Final: Celtics 126, Kings 97 - 3-point barrage buries Sacramento

GAME 71 
Boston Celtics (42-28, 18-16 road, 4th East) vs. Sacramento Kings (25-46, 16-21 home, 13th West)
Golden 1 Center
10:00 PM - NBC Sports Boston

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS

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

Sacramento: Davion Mitchell, Justin Holiday, Trey Lyles, Harrison Barnes, Domantas Sabonis

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

- Aaron Nesmith is out again tonight. Despite the extended absence, Ime Udoka says Nesmith is not running out of time to be part of the regular rotation. 

“He's been hit hard with injuries at times where he had opportunities this year. So that obviously hurts,” Udoka said. “There's still opportunity there. A big huge piece is Derrick (White) getting acclimated, but Aaron is a guy we're confident in, just like Payton (Pritchard) and everybody else when they got their opportunity.”

- De’Aaron Fox is out with a hand injury suffered against the Milwaukee Bucks Wednesday night. 

“We had it X-rayed and everything and it’s going to be one of those things where, short term, we’ve just got to manage the pain, but long term, it’s going to be fine,” interim Head Coach Alvin Gentry told a Sacramento radio station. 

Davion Mitchell (nicknamed “off night” for his defensive abilities, which lead to opponents having off nights. You might remember that applying to Pritchard in summer league) will get the start. 

“Talented kid who’s been better since the trade, same as Fox had been,” Udoka said before the game. “Obviously they’re getting more opportunity, and there’ll be an opportunity for him to step up tonight. As you know guys take advantage of those all the time. We can’t let our guard down at all.” 

- Boston is favored by 11.

THREE THINGS TO WATCH FOR

1. That letdown Ime mentioned: Fox has been huge since the trade deadline. He’s one of the reasons why the Kings, despite their record, are dangerous, and danger always heightens one’s senses. Mitchell has his strengths, and he’s on a little bit of a roll, but he’s not going to command the respect of the Celtics in that same way. 

However, NBA teams are all dangerous when they're underestimated. It’d be nice if Boston can come out strong and not have to make a late run to put this game away. 

And hey, throwing some garbage time my way to help me get my writing started earlier on a late Friday night start would be nice, too. Just sayin’. 

2. Putting the rookie in his place: There's a part of me that can hear Tatum saying ‘oh they call him off-night? Lemme put that to the test a little bit.’ Mitchell is a hell of a defender, but he’s 6’2” and I’m betting Tatum might want to show him a thing or two. I know he had that chance in Boston already, but why not go at him again?

That's fine, and I’m sure Tatum putting on show against a rookie with a defensive reputation would be fun for fans to see, but the bigger point is that I just hope the Celtics don’t get too matchup-happy in this one. There will be plenty of chances to score against this Kings team if they just play the right way. Run them off the court. 

3. Weird rotations: Udoka has talked a lot about using this time to get newer guys like Daniel Theis and Derrick White more comfortable, so we might see a game like this be one of those chances. 

“As much as we can get them in certain combinations and continue to acclimate them to everything we're doing, that's very important,” Udoka said. 

That means giving Horford or Tatum a little more of a break. We might see Udoka go that route against the Kings and go a little deeper into the bench. 

GAME THREAD

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