Boston Celtics Schedule Breakdown and Record Predictions for March

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2380315-schedule-breakdown-and-record-predictions-for-march



Boston Celtics Schedule Breakdown and Record Predictions for March
By Grant Rindner , Featured Columnist Feb 28, 2015




The Isaiah Thomas era is underway, and after months of watching the Boston Celtics choke away close leads, it is surely a relief to beleaguered fans.

Since the trade deadline, the Celtics and their new parts have come together surprisingly well, blowing out the New York Knicks, beating the Phoenix Suns on the road and narrowly losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in overtime.

The month of March provides a few stiff tests, namely against the Western Conference elite, but Boston has proved under Brad Stevens it has a knack for hanging in games against opponents with elite talent.

It’s still tough to tell which direction the franchise wants to head in for the remainder of 2014-15. The acquisition of Thomas speaks to a run at the No. 8 playoff spot, but this next crop of games has the potential to solidify the answer to that question.

Without further ado, let’s break down an action-packed few weeks of Boston basketball.


Week 1: March 1-8


vs. Golden State Warriors
at Cleveland Cavaliers
vs. Utah Jazz
at New Orleans Pelicans
at Orlando Magic
Key Matchup: at Cleveland Cavaliers



A win over Golden State would obviously be huge, but let's assume that Boston’s mediocre three-point defense (allowing 34.7 percent) won’t be enough to contain Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.

As long as Curry is healthy, the Warriors simply have too many weapons against the C’s 25th-ranked defense (102.7 points allowed), and Boston’s lack of inside scoring will come back to haunt the team.

The most important test will be against the scorching Cavaliers on the road. The C’s don’t need to come out on top, but if they can effectively contain LeBron James and use their stifling perimeter defense to make life tough for Kyrie Irving, they could have a shot.

Boston is going to have its hands full with Timofey Mozgov and the resurgent Kevin Love, but those two players alone can’t beat the C’s.

Still, it’s unlikely that Jae Crowder by himself will be enough to contain the red-hot James, and the Cavs have become a ferocious opponent at home (22-9). Their revamped roster is jelling nicely, so this is going to be a tough test for Boston.

The Utah Jazz are a surprisingly frisky opponent, even without Enes Kanter. Their frontline is dominant, and Rudy Gobert is sure to give Boston fits.

This is the kind of game that having a bona fide closer like Isaiah Thomas could be an immense help with, plus the Jazz are a young team and just 9-19 on the road.

New Orleans is still fighting for a playoff berth, albeit with Oklahoma City pulling away as Anthony Davis rests an injured shoulder.

The Pelicans should have Davis back by then, although maybe not at 100 percent, which would be a huge boon to Boston’s chances.

Although the Pelicans are a strong home team at 19-10, this is a winnable game for the C’s as long as Eric Gordon doesn’t get hot from three and Tyreke Evans can’t make his way into the lane at will.

The Orlando Magic are still feeling things out as a young squad, but Nikola Vucevic is an offensive monster down low, and even with Kelly Olynyk hopefully back, there are going to be issues covering the paint.

Luckily, the C’s backcourt will be able to smother Elfrid Payton and stall Orlando’s already mediocre scoring attack, which is 25th in points per game (95.7).

Overall: 3-2


Week 2: March 9-16

at Miami Heat
vs. Memphis Grizzlies
vs. Orlando Magic
at Indiana Pacers
vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Key Matchup: at Miami Heat



Coming out victorious in Jeff Green’s return to Boston would be a plus, but the Memphis Grizzlies are playing too well on both ends of the floor.

The Grizzlies won 117-100 back in November when the C’s still had a healthy Jared Sullinger in the frontcourt, and there’s just no way Boston can contain the Marc Gasol-Zach Randolph combination.

The most intriguing test for Boston is with the Chris Bosh-less Miami Heat, who beat the C’s 83-75 at TD Garden in early February.

Bosh dropped 18 in that game, albeit on 6-of-19 shooting, and Miami managed to win without Dwyane Wade or Luol Deng.

Now that Deng and Wade are playing and Goran Dragic is starting to find his footing, this team is a scary opponent.

The biggest issue for the C’s will be containing Hassan Whiteside, the big man who is averaging 10.3 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.4 blocks for the Heat this season.

He’s a true 7-footer and the key to a stifling Miami defense that has the team in the playoff picture despite awful injury luck. The biggest boost for Boston may be that the Heat have been a miserable home team, with a 10-16 record at American Airlines Arena.

The rest of Boston’s schedule for Week 2 is pretty standard with a winnable home game against Orlando, a road tilt with the offensively challenged Indiana Pacers and a showdown with the regrouping Philadelphia 76ers.

Orlando has a shot to steal this game if Vucevic gets going and Tobias Harris can get to the rim, while the Pacers represent a threat if they can get some offense on the elbows from David West and Roy Hibbert.

The C’s will probably drop one of these games; they’re still a young team prone to making mistakes at the end of close contests. However, unless Robert Covington goes berserk from the perimeter, a victory is all but guaranteed against Philly.

