The Celtics are going by way of possibly their roughest patch up to now two seasons, though that isn’t essentially saying a lot given their success all through the years. In December, the crew went 7-6, and has misplaced 4 of their final 6 video games. Right this moment, they face off towards the Toronto Raptors for the second time this season. Within the final matchup, the Raptors took the Celtics to additional time off of profession nights from RJ Barrett and Jakob Poeltl, however Boston in the end pulled off a 3-point victory. If Toronto can pull off an upset at this time, they’d ship the Celtics into the New Yr with a 2-game dropping streak, and a .500 December.
What do the Celtics do to guard the paint and decelerate Jakob Poeltl?
In Boston’s earlier matchup with Toronto, Jakob Poeltl scored his career-high of 35 factors. 32 of these factors got here within the paint, with the remaining 3 coming off of free throws. He did that on a near-perfect 16-19 capturing, a ridiculous 84.2%. He additionally had 12 rebounds to go together with that, 6 of them being offensive, and the opposite 6 defensive. Exterior of possibly solely RJ Barrett, he was simply the Raptors’ finest participant. He was nearly unstoppable that night time, and it must be completely different at this time. The query is how?
Boston has been missing defensively currently, particularly within the paint. That turns into much more true when Kristaps Porzingis is absent, which would be the case for the third sport in a row at this time as he nurses an ankle sprain. Kristaps was additionally lacking from the earlier matchup with Toronto whereas he was rehabbing from his low season surgical procedure. Of the common rotation guys, Boston lets up their highest points-in-the-paint per sport complete when Kristaps is off the court docket at 41.6.
What can Jrue Vacation present in his return to the lineup?
Jrue has missed Boston’s final three video games with a shoulder ailment, however at this time, he lastly makes his return. In these video games the Celtics went 1-2, with losses coming towards Philly and Indiana. Boston additionally gave up 115.3 factors per sport in that stretch, up from their season common of 110.1. Jrue is all the time seen as one of many prime defensive gamers within the league, however getting back from damage, he could also be barely out of sport form. It’s to be seen whether or not his day without work was a matter of rust or relaxation.
That stays true for his 3-point capturing numbers as nicely. Jrue has been having a down yr from behind the arc, capturing a close to profession low 32.6% from three. For reference, final yr he completed with a profession finest at 42.9%. As talked about earlier than, in his latest day without work, Jrue was nursing a shoulder damage. Will his brief break assist him get again to type, or might his shoulder presumably be the wrongdoer for his poor-shooting?
How does Scottie Barnes change the sport plan?
Within the earlier matchup between these two groups, RJ Barrett put up an incredible 25 factors, 15 assists, and 10 rebounds, nevertheless, Scottie Barnes missed that sport. Right this moment, the roles are flipped, with Barnes being lively and Barrett being listed as out with an sickness. They’ve very related stats on the season, with RJ being a greater scorer, and Scottie being a barely higher rebounder, passer, and defender. Right this moment we might see Barnes taking up the position which RJ performed within the final sport, however their video games are barely completely different. We might see the Celtics push him to be extra of a shooter, as his 3-point share is considerably decrease than RJ’s on the season, although he’s greater and higher at attacking the paint. He might additionally make looking matchups tougher on the opposite finish of the court docket.
