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Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« on: January 07, 2011, 11:57:55 PM »

Offline FLCeltsFan

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Boston Celtics (28-7) at Chicago Bulls (23-12)  
Saturday, January 8
8:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #36. Road Game #18
TV:  NBA-TV, CSNNE, WGN, NBAC
Radio:  WEEI, WMVP
United Center




Probable Starters

PG: Rajon Rondo..................................................SG Ray Allen

C:  Shaquille O'Neal

SF:  Paul Pierce ................................. ............PF Glen Davis

Coach: Doc Rivers

Boston Bench Mob
Marquis Daniels
Luke Harangody
Nate Robinson
Von Wafer
Semih Erden
Avery Bradley

Injured
Kendrick Perkins (knee) out
Delonte West (wrist) out
Kevin Garnett (calf)  out
Jermaine O'Neal (knee) questionable




Probable Starters

PG:  Derrick Rose............................................. SG:  Keith Bogans

C: Kurt Thomas  

SF:  Luol Deng .................................................. PF:  Carlos Boozer

Coach:  Tom Thibodeau  

Bulls Bench
Omar Asik
James Johnson
C.J. Watson
Kyle Korver
Ronnie Brewer
Brian Scalabrine
Taj Gibson  

Injuries
Joakim Noah (thumb)  out

Team Connections
Bulls Head Coach Tom Thibodeau was a member of the Celtics coaching staff from 2007-10
Keith Bogans and Rajon Rondo both attended the University of Kentucky
Omer Asik and Semih Erden both are from Turkey and played on the Silver Medal Turkish National Team.
Bulls Assistant Coaches Ed Pinckney (1988-94) and Adrian Griffin (1999-2001) played for the Celtics
Bulls Assistant Coach Adrian Griffin, Kurt Thomas and Delonte West played together on the 2007-08 Seattle SuperSonics
Brian Scalabrine played for the Celtics from 2005-10

Key Matchups
 vs  
Rajon Rondo  10.7 PPG,  14.0 APG,  2.4 SPG
Derrick Rose   23.8 PPG, 8.3 APG, 1.1 SPG
This is one of the premier point guard matchups in the league.  There is a lot of discussion about whether Rondo or Rose is the better PG and in a head to head matchup, expect both players to do their best to make their case.  These two PG's are also locked in a very close race to start the All Star Game.  

 vs  
Big Baby Davis  12.6 PPG   5.6 RPG   0.4 BPG
Carlos Boozer    19.7 PPG  9.9 RPG   0.4 BPG  
Boozer has been playing well for the Bulls, although he was benched for the 4th quarter in the game vs the Nets on Wednesday due to matchup issues.  Big Baby will need to be tough on defense to prevent a big game by Boozer, especially on putbacks.  

Honorable Mention
 vs  
Doc Rivers (14-4) vs Tom Thibodeau (9-7)
After working with Doc for 3 seasons, Thibs is now coaching against him.  This coaching matchup will be an interesting one to watch.  After losing the first two meetings against the Celtics, you know that Thibs would love to get this one in the W column.  

Game Notes
This is the 3rd meeting between these two teams with Boston winning the first two.   Both teams are playing in back to back games and both teams had to travel overnight as Chicago played in Philly on Friday.  So, the fatigue factor should be even.  

Both teams are 7-3 in their last 10 games.  The Bulls have been tough at home with a 15-3 record while the Celtics are 12-5 on the road.    Both teams will be without a key big man with KG still out for the Celtics and Noah out for the Bulls.  Both teams have been winning in spite of injuries to key players this season.  

The Celtics have won 4 in a row while the Bulls have lost their last 2.  The Celtics are coming off a blowout win against the Raptors.  Doc was able to keep the starters minutes fairly low with Big Baby playing the most (33 minutes) and Pierce (29), Ray (29), Rondo (26) and Shaq (20) all stayed under 30 minutes.  In the Bulls' loss to the Sixers,  Deng, Rose, and Boozer all played 35+ minutes.  

After a tough win over the Spurs and a blowout win over the Raptors, the Celtics might be tempted to take this game for granted, but the Bulls, even without Noah in the middle, are a very good team and the Celtics have to come out strong and play them tough.  


Keys to the Game

Rondo/Rose Matchup -  This is not only a key matchup, but one of the keys to the game.  Both point guards control the tempo of their team and both are key to their team's success.  The Celtics will need Rondo to play at a high level, which he usually does against the top PGs in the league.  

Rebound
- The Celtics have to rebound the ball.   When the Celtics win the battle of the boards, they usually win as that means that they are putting out the effort and energy needed to rebound and it transfers to every other part of their game.  They have been out rebounded in every game since KG went out.  Someone needs to step up and put in the extra effort to grab the rebounds.  

