Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks preview, injury report, and info - December 18, 2021
CelticsBlog.com
The Boston Celtics take on the New York Knicks tonight on night two of a back-to-back. Just last night they faced off against the Golden State Warriors, and despite a valiant comeback effort, they ended up falling just short. Meanwhile, the Knicks are coming off of a solid victory over the Houston Rockets on Thursday.
Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks preview, injury report, and info
How to Watch
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Time: 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Channel(s): NBC Sports Boston
Boston Celtics Breakdown
The Celtics battled hard against the Warriors last night. While they may have lost, it was still a solid performance from a Boston squad that was severely short-handed. They had six total players on the injury report, and three of them were pieces of the regular rotation - Al Horford, Dennis Schroder, Grant Williams. Despite that, the C’s were able to hang in there with a Warriors team that has only lost five games so far this season.
Marcus Smart got into foul trouble, but his energy was extremely present at the end of the game once again. He was diving for loose balls, hitting clutch threes, and drawing much-needed offensive fouls. Jayson Tatum got hot in the third quarter, helping the C’s mount their comeback, as did Jaylen Brown. Those two put up 27 and 20 points, respectively.
Boston also got solid contributions from Josh Richardson and Aaron Nesmith off the bench. Richardson was the more productive player, chipping in 15 points, including 4-for-7 shooting from deep. Meanwhile, Nesmith put up 11 points on slightly less efficient shooting. The youngster stole the show after the game, though, as Smart revealed his nickname to be “Crash,” as in Crash Bandicoot.
New York Knicks Breakdown
The Knicks have been struggling mightily as of late. They are 13-16 on the season and currently sit at 12th in the Eastern Conference after a hot start to the season. After starting the year 5-1, the Knicks have gone 8-15 since, including a 2-7 record in their last nine games.
A big part of their struggles is lackluster defense. They were one of the best defensive teams in the NBA last season, but now rank 23rd (110.7) in defensive rating this season. They allow 107.2 points per game, ranking 15th in the league. Tom Thibodeau benched Kemba Walker recently, likely in an attempt to improve the team’s overall defense, however that hasn’t gone to plan either. Since Walker was benched, the team hasn’t made any real improvements on either side of the ball.
New York’s three-point shooting numbers are also down this year. They still rank sixth in the league in three-point percentage, but some of their stars are shooting significantly worse. Julius Randle’s numbers are down from 41.1 percent to 34.4 percent and RJ Barrett is down from 40.1 percent to 35.3 percent. This is in line with the league’s decline from three as a whole, but it’s still hurting the Knicks in a big way.
Injury Report
Boston’s injury report remains lengthy for tonight’s game. Horford, Williams, Juancho Hernangomez, Jabari Parker, and Sam Hauser are all still in health and safety protocols. Meanwhile, both Dennis Schroder (non-COVID illness) is also out and Romeo Langford is questionable. Langford hit the deck hard last night against the Warriors, and despite staying in the game, went back to the locker room once he was subbed out.
The Knicks have been dealing with some COVID issues of their own this season. Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, Obi Toppin, Quentin Grimes, Kevin Knox, and Miles McBride are all out due to health and safety protocols. Derrick Rose is also listed on the report as questionable due to an ankle injury.
Keys to the Game
The C’s need to play with the same energy they played with in the second half last night. The first half was rough, but when they really started to fight and play with that intensity Ime Udoka has begged for, they were able to mount an amazing comeback. If they can play with that amount of energy for an entire game, they would be a force to be reckoned with.
Boston also needs to concern themselves with New York’s big man rotation. Normally, the C’s would match up well, but the recent slew of absences could be worrisome. With Horford, Williams, Hernangomez, and Parker out, Boston will be left with Robert Williams, Enes Freedom, and Bruno Fernando as the only big men on the roster. The Knicks consistently roll out Mitchell Robinson, Nerlens Noel, and Taj Gibson, with rookie Jericho Sims occasionally making an appearance as well. The last time these two teams played, Boston got dominated on the glass by Robinson. That will have to be a team effort tonight.
Speaking of the last time these two teams played, Boston needs to defend the three better this time around. On opening night, Evan Fournier killed the C’s from deep in the later stages of the game. With their depleted roster, the Celtics are going to have to play hard and communicate well on the defensive end. Giving up a ton of open threes to the Knicks is a sure-fire way to blow the game.
Pregame Show
Make sure to tune in to our live pregame show, “The Banner Town Build Up.” We are live 30 minutes before every Celtics game at @GuyBostonSports on YouTube and Facebook. See you there at 6:30 p.m. (EST) tonight!
