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Post by clippers1121 on Mar 11, 2019 9:22:57 GMT -8
Celtics - 2. NBA TV. Tatum has a sore shoulder and may miss his first game of the season. That helps a lot for us to win this game if they have one of their best bigs out of the game. He played well against the Warriors and Kings but was basically a no-show on Saturday night against the Lakers. So maybe the shoulder is bothering him. My gut says the Celtics rest him and save him for the rest of the season and playoffs.
So after the Thunder game how do you not put Beverley on Kyrie Irving to try and slow down their best offensive player. I think Beverley can take anybody out of their game. He just does not give an offensive player any space to operate. Rozier usually gives us problems so keep him under control too. And Gordon Hayward has been playing better lately. I don't know how motivated the Celtics are to get revenge against us for coming back from the 28 point deficit last month. Kyrie called us the great Clippers team when they interviewed him after the game Saturday night. So evidently we may have a shot at him this summer as a free agent since he respects our team. So I guess we will see what happens tonight. I think Harrell has to have a big game for us to win. Unless the Celtics just mail it in and don't come to play if they are missing Tatum.
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Post by clippers1121 on Mar 11, 2019 9:55:12 GMT -8
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 11:05:03 GMT -8
For several minutes, I thought the Lawler ceremony was today.
Then I realized that it's not April yet.
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Post by mistwell on Mar 11, 2019 18:32:45 GMT -8
Game Information:
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
When: 7:30 PM PT
How to watch/listen: NBA TV, Fox Sports Prime Ticket, AM 570
Odds: Celtics -1.5 (227.5 over/under)
Projected Starting Lineups:
Celtics: Kyrie Irving – Marcus Smart – Jayson Tatum – Marcus Morris – Al Horford
Clippers: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Pat Beverley – Landry Shamet – Danilo Gallinari – Ivica Zubac
Injuries:
Celtics: Jayson Tatum Put (Shoulder)
Clippers: Luc Mbah a Moute Out (Knee)
The Big Picture:
The surging Clippers have won four games in a row, but still sit in 8th place in the Western Conference because the Spurs and Jazz have tiebreakers over them. They’ve separated from the rest of the pack, though the Kings still linger four games behind. The range of possible Clippers’ outcomes thus range everywhere from the 6th seed (unlikely due to ease of Jazz’s schedule) to 9th. Right now, with the team looking good and finally getting some much-needed rest, an all-out push for the 6th and 7th seeds seems more likely than a slide from the postseason. Landry Shamet and Ivica Zubac continue to pay dividends in the starting lineup, while Pat Beverley is a man possessed on the glass and defensive end. The Clippers might not be great, but they’re looking like a very solid, capable team with 15 games left in the regular season.
The Antagonist:
Despite all the bewailing of the Celtics’ “disastrous” season, they have a 41-26 record and are a mere game back of the Sixers and Pacers for the 3rd seed in the Eastern Conference. It’s true, they won’t win 60+ games or claim a top 2 seed, as most people thought they would before the season began. But they’re still a dangerous, talented team, led by one of the best scorers, (Kyrie Irving), defenders (Marcus Smart), and well-rounded big men (Al Horford) in the NBA. Some of their players haven’t quite developed as expected (noticeably Terry Rozier), and others have fallen back to earth (Marcus Morris), but their young guys have played well lately, and their team is mostly healthy for the stretch run. The Celts are good, and match up well against the Clippers. They will also be out for vengeance after allowing the Clippers to come back from 28 points down in their last meeting.
Notes:
More Lou Williams record-breaking: In the Clippers’ last game, Lou Williams pushed past Jamal Crawford to have the second-most points ever off the bench in NBA history (though Jamal may have retaken that in the past couple games), and also seized the lead for 40+ point games off the bench. He’s now just 24 points behind Dell Curry for the all-time lead in points scored off the bench, which is very much within Lou’s grasp. Lou is already well on the path to being the best NBA 6th man of all time, and this record will be a huge milestone for him.
Can Shai continue his strong play: Shai is in one of the best stretches of his brief NBA career. So far, in four March games, Shai is averaging 13.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game, to only 0.5 turnovers. More impressively, he’s shooting 52.6% from the field while taking more shots, and has hit 7 of 10 threes. His aggression in looking for his own offense has been fantastic to watch, as Shai can create looks for himself more easily than almost any other player on the Clippers’ roster. When his shot is falling and he’s feeling himself, you can see the outlines of a player who could score a lot of points pretty efficiently in his prime. Let’s hope that confidence continues against the Celtics, who have the best point guard defender in the NBA in Marcus Smart.
Bounceback for Trez: Montrezl Harrell, on the other hand, is in one of his worst stretches of the season. In March, he’s at just 13.8 points per game, on a poor 48% shooting from the field (he’s at 16.1 and 61.9% for the season), and has been dominated by the size and length of opposing players like Harry Giles and Nerlens Noel. While Al Horford is really good, he’s rather small for a center as well, so Trez should hopefully enjoy more success against him, or against Aron Baynes. While the Clippers have won the last four games, to make a real run at a non-8 seed down the stretch, they need Trez to be the player he has been all season. Knowing Trez, a dominant performance is due any game now.
Wilson Chandler watch: While Chandler was active for the Clippers’ game against the Thunder, he did not play. While I advocated here that Chandler probably shouldn’t be a regular part of Doc’s rotation, I was a bit surprised he didn’t get any run at all, especially since Doc reached deep into his bench to play Sindarius Thornwell at one point. It could be that Chandler is available but still needs to get back into shape and learn the playbook, so won’t play for the next game or two. On the other hand, the Celtics with their big wings (Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Gordon Hayward) are a team that Chandler could be useful against. It will be interesting to see if Doc gives him some playing time in this one.
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 19:03:15 GMT -8
Since it's a NBA TV game, I'll be trying madflabby's Big Sur. I have switched from Dales Pale Ale (used to be my standard) to Firestone Lager. I have dropped a lot of weight and feel a lot better. I usually drink a local beer called Barrelhouse double IPA as a nightcap when I feel like getting buzzed.Been smoking more cannabis, its healthier for me than drinking all that ale. |
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 19:03:33 GMT -8
17-21, late in the first.
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 19:39:38 GMT -8
Last few minutes was random sloppiness.
49-62 halftime, Clippers.
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 19:57:15 GMT -8
The NBA TV broadcasters said that the Clippers were playing 3D chess at the trading deadline, while the rest of the league was playing Parcheesi.
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 19:59:01 GMT -8
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 20:14:07 GMT -8
Harrell about to score on Hayward, but then he dishes to Shamrock for 3. It's good.
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Post by mistwell on Mar 11, 2019 20:39:28 GMT -8
Man, that was a BEAT.DOWN.
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 20:49:50 GMT -8
Good win.
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 20:50:21 GMT -8
Man, that was a BEAT.DOWN. It will probably qualify for the Wire to Wire thread, whether it was a full one or a close one. |
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 20:52:28 GMT -8
Williams gets the Gatorade cup shower.
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Post by nuraman00 on Mar 11, 2019 20:55:12 GMT -8
Casey Stern is comparing the Clippers to the Grit N Grind Grizzlies.
Jason Terry says that Casey just upset a bunch of Grizzlies fans.
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