Kings (21-29) at Celtics (30-22) Game #53 2/7/16

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
Sacramento Kings (21-29) at Boston Celtics (30-22)
Sunday, February 7, 2016
1:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #53, Home Game #26
TV: CSNNE, CSNCA, NBA Cananda,  NBA-LP 755(DTV)/755(xfinity)
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, KHTK 1140, Sirius 214
TD Garden




Probable Celtics Starters
PG SG SF PF C
Isaiah Thomas / Avery Bradley / Jae Crowder / Amir Johnson / Jared Sullinger

Celtics Reserves
Evan Turner
RJ Hunter
Jonas Jerebko
David Lee
Terry Rozier
James Young
Kelly Olynyk
Marcus Smart
Tyler Zeller

Injuries
Jordan Mickey (ankle) out

Head Coach
Brad Stevens




Probable Kings Starters
PG SG SF PF C
Rajon Rondo / Marco Belinelli/ Rudy Gay/ DeMarcus Cousins/ Willie Cauley Stein

Kings Reserves
Quincy Acy
James Anderson
Marco Belinelli
Omri Casspi
Darren Collison
Seth Curry
Duje Dukan
Kosta Koufos
Caron Butler

Injuries
Eric Moreland (foot) out
Duje Dukan (leg)  out
Rudy Gay (ankle) game time decision
Ben McLemore (wrist) doubtful
Willie Cauley Stein (calf) day to day

Head Coach
George Karl

Game Notes
The Celtics return home to host Rajon Rondo and the Sacramento Kings for the 2nd and final game between them this season.  The Celtics won the first game, which was played in Mexico City, 114-97.  This will be Rondo's first trip to Boston with the Kings and I'm sure he will play his best to try to get one over on his former team. 

The Celtics have won 8 of their last 9 games and 3 straight.  The Cavs have lost their last 2 and 6 of their last 7.  They have also lost 4 straight on the road.  The Celtics are 8-2 in their last 10 games while the Kings are 4-6 in their last 10.  The Kings are 8-16 on the road and the Celtics are 15-10 at home.

The Kings are dealing with some injuries coming into this game.  Rudy Gay sprained his ankle in Friday's game against Brooklyn and will be a game time decision for this game.  If he can't play, Omri Casspi will probably get the start in his place.  Willie Cauley Stein also left Friday's game with a calf issue and is listed as day to day.  Ben McLemore is doubtful with a wrist injury.  Duje Dukan (leg) and Eric Moreland (foot) are both out.  Jae Crowder has been playing through a couple of injuries and is expected to play in this one also.  Jordan Mickey (ankle) is listed as out. 

Key Matchups
vs
Amir Johnson vs DeMarcus Cousins
Cousins is a force on both defense and offense.  He is averaging 27.0 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.39 steals and 1.37 blocks.   The Celtics will have their hands full trying to contain him in this game.  In the first game this season he struggled somewhat with 16 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 block.   

vs
Isaiah Thomas vs Rajon Rondo 
Rajon Rondo is going to want to put on a show for his former team and the Boston fans, many of whom still love him. He is averaging 11.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 11.7 assists and 1.79 steals.  He scored 29 points in his first meeting with the Celtics as a Maverick.  As is often the case, we may see Avery Bradley covering Rondo on defense.  On the other hand, Isaiah will be looking to get a win over his former team as well. 

Honorable Mention
Jae Crowder vs Rudy Gay 
Gay is capable of putting up a lot of points in a short time.  He is averaging 17.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 steals.  In the first meeting between these teams Gay had 18 points and 7 rebounds.   Jae is a very good defender and should be able to slow Gay down if he is healthy enough. 

Brad Stevens vs George Karl
We have a matchup of the new guard vs the old guard.  Stevens is one of the best new coaches in the league and George Karl is considered to be one of the best of the very experienced coaches in the league.  This should be fun to watch.  Brad won round 1 so I'm sure George is plotting his revenge in this one. 

Keys to the Game
Rebound - Much of rebounding is effort and desire.  The Celtics have to put out extra effort  to grab the rebounds on both ends of the court.   By doing so, they limit the second chance points and fast breaks for the Kings and also give themselves extra possessions.   With Cousins and Cauley-Stein manning the front line for the Kings the Celtics will need to put out extra effort if they want to win the battle of the boards. 

