Final: Celtics 129, Nets 106 - C's get back to playing the right way, cruise to an easy win

GAME 61
Boston Celtics (34-26, 14-15 road, 6th East) vs. Brooklyn Nets (31-28, 13-15 home, 8th East)
Barclays Center
7:30 PM - TNT

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS

Boston: Marcus Smart, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Robert Williams

Brooklyn: Bruce Brown, Kessler Edwards, Seth Curry, Patty Mills, Andre Drummond

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

- The Celtics have no injuries on their report. Smart is back from his ankle injury, though he’s not 100%

“The swelling’s going down. Right now just dealing with a bone bruise on it,” Smart said. “But it feels good. We did everything that we were supposed to do to check it, test it out, make sure I was ready to go before going out there. And I feel pretty confident and the staff feels pretty confident that I’m good to go.” 

Smart is still limping, and he says things like putting his shoe on puts pressure on the bone and can be painful. However, without the risk of further injury, Smart says he’s willing to tolerate some of the pain to get back onto the floor. 

“It’s just who I am. It’s what I’ve always been able to do,” Smart said. “Just to be out there with those guys -- we have a really good groove going, and I just want to really keep it going. Just like anything, you take a couple days off, extended time, it takes more time to get the rust off and get back in that groove. So I just want to keep it going.”

- Robert Williams is returning from his sore right calf. 

“His recovery has been better this year, especially with the increase in minutes and his role, but also his prevention,” Ime Udoka said. “He’s built that up. He’s getting his body right, so he limits some injuries and soreness and things of that nature, so when he does have the injury happen he’s able to bounce back more quickly. So it’s the preparation and what we talked to him about is staying game ready, and he’s taken that to heart and been great with that all season.”

- The Celtics have brought in Kelan Martin, a 6’5” wing and Malik Fitts, a 6’8” power forward, on 10-day contracts. 

Per the Celtics:

Fitts, 24, has competed in 10 NBA games over the past two seasons with the LA Clippers and Utah, averaging 0.9 points, and 1.3 rebounds in 4.6 minutes. The California native has played in seven games with the Jazz in 2021-22 and produced career highs of six points and seven rebounds in his most recent contest at Toronto on Jan. 7.

Martin, 26, has played in 93 games over parts of three NBA seasons with Minnesota and Indiana, averaging 5.6 points on 41.7% shooting (30.9% 3-PT, 88.9% FT), 2.4 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 13.6 minutes. The Kentucky native produced 6.3 points (41.7% FG), 2.0 rebounds, and 16.4 minutes in 27 games (one start) for the Pacers this season, reaching double figures in scoring on three occasions.

“We’re looking for a specific skill set with these guys, how they match to our team and we like how they fit into that role,” Udoka said. “But for the most part we’re focused on the guys we have and incorporating Derrick (White) and Daniel (Theis) back into the mix.”

- Goran Dragic and Ben Simmons are both out tonight due to return to competition reconditioning. Kevin Durant (knee), Joe Harris (ankle), and Kyrie Irving (COVID regulations) are also out.

- Boston is favored by 9

ONE THING TO WATCH FOR

A return to winning streak form: 

I’m keeping this one super simple, but it incorporates a lot of things. Returning to winning streak form means playing with pace, moving the ball, and defending in a manner that makes Steve Nash say “they’re far and away the best defensive team in 2022.” 

There's a lot to watch for in this one thing to watch for. 

“Our starts have been better, night and day, from early in the year, and that’s been a big point of emphasis - not playing from behind or being in close games,” Udoka said. “Offensively continue to play with pace and sharing the ball, and you look at the passing numbers from simple things like passes per game and assist percentage, it just means we’re doing the right thing. We’ve increased in all those areas … less isolation and more team play has been beneficial for us.”

Boston’s offense has to run off its defense. They have to get stops and then push the tempo to be successful. Whether it’s a rebound, a block, or a steal, Boston has to limit Brooklyn’s chances and then turn those into points on the other end. 

“The guys are kind of buying into that mantra and that identity,” Udoka said. “We’re looking to build over the last 22 games on what we did over the last 20 or even the first 40, we were still top 4, but over the last 20, we were No. 1. So we want to continue that.”

I called this a must-win game on the latest Locked On Celtics podcast. Not only because of all the tiebreakers I laid out yesterday, but because it will prove they are ready for these last 22 games. 

If they come out and play the right way, they will win easily. If they don’t, they’ll struggle. It’s as simple as that. 

“We are locked in. We don't have the luxury to take a deep breath right now,” Smart said. “As long as you go out there and give everything you got, nine times out of 10 it should work in your favor. We just have to go out there and continue to do our job and come out with wins for us. As long as we stick together and keep the same mindset we had for the last 10 games -- except for the Detroit game, that was kind of a slip -- we'll be okay.”

GAME THREAD

Stick around for more comments below as the game goes on. Feel free to add your two cents in the comments.