The Celtics have started this year on fire.
The streak is now up to 13 games as they were able to handle the Brooklyn Nets last night. The Celtics now will hop on a plane back to Boston and prepare for a battle on Thursday night, as Steph and the Warriors come to town. With this surely being the team’s biggest test of the year, we are about to see what Boston is made of.
The Warriors will come into the game sporting an 11-3 record and sitting atop the Western Conference. While there hasn’t seemed to be much attention given to them this year, that is surely only because this success was expected.
Everyone knows what they have on their plate when they face Golden State. They have three of the premier shooters in the league and they are going to do just that: shoot. The only way to beat them is to catch them on a bad day, or to go out and stop them yourself. What better team to take on this challenge at this point in the year than Boston.
There is a reason that Boston has been able to grind out W’s constantly this year, even when missing Kyrie or Big Al: Defense.
The Celtics are still the best defensive team in the league by a wide margin, but don’t expect that to frighten Golden State. They will score; especially since Jayson Tatum may have to spend some minutes guarding KD. With that, I don’t see the Celtics shutting them down like they’ve been doing to teams, but I do expect them to contain them.
I’m a believer in good defense over good offense every day of the week, but if the Celtics want to win this game, Kyrie and Al Horford will have to have big games. Kyrie will be the most vital to the team’s success. So far this year, when Irving has played well, so has the team. Even though he’s only played a handful of games in green, this is already his team and the team responds to his play and leadership. Also, when Kyrie is on and knocking down shots, it opens Al Horford up on the pick and roll, providing easy buckets for the team.
On the flip side, I will be very interested to see if Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, and Terry Rozier, amongst others, can D up the Warriors’ stars. They haven’t had this big of a test as a team yet this year and if they can pull this one out, then this team can do anything.
The recipe for the Celtics to win this game is easier said than done, but doable nonetheless. If the wings can make it tough on KD, Steph Curry, and Klay Thompson on the perimeter, then it will open up the offense in a big way.
Irving will have to drop at least 25; most likely more, but in an efficient matter. It’s very important for this team to start out fast. Once you get down to the Warriors and they get momentum, it is hard to stop.
Look for the Garden to be rocking Thursday night on TNT primetime. #Goingfor14