Author Topic: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23  (Read 36699 times)

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Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« on: November 22, 2012, 08:57:08 PM »

Offline FLCeltsFan

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Oklahoma City Thunder (9-3) at Boston Celtics (6-6)
Friday, November 23, 2012
7:30 PM ET
Game #13, Home Game #7
TV:  NBA-TV,  NBAC, FSOK, CSNNE
Radio:  WEEI, WWLS
TD Garden




Probable Starters

Point Guard
  vs 
Rajon Rondo  13.2 PPG 13.1 APG 2.1 SPG
Russell Westbrook  20.8 PPG, 8.4 APG, 1.5 SPG

Shooting Guard

  vs 
Jason Terry  11.0 PPG 2.0 APG .3853P%
Thabo Sefolosha    6.3 PPG,  1.7 APG,  .517 3P%

Small Forward
  vs 
Paul Pierce   19.3 PPG 6.0 RPG 3.0 APG
Kevin Durant  25.4 PPG, 10.1 RPG,  4.7 APG

Power Forward
  vs 
Brandon Bass    9.2 PPG 5.1 RPG 0.9 BPG
Serge Ibaka    14.7 PPG,  7.1 RPG,  3.4 BPG

Center
  vs 
Kevin Garnett   15.1 PPG 7.4 RPG 0.8 BPG 
Kendrick Perkins    4.2 PPG,  4.6 RPG,  0.8 BPG





Celtics Reserves

Jared Sullinger
Jason Collins
Jeff Green
Courtney Lee
Leandro Barbosa
Chris Wilcox

Injured
Avery Bradley (shoulders) out

Red Claws
Fab Melo
Kris Joseph



Thunder Reserves
Nick Collison
Reggie Jackson
Perry Jones
Jeremy Lamb
DeAndre Liggins
Kevin Martin
Eric Maynor
Daniel Orton
Hasheem Thabeet

Injured

None

Team Connections
Nick Collison and Paul Pierce attended the University of Kansas
Kevin Durant and Avery Bradley attended the University of Texas
DeAndre Liggins, Daniel Orton and Rajon Rondo all attended the University of Kentucky
Jeff Green played for the Thunder from 2007-11
Courtney Lee and Hasheem Thabeet were teammates in Houston from 2010-12
Chris Wilcox was teammates with Nick Collison in Seattle and Oklahoma City from 2005-09
Wilcox and Kevin Durant were teammates from 2007-09
Kendrick Perkins played for the Celtics from 2003-11 and was a member of the 2008 NBA Championship team
Kevin Martin and Courtney Lee were teammates in Houston from 2010-12.

Key Matchups
  vs 
Rajon Rondo vs Russell Westbrook
Rondo once again faces one of the top young PG's in the league..  Rondo had vied with Westbrook for a spot on the Olympic team before Rondo withdrew and Westbook went on to win a gold medal.  Rondo allowed Tony Parker to score a season high 26 points  in his last outing and so hopefully will be looking to be more aggressive defensively in this game. 

  vs 
Paul Pierce vs Kevin Durant 
Kevin Durant is making a case for being the best player in the NBA and  Pierce will have his hands full trying to guard him.    Durant is also a good defender so this may be a tough game for Pierce all the way around.   We may see Jeff Green taking a turn at guarding his former teammate at times in this game also. 

Honorable Mention
Kevin Garnett  vs Kendrick Perkins
Perk will always be a Celtic.  But he's also one of the more competitive players in the league.  As much as he loves his former teammates, they will be the enemy while he is on the court and expect him to be his snarly best in this game.

Game Notes

Kendrick Perkins makes his second trip back to the Garden.  In his first visit last season, the Thunder came out the winner 119-104.  The Thunder have won the last 3 games between these two teams.   I don't think it's a coincidence that the Thunder win streak coincides with the Perk for Green trade. 

The Thunder lead the Northwest division while the Celtics have dropped to 4th in the Atlantic.  The Thunder are 3-1 on the road while the Celtics are 3-3 at home.  The Thunder have won 3 in a row while the Celtics have dropped their last 2 games. 

The Celtics need to do something quick to find their defensive roots.  The Thunder are second in the league in scoring, averaging 103 points a game.  They are undefeated when scoring 100 points or more.  The only way the Celtics can beat this team is to clamp down on defense, something they haven't done except in spurts this season so far.

Keys to the Game
Defense -  Defense has got to be the Celtics #1 priority.  They have been allowing teams to get to the hoop and to get their shots off way too easily.  They must recommit to team defense if they want to get back on the winning track.  This is the first and foremost key to winning, period.   

Rebound the Ball    The Celtics have to crash the boards in order to prevent second chance points and fast break opportunities for the Thunder.   Rebounding takes effort and desire and the Celtics haven't shown a lot of either.  They have to put out more effort on the boards as a team if they want to win. 

Bench Play -  The Thunder are a deep team and they get good contributions from their second unit.  The Celtics reserves scored only 17 points against the Spurs.  The Celtics have the talent on the bench and they simply must start to contribute more on a regular basis. 

Be Aggressive
- The Celtics must be more aggressive.  They have to go to the hoop and not settle for jumpers.  They were outscored in the paint 58-34 in their last game.  That  should never be.  They need to get to the basket more and be more aggressive on defense to keep their opponents from scoring in the paint.  They can't be passive and expect to win the game. 

Player to Watch


Simply because I still love Perk!   Perk has taken to guarding the opposing point guard from time to time to get himself going and to throw off the opponents' offense.  It'll be fun to see if he guards his old friend Rajon Rondo in this game.

X-Factor
Pride. 
The Celtics were embarrassed at home in their last game.  They need to dig down and find their Celtics Pride and do what they have to do to get it together.  We know they have the talent, but they need to put it together. 
« Last Edit: November 22, 2012, 09:11:34 PM by FLCeltsFan »

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #1 on: November 23, 2012, 12:47:48 AM »

Offline crimson_stallion

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Good test for us if we really want to prove we are legit.

I think we match up pretty well with OKC because they don't have any elite bigs offensively, their starring SG is a non factor offensively, and Rondo should he able to match Westbrook point for point if he wants to.

My only worry is Durant - with Pietrus gone we don't really have an athletic, long SF who can put constant defensive pressure on Durant.  This would be a VERY good time for Jeff
 Green to come to life, as he's probably the only guy  e have with the length and athleticism to match up with Durant.

Tempting to put KG on Durant the way the others have been defending lately!!

Lee could be important too - his defense off the bench against Kevin Martin could be a game changer.

Terry and Bass will have a hard time scoring against Sefalosha and Ibaka.  We need Kevin to dominate Perk in this one.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #2 on: November 23, 2012, 02:44:55 AM »

Offline D.o.s.

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I'm more concerned with Westbrook than Durant.

KD is going to get his 25-30 points, a handful of boards, a couple assists, and five or six turnovers. That's the player he is at this point in his career--a 6'10 shooting guard who gets a pass on his bleh-at-best defense because he's got a smooth jumpshot and a great PR team.


But if Westbrook isn't going off, the Thunder are going to have a very hard time winning this basketball game. And that's on our defense. I'm hoping we can make sure to invite 3-19, three board, no assist, Westbrook into the Garden.
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Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #3 on: November 23, 2012, 06:24:55 AM »

Offline SHAQATTACK

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If Doc plays Wilcox , ROndo and KG the whole game we might win.  When Wilcox and KG sit , it will be murder.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #4 on: November 23, 2012, 06:56:17 AM »

Offline Eddie20

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This would be a good game to start Green. I like the way he and Pierce matchup against Durant and Sefolosha, more than I like how Pierce and Terry do. Plus, it would give us a chance to see how he plays not coming off the bench.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #5 on: November 23, 2012, 08:10:52 AM »

Offline Who

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This would be a good game to start Green. I like the way he and Pierce matchup against Durant and Sefolosha, more than I like how Pierce and Terry do. Plus, it would give us a chance to see how he plays not coming off the bench.
I see that the complete opposite way.

I think this would be one of the worst teams to start Green alongside Pierce on the wing against. Oklahoma has two big wings who are both perfectly able to defend someone like Jeff Green and can nullify Green's strengths.

Thabo Sefolosha has the size of a small forward and is one of the best wing defenders in the league while Durant is like 6-11, freakishly long and an intimidating physical specimen for most players to play against.

I think Oklahoma are one of, if the not, best equipped teams to handle a Jeff Green + Paul Pierce wing combination.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #6 on: November 23, 2012, 08:17:34 AM »

Offline Who

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This would be a good game to start Green. I like the way he and Pierce matchup against Durant and Sefolosha, more than I like how Pierce and Terry do. Plus, it would give us a chance to see how he plays not coming off the bench.
I think Terry is a good option against Thabo because Thabo is a non-threat offensively. So Terry's weak defense shouldn't get punished + it allows Boston to keep one of it's best offensive players on the court.

I think that match-up is an advantage for Boston.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #7 on: November 23, 2012, 08:21:37 AM »

Offline Who

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Given the team's performances to kick off the season, I have a very hard time seeing them getting anything out of this game.