Defense - The Celtics have tried to make defense their priority this season.  Defense not only wins championships, it wins games as well. They have to defend the paint to keep Cousins especially away from the basket as well as closing out on the 3 point shooters.  The Kings are 3rd in the league in scoring with 106.8 points per game.  They have to play tough team defense to get a win in this one. 

Start Strong and Play 48 Minutes - There have been times that the Celtics come out sluggish and other times when they seem to fall apart down the stretch. Sometimes it works out in the end and sometimes it doesn't.  They have to come out strong in the first quarter and play tough as a team until the final buzzer.  No let up. 

Be Aggressive - The Celtics must be the more aggressive team. They have to go after loose balls, rebounds and also be more aggressive defensively. They have to be aggressive in going to the basket and also in moving the ball.  The more aggressive team usually gets the calls and also the win.

Run and Move the Ball-  The Celtics play best when they run on every possession and when they keep the ball moving to find the best shot.  They need to run on offense to get easy shots before the Kings' defense can set up.  They also need to run on defense to keep the Kings from getting into their sets and to keep them from getting easy baskets.  They also have to move the ball.  When they tend to dribble too much, the rest of their game seems to become stagnant. 

X-Factors
Let Down Factor - The Celtics are coming off an incredible win over the top team in the East.  There is always a chance of a let down after a win of that magnitude.  They need to stay focused and play as hard or harder against the Kings with no let down. 

Home Game -  The Celtics have been playing very well at home in recent games, having won their last 6 games at the Garden.   Also, the Kings have struggled recently on the road, losing their last 4.   The Celtics need to get a boost from the home crowd and come out focused on protecting home court. 

Officiating - The officiating is always an x-factor.  Whether because of the tendencies of individual refs, or an agenda on behalf of the refs or the league, each game is officiated differently and that can favor or throw a team off on any given night.

[Yenohb]

First! Interesting to see how they respond after the shocker against Cleveland.

[FLCeltsFan]

TP  Yenohb for being the first to post in the game thread. 

Go Celtics!!!!! 

[csfansince60s]

TP FLCeltsFan.....another great game thread.

Think we're all still basking in the afterglow of the Cavs win.

Cmon Cs, no letdown here.

These Kings lost to the Nets and hurt us. LETS HURT THEM.

[Yenohb]

This game has the potential to be the last straw on a coach losing his job. Much like what happened to Mchale in Houston.

[ImShakHeIsShaq]

This game has the potential to be the last straw on a coach losing his job. Much like what happened to Mchale in Houston.

Celtics, COACH KILLERS! Let's goooooooo!!!






(would feel bad for Karl)

[SHAQATTACK]

Rondo with patented triple double .   


Don't let the  Boogie Man get ya.

[max215]

Let's blow them out, get Karl fired, cause more craziness in Sacramento, then steal BOOGIE!!!!!

[Clench123]

Let's blow them out, get Karl fired, cause more craziness in Sacramento, then steal BOOGIE!!!!!

Sound like a great plan

[greece66]

F I N A L L Y

an early matinee game 

[greece66]

Cousins is unstoppable in his offense lately, but if we contain the rest of the gang we should be fine.

[SHAQATTACK]

F I N A L L Y

an early matinee game 

You can watch the game and turn in at a decent hour ....LOL

[BudweiserCeltic]

COUSINS!! COME TO PAPA!!

After we crush you today of course.

[SHAQATTACK]

Could the next coach of the Kings be


RONDO !

[KGs Knee]

Sacramento is a terrible defensive team, they just gave up 120+ points to Brooklyn.

Cowtown is kind of a mess again.  I hope the Celtics come out focused and bury this team.  I love Rondo and Boogie, but the rest of the team around them sucks, and neither Rondo nor Cousins seem to put any effort in on defense, and lord knows Karl won't hold them accountable.

But people really need to get over having any hope of getting Cousins, Cowtown isn't going to let their franchise player go, and Rondo/Cousins seem to really like each other, so the Kings just need to convince Rondo to stay this summer.  That shouldn't be too hard, who else is going to pay Rondo what the Kings likely will?