THE Celtics host the Milwaukee Bucks for the third of 4 matches between these two teams this season. The Celtics won the first meeting 119-116 on November 22 in Boston. They lost the second game 135-102 on January 11 in Milwaukee. They will meet again in Milwaukee on April 9. The Celtics won the series 2-1 last season. They won on Christmas Day in Boston and 1 game in Milwaukee and lost 1 game in Milwaukee.
The Celtics are first in the East, 10 games ahead of 2nd place Milwaukee, 11 games ahead of 3rd place Cleveland, 13 games ahead of 4th place New York, 13.5 games ahead of 5th place Orlando and 16 games ahead of ahead of 6th place Philadelphia. They are 31-3 at home and 8-2 in their last 10 games. They are 35-7 against Eastern Conference teams and have won their last 6 games.
The Bucks are 2nd in the East, 10 games behind first place Boston, 1 game ahead of 3rd place Cleveland, 3 games ahead of 4th place New York, 3.5 games ahead of 5th place Orlando and 6 games ahead of 6th place Philadelphia. They are 17-17 on the road and 7-3 in their last 10 games. They are 30-13 against Eastern Conference teams and have won their last 2 games.
After a 3-2 road trip, the Celtics played a home game against the Suns, then hit the road for a game in Washington before returning home to face Detroit and Milwaukee. They will go on a 6 game road trip through Detroit, Chicago, 2 games in Atlanta, New Orleans and Charlotte. They will return home for 3 games against Oklahoma City, Sacramento and Portland. Then it’s a game at Milwaukee before finishing the season at home against New York, Charlotte and Washington.
Milwaukee is coming off a 2-0 home game against Philadelphia and Phoenix. After this away game, they return home for 3 games against Brooklyn, Oklahoma City and the the Los Angeles Lakers. They then play 3 road games against New Orleans, Atlanta and Washington, followed by 5 more home games against Memphis, Toronto, New York, Boston and Orlando. They finish the season with road games against Oklahoma City and Orlando.
I expect the Celtics to be at full strength, if possible, for this game. However, Jaylen Brown is listed on the injury report as questionable with a sprained right ankle. Jrue Holiday is also listed as questionable with a right shoulder contusion. Sam Hauser is also doubtful due to a sprained left ankle. I guess Payton Pritchard would do it again if Holiday couldn’t play. It’s possible Oshae Brissett starts in Brown’s place unless Hauser is able to play.
Giannis Antetokounmpo missed Sunday’s win over Phoenix due to left hamstring tendinopathy. He reportedly practiced Monday and Tuesday, but is listed as out for this game. I would expect Bobby Portis, Jr to start in his place if he is unable to play. Chris Livingson (ankle) is questionable and Marjon Beauchamp (back) is available.
Celtics likely starters
Celtics reserves
Oshae Brissett
Sam Hauser
Luc Kornet
Svi Mykhailiuk
Payton Pritchard
Jordan Walsh
Xavier Tillman
Jaden Springer
2-way players
JD Davison
Drew Peterson
Neemias Queta
Injuries/Exclusions
Jaylen Brown (ankle) questionable
Sam Hauser (ankle) questionable
Jrue Holiday (shoulder) questionable
The head coach
Joe Mazzulla
Likely Dollar Starters
Dollar reserves
Thanasis Antetokounmpo
Pat Connaughton
Jae Crowder
Danilo Gallinari
AJ Green
Andre Jackson, Jr.
Two-way players
Jaylin Galloway
TyTy Washington, Jr.
Ryan Rollins
Injuries/Exclusions
MarJon Beauchamp (back) available
Chris Livingston (ankle) questionable
Giannis Antetokounmpo (hamstring) out
The head coach
Doc Rivers
Key matches
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Jayson Tatum
Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images
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Bobby Portis, Jr.
Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images
Jayson Tatum vs. Bobby Portis, Jr.
