The Celtics continue their home stand as they host the Los Angeles Lakers for the 2nd, and final, meeting this season. The Lakers beat the Celtics 117-96 in Los Angeles on January 23. The Celtics and Lakers had a 1-1 tied series last season with each team winning on the road. The Celtics are 166-135 overall all time against the Lakers and they are 84-52 in games played in Boston.
Since the Lakers moved to Los Angeles, before the 1960-61 season, these 2 teams have met 207 times and the Celtics lead with 111 wins to 96 for the Lakers. The Celtics are 9-3 against the Lakers in the Finals. Boston won the first 8 titles before the Lakers won 3 of the last 4 meetings with the Celtics last title against the Lakers coming in 2008. The Celtics have 18 titles to 17 for the Lakers (if you count the 6 titles from Minneapolis).
They stood pat for the most part this off season, bringing back the core group to try for a second championship. The Lakers added Dalton Knecht and Bronny James, Jr through the draft. They lost Taurean Prince and Spencer Dinwiddie to free agency. They traded D’Angelo Russell and Maxwell Lewis for Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton. Their biggest move was to fire head coach Darvin Ham and hire JJ Redick.
Then, at the trade deadline, they shocked the NBA world by trading Anthony Davis, Max Christie and Jalen Hood-Schifino for Luka Doncic, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris. They tried to trade Dalton Knecht and Cam Reddish for Mark Williams but the trade was later rescinded because Williams reportedly didn’t pass his physical. They signed Alex Len as a free agent.
The Celtics are 2nd in the East, and are 7.5 games behind the first place Cavaliers who have won their last 12 games, including a win over Boston. They are 4.5 games ahead of 3rd place New York, who lost to these Lakers in LA on Thursday. They are 8 games ahead of 4th place Milwaukee. The Celtics are 21-11 at home and 8-2 in their last 10 games. They are 13-7 against Western Conference opponents After they lost 2 straight, the Celtics have won their last 3 games.
The Lakers are 2nd in the West, 10.5 games behind first place Oklahoma City. They are half a game ahead of 3rd place Denver, 2.5 games ahead of 4th place Memphis and 3 games ahead of 5th place Houston. They are 15-14 on the road and 8-2 in their last 10 games. They are 13-9 against Eastern Conference opponents. They have won their last 8 games.
The Celtics are playing in the 4th game of a 7 game home stand. They lost the first game to the Cleveland Cavaliers and then beat the Denver Nuggets on Monday and Portland on Wednesday and the 76ers on Thursday. After this game against the Lakers, the Celtics will host Utah, and Oklahoma City. After the 7 game home stand they will play 8 of the next 9 games on the road, including another trip out West.
After an overtime win over the Knicks in LA on Thursday, the Lakers are playing in the first game of a 4 game road trip that will take them through Brooklyn, Milwaukee and Denver before heading home for a 5 game home stand where they will host Phoenix, San Antonio, Denver, Milwaukee, and Chicago. They then head out for another 4 game road trip through Orlando, Indiana, Chicago and Memphis. They will play 4 of their last 7 games on the road.
As of this time, the Celtics have just 3 players on the injury list. After missing the last 4 games with an illness, Kristaps Porzingis is listed as questionable. However, he announced on Instagram on Friday that he planned to play in this game. Jrue Holiday is once again listed as questionable with a finger injury. Even though he went through practice on Tuesday, he has been held out both Wednesday and Thursday. Sam Hauser is listed as questionable for his second straight game with a sprained ankle. Both Holiday and Hauser will be a game time decision.
The Lakers have 5 players listed on their injury report, although 2 of those players are listed as probable. LeBron James is listed as probable due to a nagging foot issue and is expected to play. Luka Doncic is also listed as probable due to a right knee contusion and is also expected to play. Jaxon Hayes is questionable for this game due to a contusion on his right knee. Rui Hachimura is out for the fifth straight game with a knee injury. Maxi Kleber has yet to suit up for the Lakers as he has been dealing with a foot fracture.
