicks. The Celtics are playing in the final game of a 3 game home stand. They will begin a 4 game road trip on Wednesday in Philadelphia. They will then go through Toronto, Memphis and Charlotte before returning home again.
The Knicks have won their last 3 games, all at home, over the Clippers, Spurs, and Hornets. The Celtics have won their last 2 games, both at home and back to back over the Nets and Raptors. The Celtics are 4-0 at home and the Knicks are 2-2 on the road. The Celtics are 301-189 all time overall against the Knicks. They are 162-68 all time in games played in Boston.
The Celtics still list two way player Neemias Queta as out for this game. Queta continues to deal with a right foot injury and will be unavailable for an eighth consecutive game. The Knicks have no one on the injury list at this time.
Key Matchups
vs Derrick White vs Jalen Brunson
Brunson has averaged 22.5 points, 3.6 rebound, and 4.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He is shooting 40.4% from the field and 42.9% from beyond the arc. Against the Celtics this season he finished with 20 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals.
vs Jaylen Brown vs RJ Barrett
Barrett is averaging 22.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. He is shooting 47.3% from the field and 47.1% from beyond the arc. In the first game against the Celtics, he finished with 24 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal. He shot 30% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc.
Honorable Mention
Jayson Tatum vs Julius Randle
Randle is averaging 16.5 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game. He is shooting 31.6% from the field and just 25.9% from beyond the arc. In the first game against the Celtics, he finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds 7 assists, and 2 steals. He shot 22.7% from the field and 37.5% from beyond the arc. Randle has struggled with his shot so far this season, but he is very capable of having a big game at any time.
Keys to the Game
Defense - Defense is the key to winning every game. The Knicks average 107.1 points per game (29th) while the Celtics average 120.2 points per game (4th). The Celtics have a defensive rating of 104.9 (3rd) while the Knicks have a defensive rating of 104.7 (2nd). This is a matchup two of the top 3 defenses in the league. The Celtics have got to play tough team defense if they hope to get a win in this game.
Rebound - The Celtics can't score if they don't have the ball, and the best way to get the ball is the grab rebounds. The Celtics need to rebound as a team with every Celtic battling on the boards. It will take a team effort to beat the Knicks, who are tops in the league in rebounding, on the boards. The Knicks are 5th in the league with 16.8 second chance points per game and so the Celtics need to crash the boards to prevent those 2nd chance points in this game.
Chemistry - Chemistry and continuity are both important to teams trying to win a championship. The Celtics are still working to build chemistry with their new players both in the starting lineup and on the bench. They have the continuity of the same head coach and key players returning but are still working on their chemistry, which is getting better game by game. The Knicks are returning most of their team from last season and have had Tom Thibodeau at the helm for several years so have both chemistry and continuity on their side.
Move the Ball Carefully - The Celtics need to move the ball and find teammates for the best shots available. They play their best when the ball is moving and they are finding the open man. They struggle when the ball sticks and players try to do too much. However, they need to make careful passes because the Knicks are 5th in the league with 20.6 points off turnovers per game.
X-Factors
Home Game and Fatigue - The Celtics are playing in their 3rd straight home game. The Knicks on the other hand are playing on the road and on the second night of back to back games. They had to travel after their matinee game on Sunday and will face the distractions of playing in front of the very loud Celtics crowd. Fatigue could catch up to them by the end of this game.
Officiating - Officiating always has the potential to be an x-factor. Each officiating crew calls the game differently. Some refs call it tight and constantly call fouls while others let them play with few fouls called. The Celtics need to adjust to how the refs are calling the game and not allow bad calls or no calls to take away their focus. The Celtics can't afford to allow the other team to go on playing while Celtics players are hanging back and complaining about calls.