With Giannis out, I guess Bobby Portis could get the start in his place. He averages 13.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. He is shooting 50.4% from the field and 39.3% from beyond the arc. Against Boston this season, he averaged 16 points and 9.5 rebounds. He shot 54.2% from the field and 83.3% from beyond the arc. In his last game against the Suns without Giannis, he finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals. He shot 65% from the field and was 5-5 from three-point range. Sure, Jae Crowder could start, but the key matchup would still be Portis.
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Jrue Vacations
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images
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Damien Lillard
Photo by Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images
Jrue Holiday vs. Damian Lillard
Lillard is averaging 24.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game. He is shooting 42.5% from the field and 35.4% from beyond the arc. Against the Celtics this season, Lillard averaged 24 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1 steal. He shot 47.2% from the field and 33.3% from beyond the arc. The Celtics need to play Lillard tight on defense to limit his production as he is the biggest threat other than Antetokounmpo. Jrue should have added an incentive to beat his old team and the point guard who replaced him.
Honorable mention
Jaylen Brown vs. Khris Middleton
Middleton averages 15 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. He is shooting 48.8% from the field and 38.1% from beyond the arc. Against Boston this season, he averaged 8.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 7 assists and 1 steal per game. He shot 26.1 percent from the field and 30 percent from beyond the arc. Middleton has missed 24 games this season due to various injuries. He moved from 2nd star to 3rd star with the addition of Lillard this season. However, he is still capable of having a big game and loves beating the Celtics.
Game keys
Defense – Defense is always the most important key to winning. Defense really does win championships. The Celtics are 2nd with a defensive rating of 110.2. The Bucks have fallen from 22nd to 16th with a defensive rating of 115.4 since Doc Rivers replaced Adrian Griffin as coach. In their January loss to the Bucks, the Celtics allowed the Bucks to shoot 56.5 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from beyond the arc. They just need to do a better job on defense in this game. The Celtics need to work harder than the Bucks on defense and stay focused on the defensive end so as not to allow easy baskets to the Bucks.
Bounce – Beside defense, rebounding is always an important key to winning. The key to rebounding is effort and concentration. When the Celtics increase their rebounding efforts, it usually improves their play in other areas as well. The Bucks are 13th with 43.9 rebounds per game while the Celtics are 1st with 46.9 rebounds per game. In their loss to the Bucks in January, the Celtics rebounded 54-31. The Celtics need to fight harder in this game to beat the Bucks in rebounds.
Be aggressive – The Celtics must be the more aggressive team to have a chance of beating the Bucks. They need to be more aggressive in looking for loose balls and crashing the boards. They need to be more aggressive on defense and they need to be aggressive going to the basket and not settling for 3s if they’re not going down. Often the more aggressive team will get more calls. They can’t allow the Bucks to play harder than them.
Maximum effort for 48 minutes – The Celtics face their closest rival in the Eastern Conference. They’ll probably meet them in the playoffs at some point. The Celtics’ effort in their loss to Milwaukee left a lot to be desired and they can’t make that mistake again in this one. They must be strong to start the match and they must play with maximum effort throughout the match until the final buzzer.
X factors
Game at home – The Celtics return home for the second consecutive game. They have the audience behind them to give them extra motivation. The Bucks are on the road, where they are 17-17 this season, and where they face the distractions of travel, hotel stays and a hostile crowd. The Celtics had one day off while the Bucks had 2 days off. Hopefully the Celtics catch up to the Bucks with some rust. The Celtics must take advantage of playing at home and defend their home court.
Officer – Refereeing can always be an X factor. Some referees call the game close and others let them play. Some favor the home team and others call it a tie. Some referees just seem to have an agenda that doesn’t match the play on the field. And sometimes the referees are just atrocious. Giannis always seems to get more than his share of calls as he plows through players on his way to the hoop, leaving bodies in his wake. The Celtics have to play to the end no matter how the refs call the game, whether it’s close or whether they let them play or whether they make terrible calls. The Celtics can’t allow bad calls or no calls to distract them from their focus on the game.
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