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Denver Nuggets (17-28) at Boston Celtics (25-21)
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #47 Home Game #23
TV: CSNNE, Altitude, NBA-LP 753(DTV), 752(Xfinity)
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, KRWZ 960 AM
TD Garden
Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard
vs
Isaiah Thomas vs Emmanuel Mudiay
Shooting Guard 
vs
Avery Bradley vs Gary Harris
Small Forward 
vs
Jae Crowder vs Danilo Gallinari
Power Forward 
vs
Amir Johnson vs Kenneth Faried
Center
vs
Jared Sullinger vs Nikola Jokic
Celtics ReservesEvan Turner
RJ Hunter
Jonas Jerebko
David Lee
Terry Rozier
James Young
Kelly Olynyk
Jordan Mickey
Tyler Zeller
Marcus Smart
Head CoachBrad Stevens
InjuriesJordan Mickey (ankle) out
Nuggets ReservesDarrell Arthur
Will Barton
Randy Foye
JJ Hickson
Sean Kilpatrick
Joffrey Lauvergne
Mike Miller
Jusuf Nurkic
Head CoachMichael Malone
Injuries Kenneth Faried (adductor) probable
Jameer Nelson (wrist) questionable
Wilson Chandler (hip) out
Game Notes The Celtics come home from a rather odd back to back 2 game road trip to host the Denver Nuggets for the first of 2 games this season. The Celtics overcame snow delays and day of game travel to win both games on the road. They are looking for their 4th straight win as they take on the Nuggets. The Nuggets closed out a 4-4 home stand with a loss and will be on the road for 8 of their last 10 games.
The Celtics are 12-10 at home and need to protect home court to stay above .500 there. The Nuggets are 8-13 on the road and have lost 5 of their last 6 games on the road. The Celtics have won 15 of the last 17 meetings between these two teams and the last 5 games against Denver in Boston. The Celtics are 14-12 overall vs Denver since the 2002-03 season. The Celtics won the series last season 2-0 but in 8 of the 9 seasons before that, the series was tied 1-1.
The Celtics remain pretty much healthy with just a few bumps and bruises here and there. Jordan Mickey is out with a sprained ankle, but he would be more likely to head back to Maine than to play with the Celtics. Gary Harris was limping in Monday's game vs the Hawks and is considered day to day. Jameer Nelson has missed 5 games with a sprained wrist and is questionable for this game. Kenneth Faried is probable with a sore adductor muscle and Wilson Chandler is out with a hip injury.
Key Matchups vs
Jae Crowder vs Danilo Gallinari
This may be a tough matchup for both teams. Gallinari has a height advantage and needs to be covered all over the court because he has good range on his shot. On the other hand, Jae has a strength advantage and should be able to out muscle him in the paint. Gallinari is averaging 19.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 2.5 assists.
vs
Amir Johnson vs Kenneth Faried
Faried has a motor that doesn't quit. He reminds me of Jae Crowder in some ways (and not just the hair). Faried is averaging 12.2 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists. Amir will need to keep him out of the paint and off the boards.
Honorable MentionIsaiah Thomas vs Emmanual Mudiay
Isaiah is making a strong bid to be included in the All Star game. Over the last 10 games, he is averaging 25.4 points and 6.4 assists. The Nuggets rookie is averaging 11.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 5.7 assists per game. He has a height advantage over Isaiah (but then who doesn't?) but Isaiah has a way of neutralizing height advantages with his speed and wily moves.
Keys to the GameDefense - Defense is the key to winning every game. The Nuggets are averaging just 99.7 points per game and are allowing 103.8 points. But the Celtics can't let up on defense because if they do, the Nuggets have players who are capable of getting to the basket and scoring points.
Run! - The Celtics are a much better team when they push the ball and run and get easy shots before the defense can set up. When they slow it down, they get stagnant on both ends of the court and struggle to score and get stops. They need to run on every offensive possession and then run back on defense.
Play 48 Minutes - The Celtics have to come out strong and play hard for the entire game. They have to avoid the lapses in the middle where they turn the ball over and miss their shots. They have to focus and keep playing hard from the opening tip until the final buzzer, especially if they get a lead. They tend to let up at times when they get a lead and let the other team come back. The need to work hard to keep that from happening.
Be Aggressive - The Celtics must be the more aggressive team. They have to fight for loose balls, defend aggressively, be aggressive in driving to the basket, and just play harder than the Nuggets for the entire game. They have to be the team that wants it more. They did a good job of being aggressive against their last 3 opponents and they need to keep it up.
Rebound - The Celtics can't score if they don't have the ball. Much of rebounding is effort and when the Celtics put extra effort into grabbing rebounds, that effort often translates to the rest of their game. They have to crash the boards to give themselves second chance points and to prevent the Nuggets from getting the same.
Move the Ball - The Celtics have to move the ball and find the open man and the best shots. When they lapse into hero ball, they struggle to score. They are at their best when they are assisting on the majority of baskets and keeping the ball moving.
X-Factors Back at Home - The Celtics have played very tough on the road, especially on this 2 game road trip. They are back at home and need to bring the same mindset to this game and not let down because they are at home. They need to feed off the home crowd and defend their home court with ferocity.
Officiating - Officiating will be an X-Factor for every game. Every crew has their own way of calling the games and they have their own agendas. Will they call it fairly or in favor of one team or the other? Will they let them play or call every little contact? The way the game is called always has an effect on the players.
Topic: Nuggets (17-28) at Celtics (25-21) Game #47 1/27/16 (Read 32501 times)