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4 days ago

(Video) Rajon Rondo Continues To Dominate In Postgame Interview

Rajon Rondo is a tremendous player, but he tends to have a little bit of an issue scoring the ball late in games. I won’t go as far as saying he is scared, but he does pass up shots and defer to teammates in crunch-time….well a lot. Last night though may have been his coming [...]

2
4 days ago

Video: Full Kevin Garnett Reaction After Game 1

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2
4 days ago

The Enemies List: Philadelphia, Part II

Before every playoff series this season, we’re doing some rundowns on the opposing roster for each team. Now that the Hawks have been dispensed with, we’re onto the Sixers. Here’s Part II. Players are listed in alphabetical order. Andre Iguodala: There are five guys in the league who have a claim on the title of [...]

4
4 days ago

NBA: Hawks Should Have Had Free Throw on Last-Second Foul

Mike Fratello had it right: the NBA announced today that Al Horford should have been given a free throw on Marquis Daniels’s off-ball foul at the end of Thursday’s game. At the time, ref Eric Lewis ruled that Daniels’s foul had occurred after the throw-in, making him probably the only person in the arena who [...]

1
8 days ago

Game 6 Time Set For Thursday Night

Boston will face off with the Hawks on Thursday night at 8pm at TD Garden. The broadcast can be seen on TNT or CSN locally. There was a risk that it would be a 6pm tip for Boston-Atlanta, if the Nuggets failed to extend the series last night against the Lakers. That would have created [...]

3
9 days ago

Atlanta Shakes Up Starting Five For Game 5

Desperate times call for desperate measures and after a blowout in Game 4, Atlanta’s head coach Larry Drew is going to shake things up a bit and add some bulk to his starting five at each position. Kirk Hinrich and Jason Collins will head to the bench, while Marvin Williams will be inserted at small [...]

7
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Game 27/66: Bulls (23-6) @ Celtics (14-12) Open Thread

Chicago at Boston
3:30 PM
TD Garden
ABC

Offensive Efficiency
Boston: 99.4 points/100 possessions (20th)
Chicago: 105.7 points/100 possessions (2nd)

Defensive Efficiency
Boston: 94.6 points/100 possessions (3rd)
Chicago: 93.8 points/100 possessions (2nd)

Probable Chicago Starters: C.J. Watson (PG) Ronnie Brewer (SG) Luol Deng (SF) Carlos Boozer (PF) Joakim Noah (C)

View from the Opposing Bench: By The Horns

Injury Report
Boston: Jermaine O’Neal is questionable. Brandon Bass (knee) is out for 7-10 days.
Chicago: Derrick Rose
is out. Rip Hamilton (thigh) is questionable.

THUMBNAIL
Friday night’s loss to the Raptors was one of the ten worst regular season games the Celtics have played during the Big Three era. Today, we find out if it was just an anomaly, a schedule loss and the product of a team taking it too easy after an emotional game against the Lakers. Or something else. If it was an aberration, the Celtics should come out strong today against one of the measuring sticks in the Eastern Conference and Doc Rivers will not be forced into expletive-laden tirades. If not, expect quick action by Rivers, who is in no mood for that kinda nonsense.

PREGAME ANALYSIS
This Bulls team is a monster. They’re the second best team in the league on both offense and defense. Of course, without Rose, things change, especially on the offensive end. Rose has a 29.05 usage rate, and in late game situations, he’s both ball dominant and the primary creator of shots. Boozer and Deng are going to have to carry the offensive burden today, and that’s good news for the Celtics because Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce should be just twitchy to get out there and redeem Friday’s effort. And neither Boozer nor Deng is a great creator of shots.

Even with Rose, the Bulls are going to choke off Boston’s offensive options, especially penetration where they rotate well (Boozer being a notable exception at times). So, quick, smart ball movement and accurate jumpshooting may carry the day for the Celtics. Expect too, a strong performance from Rajon Rondo, who’s still smarting from his all-star snub and his struggles the last couple of games. He should look to push the ball off defensive stops. With any luck his teammates will be running with him.

But beyond any sense of the tactical, we want to see this Celtics team lean into this game, play with force and results aside, cast the Raptor loss to the condensed-season winds.

PREDICTION
Without Rose, the C’s should take this one.

Boston 92 Chicago 87

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