Defense - The Celtics must come to play defensively against the Bulls.  You know that Thibs will have the Bulls playing defense and the Celtics have to match that defensive intensity.   When the Celtics kick up their defense,  it also feeds their offense.  Defense wins games is a lot more than just a saying.  It is a rule.  

Play in the Paint - The Celtics have been winning by outscoring opponents in the paint by large margins.  They have to continue to take the ball to the hoop and not just settle for outside shots, especially on the road, where sometimes  shots don't fall as easily as they do at home.  

X-Factors
Focus and Effort
The Celtics must come into this game focused and keep their focus through the whole 48 minutes.   The Bulls are a tough team, even missing Noah.  If the Celtics lose focus or don't put out top effort in this game, they will come out with a loss.  

« Last Edit: January 08, 2011, 12:30:40 AM by FLCeltsFan »

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #1 on: January 08, 2011, 02:21:54 AM »

Offline Bahku

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Great set-up as usual, Fl, (TP) ... that Rondo/Rose match-up will be fun to watch, and the "New Look" with Boozer ... should be a good game!
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Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #2 on: January 08, 2011, 01:37:48 PM »

Offline thirstyboots18

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Some said, on the Bulls blog, that the reason Boozer was out in the last quarter was because he wasn't following Thibs defensive plan.  Should be interesting to see what unfolds tonight.  The Bulls are still without the excitement  and energy brought by Noah to the Center spot.  TP
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Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #3 on: January 08, 2011, 01:42:14 PM »

Offline Donoghus

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I will be there!

Can't wait.


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Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #4 on: January 08, 2011, 01:48:21 PM »

Offline thirstyboots18

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I will be there!

Can't wait.
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Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #5 on: January 08, 2011, 01:52:39 PM »

Offline ACF

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TP. Go Celtics!

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #6 on: January 08, 2011, 01:58:01 PM »

Offline nba is the worst

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Referee facts:

For once, no long-standing biases either way for either team:

Lead ref is Ron Garretson, with Tommy Nunez Jr. and Sean Wright.

This season, Garretson and Wright ref'd the Celtics' road win at OKC, Wright the rd win @ the Nets 12/5. Nunez has yet to ref a game for either team.

Garretson also presided over Bulls home game blowouts vs the Pacers and Warriors, while Wright was present in the Bulls hm win over the Lakers.

Over the last ten games involving any of these guys, Celtics are 21-9, Bulls 16-14, Head to head 1-1 (both Garretson in Boston).

Looks like there's a refreshing lask of potential issues tonight regarding the officiating.

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #7 on: January 08, 2011, 06:50:45 PM »

Offline Drucci

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Shouldn't be easy but not extremely hard either, our starters got some rest last night. JO is a go too.

TP FL and go C's!

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #8 on: January 08, 2011, 07:06:11 PM »

Online celticinorlando

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would like to end the KGless part of our sked with a WIN.

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #9 on: January 08, 2011, 07:18:47 PM »

Offline clover

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I want to see a few minutes of Luke versus Scal when the benches are playing.

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #10 on: January 08, 2011, 07:58:12 PM »

Offline Scott

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Interesting stat from ESPN:

Quote
Boozer has averaged 23.3 points in his last 13 games, though the Celtics have typically given him trouble. Boozer's 15.4 points per game against the Celtics since 2005-06 are his fewest against any Eastern Conference opponent.

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #11 on: January 08, 2011, 08:01:43 PM »

Offline clover

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Interesting stat from ESPN:

Quote
Boozer has averaged 23.3 points in his last 13 games, though the Celtics have typically given him trouble. Boozer's 15.4 points per game against the Celtics since 2005-06 are his fewest against any Eastern Conference opponent.

Would that mean primarily that KG, who of course is not playing tonight, has been a strong defender against Boozer?

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #12 on: January 08, 2011, 08:04:31 PM »

Offline GreenFaith1819

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Thanks for post, FLCeltsFan (TP).

C'mon Rondo! Let's give the All-Star voters more reasons to vote you as the starter!

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #13 on: January 08, 2011, 08:06:43 PM »

Offline Scott

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Interesting stat from ESPN:

Quote
Boozer has averaged 23.3 points in his last 13 games, though the Celtics have typically given him trouble. Boozer's 15.4 points per game against the Celtics since 2005-06 are his fewest against any Eastern Conference opponent.

Would that mean primarily that KG, who of course is not playing tonight, has been a strong defender against Boozer?

I think that's a safe assumption.

Re: Celtics (28-7) at Bulls (23-12)
« Reply #14 on: January 08, 2011, 08:09:39 PM »

Offline lovely_20

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Lol. Watching the game on WGN, and they played the Darth Vader theme during the intro for Boston.
"Basketball is like poetry in motion, cross the guy to the left, take him back to the right, he's fallin' back, then just J right in his face. Then you look at him and say, "What?""

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