Next Up - Celtics @ Bulls Saturday, 12/8/2018 8 PM

The Celtics are on the road again tonight against the Chicago Bulls. Last night they won over OKC 114-112.  They are now 6-20.

Since our last meeting, a 111-82 victory, Fred Hoiberg has been fired and replaced with Jim Boylen who was an assistant.  They said Hoiberg was not able to get enough out of his players.  However that really overlooks all the injuries that they have had this season.

Here is what to expect.  The Bulls are averaging 103.3  PPG on 87.3 FGA.  They launch 29.2 3PA at a rate of .346%.
Second year sensation, Lauri Markkanen is back now (3 games)  and is averaging 18.3 PPG and 7 boards.  He has not wasted anytime making up for his shooting.  the kid is launching 9 3PA per game and hitting .407.

Getting him back helps everybody especially Zack Levine.  Other starters include Holiday, rookie Wendell Carter, and PG Arcidiacono.  Jabari Parker is the 6th man off the bench.

They are a poor defensive team giving up 112.3 PPG.  They turn the ball over quite a bit and they are average to below average on most areas like fast break points, PITP and rebounds.

The Celtics should win this game as long as they continue to do the things that produced 5 of their last 6 victories.

They have averaged 119 PPG over that 6 game stretch.  Hard to believe huh.  The Celtics are capable of putting big time numbers on the board.

Defensively they need to shut down the perimeter especially Markkanen who loves the corner 3.  Zach Levine is another gunner.  Boston can and should run them off the court with their newfound fast break attack.  The Celtics should also win the PITP battle provided they continue to attack the glass.

The bad news for Boston is that Baynes is out, Horford is nursing a sore knee and Williams is not with the team .  Daniel Theis is going to play a lot more tonight and also look for Yabusele to see more action along with Semi.

No complaints about this one , I trust , my friends.

The Bulls won a game on Thursday, but after watching them against the Cs, it would kind of surprise me if they ever win another game.

Their performance last night may have been the worst NBA performance that I have ever seen. I know that there are other weak teams this year, but the Bulls definitely showed that they have the ability to "earn" the first draft pick next June.