Preview: Sixers (0-2) at Celtics (2-0) Preseason Game #3 10/9/17

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Philadelphia 76ers (0-2)  at  Boston Celtics (2-0)
Preseason Game #3, Home Game #2
Monday, October 9, 2017
7:30 PM ET
TV: NBCSB, NBCSPA, NBA-LP 753(DTV)/752 (Xfinity)
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 97.5 The Fanatic
TD Garden
Referees:  Ed Malloy, Tyler Ford, Jason Goldenberg

The Celtics and Sixers meet for the second time this preseason, this time in Boston.  In their first meeting, the Celtics came out on top after the Sixers put up a good fight and stayed with them for much of the game.  The important thing is that the Celtics showed some improvement and appear to be building chemistry on both the first and second units. 

With Irving, Hayward, Horford, and Morris all out for the Celtics,  I took a wild guess as to who will be in the starting lineup for the Celtics.    I just have no idea who Brad will choose to start.  One thing is sure, though, the young guns on the Celtics will need to come up big for the Celtics to get the win. 

With both Holmes and Embiid out for this game, it seems that the Sixers are down to a pair of Okafors and Amir Johnson at center. I’m guessing that they will start Jahlil Okafor and bring Amir off the bench, but then again, they may want Amir in the starting lineup at center to anchor their other young starters.

Markelle Fultz missed the game on Friday with shoulder soreness but participated fully in Sunday’s practice and is probable for this game.  Embiid has participated in some 5 on 5 drills in practice but will not play in this game.  Saric has been resting after playing all summer in Eurobasket but is expected to play in this game. Richaun Holmes fractured the radial bone in his left wrist and will be out for this game.

Brett Brown has reported that he plans to rest JJ Redick and Robert Covington in this game. I’m going to guess that Nik Stauskas and Dario Saric will be next on the depth chart to fill in at shooting guard and small forward respectively. However, they may start any number of other players so it’s hard to predict who it will be.  Even after changing this post several times already as new information came out,  I have no idea if it is accurate. 

The Celtics remain mostly healthy. Marcus Morris is still working his way back into game shape. After playing most of last season at small forward, he is going to be playing more power forward this season and so is learning a new position along with new plays and a new defense. The Celtics have said that they plan to move him along slowly.   Al Horford, Kyrie Irving, and Gordon Hayward will also be out to rest. 

Probable Starters
   
PG Terry Rozier........... SG: Jaylen Brown

C:  Aron Baynes
 
SF: Jayson Tatum .............. PF: Guerschon Yabusele

Celtics Reserves
Kadeem Allen
Jabari Bird
Jonathan Holmes
Abdel Nader
LJ Peak
Shane Larkin
Marcus Smart
Daniel Theis
Andrew White
Semi Ojeleye

Injuries
Marcus Morris (conditioning) out
Gordon Hayward (rest)  out Kyrie Irving (rest) out
Al Horford (rest)  out

Head Coach
Brad Stevens


Probable Starters

PG: Markelle Fultz ................. SG: Nick Stauskas

C:  Jahlil Okafor

SF:   Dario Saric  .............. PF:  Ben Simmons

Sixers Reserves
Jerryd Bayless
James Blackmon, Jr
Kris Humphries
Furkan Korkmaz
James Michael McAdoo
TJ McConnell
Emeka Okafor
Jacob Pullen
Amir Johnson

Injuries
Timothe Luwawu Cabarrot (knee) probable
Joel Embiid (knee)  out
Dario Saric (rest) probable
Markelle Fultz (shoulder)  probable
Richaun Holmes (wrist)  out 
JJ Redick (rest)  out
Robert Covington (rest)  out 

Coach
Brett Brown

Key Matchups
  vs  Kyrie Irving vs Markelle Fultz
We didn't get to see this matchup because Fultz was out on Friday with a sore shoulder.  Although Ben Simmons does most of the ball handling and runs the offense when he is in the game, Fultz will likely be covering Kyrie.  Fultz disappointed in his first game with the Sixers, struggling with fatigue when he was the primary ball handler and had just 4 points on 2-13 shooting with 3 assists.  Hopefully we will see him in this one.

vs
Jason Tatum vs Ben Simmons It will be interesting to see if the Celtics start Tatum again in this game.  If so, his defense will be tested as he tries to stop Simmons, who will be initiating the offense for the most part, unless the Sixers decide to end the point forward experiment.  Tatum needs to make Simmons shoot from outside and keep him out of the paint. 

Honorable Mention
Jayson Tatum vs Markelle FultzThese two players won't be matched up  against each other in the game for the most part, but they are always  going to be compared.  When Danny Ainge traded the #1 pick for the #3  pick and passed on Fultz, who was the consensus top pick, in order to  take Tatum, it assured the fact that these two players will be  scrutinized and compared for the rest of their careers. 

Keys to the Game
Defense - The Celtics' defense was better than expected in their first game against the Hornets.  They have the potential to be a very good defensive team and they need to work hard to live up to that potential.  Defense wins games, even in the preseason.  The Celtics were able to force 24 turnovers in the first game and they need to be tenacious in this game as well. 

Be Aggressive - The Celtics have to be the more aggressive team and go after all the loose balls, and aggressively go after rebounds, and be aggressive on defense. They also have to be aggressive in taking the ball into the paint.  The more aggressive team will usually get the benefit of the whistles.  The Celtics have been aggressive so far and that has helped them to win both games.  The play of the game was Marcus Smart fighting for a steal and winning.  The Sixers announcers said that Marcus would chew your arm off to get the ball.  The entire team needs to play that way. 

Move the Ball - The Celtics had beautiful ball movement in their first game and they need to work at doing the same in this game.   Hero ball rarely wins games and so they have to consistently move the ball and play together.  If they build those habits in the preseason, it will make them that much tougher to beat when the games count. It would be nice to see the second unit develop that same ball movement. 

Focus - The Celtics have to be careful not to let up because they beat the Sixers just a few days ago.  The Sixers will be looking to avenge that loss and will come out strong and the Celtics need to be ready for that. 

X-Factors
It's Preseason - Winning isn't always the top priority in preseason games.  Coaches are going to experiment with lineups and try to sit their stars as much as possible to avoid injury before the season.  So, we need to enjoy watching them play and be glad that real basketball is almost back.

Who is Playing - In the first meeting between these two teams, the Sixers were missing several key players.  The Sixers expect to get Fultz, Luwawu-Cabarrot, and Saric back for this game. However, they have lost Holmes to a wrist injury and Embiid is still expected to be out. They are also planning to rest both Redick and Covington. For the Celtics, they should once again be almost at full strength with Marcus Morris the only question mark, unless Brad Stevens decides to rest a player or two. But, the Celtics need every game they have to work on chemistry and to get all of their new players up to speed on the Celtics’ system.

Marcus Smart - I list Marcus Smart as an X-Factor because his grit and scrappiness in the game are definitely catchy. Brad Stevens made it a point in Sunday’s film session to point out a few of Smart’s hustle plays from Friday win in Philadelphia. Rozier commented that Smart makes everyone around him play as hard as he does. It would be great to see several of the young guys take up that challenge and play as hard as Smart does.

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