I think Westbrook is going to go off. 25+ points. Loads of dribble penetration. Making the team defense look silly. Scoring at will and creating opportunities for others. Durant and Kevin Martin should do their thing too.

Hard to see Boston keeping up with that type of offensive firepower going off.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #8 on: November 23, 2012, 08:46:35 AM »

Offline Eddie20

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This would be a good game to start Green. I like the way he and Pierce matchup against Durant and Sefolosha, more than I like how Pierce and Terry do. Plus, it would give us a chance to see how he plays not coming off the bench.
I think Terry is a good option against Thabo because Thabo is a non-threat offensively. So Terry's weak defense shouldn't get punished + it allows Boston to keep one of it's best offensive players on the court.

I think that match-up is an advantage for Boston.

On the other hand, I would like to prevent Pierce from covering Durant defensively, which could wear him out offensively. We can put Green on Durant, a player he is familiar with. Have Pierce on Sefo, which would rest him offensively. Plus, I think Green would be very motivated to play against his old team.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #9 on: November 23, 2012, 08:57:38 AM »

Offline hwangjini_1

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i believe it is up to the celtic defense, pure and simple.

the games i have watched this year show the celtics are not playing consistently great defense. they have moments, maybe an entire period of good defense. but not consistently great defense and that is what is killing them as much as anything else.

too many late switches on defense, or no switch. too many break downs on team defense. this only has to happen  4 to 5 times a game and it gives the other team 8+ points. that is a lot of points to give up.

san antonio made them pay for such break downs. oklahoma can make the celtics pay as well, but the celtics may have an easier time defending oklahoma since they rely upon a couple of stars and less the overall team execution of SA - which is great.

so, go celtics!!!! go play some great defense tonight!!!!  ;D
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Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #10 on: November 23, 2012, 09:11:35 AM »

Offline scaryjerry

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I'm more concerned with Westbrook than Durant.

KD is going to get his 25-30 points, a handful of boards, a couple assists, and five or six turnovers. That's the player he is at this point in his career--a 6'10 shooting guard who gets a pass on his bleh-at-best defense because he's got a smooth jumpshot and a great PR team.


But if Westbrook isn't going off, the Thunder are going to have a very hard time winning this basketball game. And that's on our defense. I'm hoping we can make sure to invite 3-19, three board, no assist, Westbrook into the Garden.

Lol... Kevin durant is the second best player in the league and it has virtually nothing to do with his pr team.. he averages less turnovers then westbrook and heck Paul pierce for his career, averages 10 rebounds...pretty good for a "6 10 shooting guard" his defends has also gotten better every year. Russel westbrook could outofcontrol himself to a good game though.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #11 on: November 23, 2012, 03:36:47 PM »

Offline CelticSooner

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Westbrook is starting to reach Celtic killer status. I expect a big game out of him which cannot happen if the C's have any chance at winning. If he gets into the paint it's probably a layup or kick to Martin/Durant in the corner.

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #12 on: November 23, 2012, 03:59:51 PM »

Offline D.o.s.

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I'm more concerned with Westbrook than Durant.

KD is going to get his 25-30 points, a handful of boards, a couple assists, and five or six turnovers. That's the player he is at this point in his career--a 6'10 shooting guard who gets a pass on his bleh-at-best defense because he's got a smooth jumpshot and a great PR team.


But if Westbrook isn't going off, the Thunder are going to have a very hard time winning this basketball game. And that's on our defense. I'm hoping we can make sure to invite 3-19, three board, no assist, Westbrook into the Garden.

Lol... Kevin durant is the second best player in the league and it has virtually nothing to do with his pr team.. he averages less turnovers then westbrook and heck Paul pierce for his career, averages 10 rebounds...pretty good for a "6 10 shooting guard" his defends has also gotten better every year. Russel westbrook could outofcontrol himself to a good game though.

I'm just saying that Durant is a known quantity, but Westbrook is the dude that the Thunder win or lose by.

Also, I would hope that the point guard has more turnovers than a wing player, by nature of their positions.
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Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #13 on: November 23, 2012, 04:06:25 PM »

Offline OhioGreen

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They'll be alot of broken TV sets in C land tonite.. It will  be showtime for Westbrook driving down the lane all nite. He could go off for 40! Heck even Thabeet might get a double double! Perk, Ibaka, Collison, Durant..........don't see many rebounds in our future!

Re: Thunder (9-3) at Celtics (6-6) 11/23
« Reply #14 on: November 23, 2012, 04:41:46 PM »

Offline bello_man09

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lets go Celtics !!!!!!!!!!