Probable Celtics Starters
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Celtics Reserves
Luke Kornet
Payton Pritchard
Neemias Queta
Baylor Scheierman
Jordan Walsh
Xavier Tillman
Torrey Craig
2 Way Players
JD Davison
Drew Peterson
Miles Norris
Injuries/Out
Jrue Holiday (finger) questionable
Sam Hauser (ankle) questionable
Kristaps Porzingis (illness) questionable
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Probable Lakers Starters
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Lakers Reserves
Bronny James, Jr
Dalton Knecht
Alex Len
Shake Milton
Markieff Morris
Cam Reddish
Jarred Vanderbilt
Gabe Vincent
2 Way Players
Trey Jemison III
Christian Koloko
Jordan Goodwin
Injuries/Out
LeBron James (foot) probable
Luka Doncic (knee) probable
Jaxon Hayes (knee) questionable
Rui Hachimura (knee) out
Maxi Kleber (foot) out
Head Coach
JJ Redick
Key Matchups
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Al HorfordPhoto by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images
LeBron JamesPhoto by Bob Levey/Getty Images
Al Horford vs LeBron James
LeBron is averaging 25.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game. He is shooting 51.8% from the field and 39.1% from beyond the arc. Even at 40 years old, LeBron is making a difference for the Lakers. He always seems to put out extra effort when he plays against the Celtics as well. In the first game against the Celtics, he finished with 20 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 assists while shooting 45% from the field and he didn’t hit a 3. The Celtics need to try to prevent him from getting inside and from getting open shots since he has been shooting very well from the perimeter.
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Derrick WhitePhoto by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Luka DoncicPhoto by Luke Hales/Getty Images
Derrick White vs Luka Doncic
Doncic is averaging 26.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, 7.8 assists and 2 steals per game. He is shooting 44.7% from the field and 33.9% from beyond the arc. He has been with the Lakers for 9 games. They lost the first game but have won their last 8 games. He is a very good player and the Celtics need to try to limit his effectiveness both to score and pass. If Jrue can play he will likely get the start at the point.
Honorable Mention
Jaylen Brown vs Austin Reaves
Reaves is averaging 18.9 points, 4.3 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He is shooting 44.2% from the field and 35.8% from beyond the arc. In the first game against the Celtics he finished with 23 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists while shooting 53.8% from the field and 50.3% from beyond the arc. He is capable of having a big game if not well defended.
Keys to the Game
Defense - I can’t say it enough that defense is the most important key to winning. The Celtics are 5th in the league with a defensive rating of 110.2. The Lakers are 13th with a defensive rating of 112.5. The Celtics have played good defense off and on in recent games but they still are not consistent on that end. They must stay committed to playing tough, lock down defense, especially against a Lakers team with some very good offensive weapons. The Celtics must especially defend in the paint as the Lakers are 13th in the league with 49.7 points in the paint per game.
Rebound - Rebounding takes effort and energy and the Celtics will need both to out-rebound the Lakers. The Celtics need to crash the boards and keep the Lakers from getting second chance points and fast breaks. The Celtics are averaging 45.0 rebounds per game (10th) while the Lakers are averaging 42.7 rebounds per game (25th). The Celtics must put out extra energy and effort to beat the Lakers to rebounds.
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. They have to be the team that wants it more. In most of their losses, they have allowed their opponents to play harder and be more aggressive, including the loss to the Lakers in LA. They absolutely can’t let the Lakers play harder than them if they want to have a chance to win.
Move the Ball Carefully - The Celtics need to move the ball in order to find the best shot on each possession. When the ball sticks and players try to do too much, the Celtics struggle. They are at their best when they pass the ball and keep it moving. ISO ball is not usually winning ball. But they have to make careful passes and not get sloppy because the 76ers average 16.7 points off turnovers.
X-Factors
Pride - “Beat LA” is one of the most iconic chants in sports. This is a storied rivalry and no matter the circumstances, the Celtics always want to beat the Lakers and vice versa. The Celtics have to focus on the game and on playing the right way. It’s a matter of pride and the Celtics need to get the job done and “Beat LA”. On the other hand, LeBron and the Lakers always want to beat the Celtics and so they will give extra effort to beat one of their biggest rivals. Jayson Tatum may not believe that the Lakers are rivals because they only play twice a year, but with as much history as these two teams have, it is a rivalry.
Home Game - The Celtics are at home and should get a boost from the crowd who will hopefully be loud and enthusiastic. The Lakers are on the first game of a 4 game road trip and may have some travel fatigue and also other distractions that come from playing on the road. The Lakers have not played their best on the road this season with just a 15-14 record on the road, but most of these road games were played before Luka Doncic was on the team. The Celtics should take advantage of playing on their home court and in front of their fans.
Officiating - The officiating can always be an x-factor. Every crew calls the game differently and the Celtics have to adapt to how the game is being called and not allow bad calls and no calls to take away their focus. If you doubt that officiating is an x-factor, just think back to the last Finals between these two teams. In game 7, the Celtics were up 6 going into the 4th quarter. The refs had called the game evenly up until then. But in the 4th quarter, the referees took over and it cost the Celtics that game. The Lakers took 21 free throws in the 4th quarter alone while the Celtics took 6. The Lakers took more free throws in the 4th quarter than they did in the first 3 quarters combined. (Yes, I am still a little bitter over that.) Hopefully the refs call it fair in this game and let both teams play.