BSJ Live Coverage: Celtics vs. Bulls 7:30 p.m. - Already having a rematch

BOSTON CELTICS vs. CHICAGO BULLS

Location: TD Garden, Boston, MA

Game time: 7:30 p.m.

TV: NBC Sports Boston

Radio: 98.5 The Sports Hub

Preview: For the second time in three games, the Boston Celtics will welcome the Chicago Bulls to TD Garden. Rookie Caleb Wilson, Josh Giddey, and everyone else will be back in town.

That game was just a few days ago (on Monday), but the Bulls actually went home in between the two games. They lost a close game to the New York Knicks on Wednesday night.

Last game: On Monday, the Celtics blew the Bulls out. It was a thrashing. Powered by a 19-point third quarter from Payton Pritchard, the Celtics stormed to a 134-99 victory.

Wilson's stats didn't jump off the page, but he stood out as the most impressive player on the Bulls. He very clearly has the talent to be a star in this league. He'll just need some developmental time.

Jayson Tatum was right behind Pritchard in the scoring column, as he ended with 23 (and Pritchard had 28). Hugo Gonzalez also enjoyed a solid game last time out against Chicago, finishing with 13 points, five rebounds, and two assists.

Shootaround sound: Boston has played a wide array of teams this year. In its four games, the Celtics have played the New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons, Brooklyn Nets, and Bulls. Four very different teams.

However, some of those latter teams could be the most dangerous early in the campaign. They have nothing to lose, so they play with a specific type of energy.

"Well, every team plays to win, especially early on," Hugo Gonzalez said at shootaround on Friday morning. "Everybody is trying to be connected. Everybody's trying to build something that probably everybody is not going to be like that. So, especially those teams that you mentioned, at the beginning of the year, are really dangerous because they want to play with pace because they might think they're worse than what they are. So, they got a lot of things -- They don't got, sometimes, nothing to lose. They're super dangerous, and we gotta we gotta do a great job of treating them with respect."

That's the standard the Celtics want to set, no matter when in the season they are playing. Expectations don't change, no matter how much of a mental difference it may be facing the Knicks vs. the Nets.

There will inevitably be some natural shifts. The subconscious desire to play less hard when the opponent isn't as competitive. But that's what Boston wants to avoid.

"We have the system, the process that we want to play to, and it's really more just matching that," Joe Mazzulla said. "Having an understanding of the information that the game's showing you, and kind of playing there. So not really. I mean, you want to make it the same, regardless of who you're playing. You mentioned the best player on another team, but tonight the best players -- it changes. 

"So, the best players are the engines of the team. We have to bring the same mentality of defending the best player at the highest level and understanding what the team does really well. So it definitely changes from game to game per se. The game plan obviously changes. The details that you focus on obviously changes. But the mentality and the psychology of the game shouldn't change."

One fun play: Rather than sharing a play, here is a video I made after the Celtics' win over the Nets. I noticed a lot of comments during the game about Boston's defense, and there was truth to it.

The Celtics didn't play up to their standards on defense. Threes came too easily for Brooklyn. So, I asked about it. And this video is the result: