Wizards (3-1) at Celtics (1-3) Game #5 11/6/15

[FLCeltsFan]

at
Washington Wizards (3-1) at Boston Celtics (1-3)
Friday, November 6, 2015
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #5 Home Game #4
TV: CSN-NE, Comcast Sportsnet,NBA-LP 752(DTV) /752(xfinity)
Radio: 98.5 The Sports Hub, WNEW 99.1 FM
TD Garden



Probable Starters

PG: Isaiah Thomas
SG: Avery Bradley
SF: Jae Crowder
PF: Jared Sullinger
C:  Tyler Zeller

Celtics Reserves
Evan Turner
RJ Hunter
Jonas Jerebko
David Lee
Terry Rozier
James Young
Kelly Olynyk
Jordan Mickey

Head Coach
Brad Stevens

Injuries
Avery Bradley (finger) probable
Amir Johnson (ankle) questionable
Marcus Smart (toe) questionable




Probable Starters 

PG: John Wall
SG: Bradley Beal
SF: Otto Porter
PF:  Kris Humphries
C: Marcin Gortat

Wizards Reserves
DeJuan Blair
Jared Dudley
Gary Neal
Drew Gooden
Nene
Kelly Oubre
Ramon Sessions
Garrett Temple

Head Coach
Randy Wittman

Injuries
Alan Anderson (ankle) out
Martell Webster (hip) out

Game Notes
The Celtics return home after looking to break a 3 game losing streak.   Their opponent for this game will be the Washington Wizards.  They have 4 of their 5 starters from last year back again with Paul Pierce being the only one not returning for this season. 

The Wizards are playing well and are looking for their 4th win on the season and their second straight.   The only game that they lost this season was to the Knicks,  while they beat the Magic, the Bucks and the Spurs.   They will definitely present a challenge to the Celtics. 

The Celtics were 1-2 vs the Wizards last season with each team winning on their home court.  In that Celtics win last season,  Jeff Green led the Celtics in points while Rajon Rondo led them in rebounds and assists.  Needless to say, the Celtics have changed a lot since their last meeting, even if the Wizards haven't. 

Amir Johnson injured his ankle in their last game against the Pacers and is questionable for this game.  Marcus Smart missed the last game with a sprained toe and is also questionable for this one.  If Smart can't play expect Isaiah Thomas to once again get the start at the point.  I'm going to take a wild guess that if Amir is out, Brad Stevens will go back to the Sullinger/Zeller pairing that worked fairly well last season.   With Stevens still experimenting with the rotations and lineups, looking for something that works,  it's hard to tell what he will do.

Key Matchups
vs 
Isaiah Thomas (or Marcus Smart) vs John Wall
This will be a tough matchup for the Celtics if Smart can't play.  Wall is averaging 20.8 points, 3.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists.  He is shooting 31.6% from beyond the arc.  The Celtics need Isaiah's offense, but he is going to struggle to keep Wall from having a big game.

vs
Avery Bradley vs Bradley Beal
Beal is averaging 25.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.8 assists.  He is shooting 46.4% from beyond the arc.  Avery will have his hands full defending Beal. 

Keys to the Game
Start Strong -  The Celtics have been struggling in the first quarter and that has doomed them in their 3 losses.  The Wizards have averaged 56.7 points in the first half in their wins and so the Celtics will need to get off to a good start on both ends of the court to avoid the Wizards from burying them before half time. 

Unleash the Offense - Somebody,  anybody, will need to get hot.  The Celtics have struggled to score in each of their losses.  They have missed many shots they should have made.  It would be nice for them to start hitting their shots and get the offense back on track. 

Defense - The Celtics need to continue to make defense a priority.   The Celtics are allowing 100.8 points per game on 41.5% shooting.   They have to tighten their defense even more to slow the Wizards, who are averaging 104.5 points per game.  Defense wins games. 

Take Care of the Ball -  The Celtics are averaging 17.3 turnovers per game, which is way too many if they want to get a win.  They have to focus and make sharper passes and not give the Wizards extra possessions by turning it over. 

Be Aggressive - The Celtics need to be the more aggressive team from start to finish.  They need to be aggressive in going to the hoop, in crashing the boards, in fighting for loose balls and in running the court.  They also have to be more aggressive on defense.  They can't let the Wizards be more aggressive and expect to get a win. 

X-Factors
Home Game - The Celtics are back at home where the crowd will be behind them and give them a little extra boost and motivation.   

Injuries - The Celtics have injuries to a couple of key players.  The ability of the other players to fill in and step up will be crucial. 

[csfansince60s]

Go Cs....time to turn it around.

TP  FLCelts...thanks for all you do.

Their backcourt is tough, but I think our backcourt can stifle them.

[jpotter33]

Really hope Smart can play tomorrow. We're going to need him to slow down their backcourt.

[FLCeltsFan]

TP to csfansince60s for being the first to post in the game thread.  I think our regular back court of Smart and Bradley can handle them but I'm not so sure that Isaiah can guard Wall.  Rozier may be a better bet on defense.  But we need Isaiah's offense. 

Go Celtics!!!!   

[tarheelsxxiii]

Finallyyyy, an easy win. Whew.

[csfansince60s]

TP to csfansince60s for being the first to post in the game thread.  I think our regular back court of Smart and Bradley can handle them but I'm not so sure that Isaiah can guard Wall.  Rozier may be a better bet on defense.  But we need Isaiah's offense. 

Go Celtics!!!!

Agree with both you and jpotter about needing Smart.

If Smart can't start, maybe you start Turner, have AB on a wall and ET on Beal. Bring IT in to run them ragged and slow Wall down by making him have to work on D.

[hwangjini_1]

thanks once more flc. the celtics will triumph, i know this since i am a fan. 

goooo celtics!!!

and

tttttttttppppp for flc!!!

[The Oracle]

  Was wondering about Amir.  He clearly sprained is ankle good with 3 minutes left in the 1st half against the Pacers.  K.O. came in for him and he came back in for a defensive possession at the end of the half.  Then played 8 minutes in the 3rd qtr. and none in the 4th?  Was obviously bothering him.

[LatterDayCelticsfan]

Amir's on my  ESPN fantasy team. They say he is 50-50 for the game.

[OhioGreen]

Over on the Wiz blog they're listing on their injury report Olynyk and RJ Hunter as day-to-day.  Knowing how secretive the C's are, any news on this?

[apc]

If Smart is not playing i would like to see Rozier get some minutes.
(and i think he will)

[Evantime34]

Hopefully Stevens shortens the rotation. Too many guys have been playing.

With Amir's ankle trouble the C's should absolutely rest him tonight. The C's have a few days off after this break so I think resting Smart is also a good idea.

Start Sully, Olynyk, Crowder, Bradley and Thomas. Come off the bench with Rozier, Hunter, Turner, Jerebko and Lee. Glue Zeller's butt to the bench until further notice.

[KeepRondo]

If Smart is not playing i would like to see Rozier get some minutes.
(and i think he will)

He was pretty bad last game.

[trickybilly]

Hopefully Stevens shortens the rotation. Too many guys have been playing.

With Amir's ankle trouble the C's should absolutely rest him tonight. The C's have a few days off after this break so I think resting Smart is also a good idea.

Start Sully, Olynyk, Crowder, Bradley and Thomas. Come off the bench with Rozier, Hunter, Turner, Jerebko and Lee. Glue Zeller's butt to the bench until further notice.

I love wjsy's posts.. but without resorting to brilliant play breakdowns, can someone accurately summarise why tz has been so amazingly ****e?

[Evantime34]

Hopefully Stevens shortens the rotation. Too many guys have been playing.

With Amir's ankle trouble the C's should absolutely rest him tonight. The C's have a few days off after this break so I think resting Smart is also a good idea.

Start Sully, Olynyk, Crowder, Bradley and Thomas. Come off the bench with Rozier, Hunter, Turner, Jerebko and Lee. Glue Zeller's butt to the bench until further notice.

I love wjsy's posts.. but without resorting to brilliant play breakdowns, can someone accurately summarise why tz has been so amazingly ****e?

He is a center whose main value is finding weak spots in the defense and then getting the ball and quickly scoring off penetration. This year he isn't scoring at a high rate when he is getting the ball in those weak spots and because the team isn't passing as well there is less penetration.

He needs to be play as the only paint based big on the court since adding another big clogs up the lane and closes those weak spots. But he hasn't been playing with floor spacers.

His defense rated well according to several metrics last year but I thought it was improved by how well the guards forced the ball away from screens. This year he's getting put in more one on one situations and is getting beat.