Boston is 3-0 against the Sixers in 2014-15, including a recent 107-96 home victory before the trade deadline

Overall: 2-3


Week 3: March 17-24

at Oklahoma City
at San Antonio
vs. Detroit Pistons
at Brooklyn Nets
Key Matchup: vs. Detroit Pistons



This is an especially brutal stretch, as Boston faces four teams in the playoff hunt, albeit looking at No. 7 and 8 seeds in each conference.

Oklahoma City, even with Kevin Durant in and out of the lineup, has played terrific basketball and is only stronger with the additions of Enes Kanter, D.J. Augustin and Kyle Singler.

The Thunder now have Kanter (averaging 15.8 points on 57.1 percent shooting for OKC), who is the kind of low-post scorer Boston will struggle to contain, and a three-point attack that the C’s must rotate with precision to stop.

OKC handled Boston 109-94 at TD Garden without Russell Westbrook and Durant, so it’s safe to say the Thunder can handle this matchup.

San Antonio is a similarly difficult team, because even though it hasn’t hummed along quite as fluidly as it usually does, it still has the precise passing attack that will slice up Boston’s D.

The Spurs won 111-89 in their visit to Beantown, and though the team hasn’t clicked yet, all it needs is a solid game from Tim Duncan and a few role players to prevail at home.

The most intriguing matchup will be with the rejuvenated Detroit Pistons, who are making a serious run at the playoffs and just added Reggie Jackson.

Detroit’s offense (21st in points per game at 98.3) has gotten much stronger recently, so it will prove an excellent test for Boston’s defense.

The attack has opened up without Josh Smith, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has come into his own of late.

Boston prevailed 109-102 last time they played, but the two teams have undergone significant changes since then.

The C’s also get an animosity-free matchup with the Brooklyn Nets now that Kevin Garnett is a Minnesota Timberwolf.

The short-term addition of Thaddeus Young will help the Nets, but the team is still sputtering with Deron Williams and Joe Johnson at the helm.

The C’s won in Brooklyn recently, 89-81, with Tyler Zeller submitting a monster performance.

Ultimately, this Nets game should be the one win that Boston scrapes out of a particularly brutal week.

Overall: 1-3



Week 4: March 25-31

vs. Miami Heat
at New York Knicks
vs. Los Angeles Clippers
at Charlotte Hornets
Key Matchup: vs. Los Angeles Clippers



This is another tough stretch—save for a matchup with the self-destructing New York Knicks—but hopefully the C’s will be capable of making the necessary adjustments against Miami coming off the earlier matchup.

The Heat are better on the road, but Boston plays better at TD Garden, so the difference should be mitigated somewhat.

Obviously, Wade or Deng always has the potential to go off slashing to the hoop, but this could prove to be a big win for the C’s and a game with major playoff implications if Boston decides to make a run at the eighth seed.

The Celts recently dismantled New York 115-94 at home, shooting 50.6 percent from the field and 45.2 percent from three as Evan Turner notched a triple-double.

New York won’t be such a pushover at home, but the team hasn’t exactly been formidable at Madison Square Garden and simply lacks the talent to be competitive in most games.

The key contest for the C’s in this stretch will be against the L.A. Clippers. Blake Griffin recently had stitches removed from his elbow, but as of yet it’s unclear if he’ll be available by late March.

Even without him, the Clippers are formidable. Chris Paul has been excelling as a playmaker, and DeAndre Jordan has come into his own since Griffin left the lineup.

In his last five contests, he’s averaging 18.4 points, 17.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game while shooting 69.6 percent from the floor.

The C’s don’t have a frontcourt player who can slow him down, so they will need to use strategic double-teams and limit his easy looks in transition.

Boston hung tough in a 102-93 loss at Staples Center, but that game featured a strong performance from Griffin and was before the C’s had Thomas to create offense.

There’s also the added incentive of besting former coach Doc Rivers in his second return to Boston since taking the helm in Los Angeles.

The Charlotte Hornets are fighting hard to get into the No. 8 seed, and there is a real chance Kemba Walker is back to full strength following knee surgery by this game.

Walker is a tough cover, and the combination of his quickness and Al Jefferson’s back-to-the-basket scoring can provide Charlotte enough juice to squeeze by offensively.

The Hornets aren’t an elite home team, though (13-16), and while they defend well, their offense, which ranks 27th in points at 94.3, is abhorrent.

This is likely to be a tight game and could come down to whose point guard is capable of creating better shots in the final two minutes.

Overall: 3-1



Final Thoughts



Barring a clear tanking move, the C’s will weather the month of March and still be in their No. 9 seed purgatory position.

Losing Sullinger for the year was obviously a huge blow, but Brandon Bass has been playing well in his stead, and Thomas off the bench has been a revelation.

Boston has some tough matchups ahead, especially against some of the Western Conference elite, but it is more than capable of sticking in those games and taking them down to the wire.

Late-game execution has been a struggle for the Celts all season long, so hopefully they will get a few of the breaks they never received before the All-Star break.

Ultimately, this will be another month hovering around .500 while fans wait to see which direction the franchise will decide to go in for the stretch run.

Final Record: 9-9



bob
MY NOTE:  For one thing our playoff seeding is impacted by how well our competitors for those seeds do.  If we go 9-9 like he says but none of the other teams vying for that slot play .500 then we're in.  I also don't understand why he thinks the game in Week 4 against LAC is more important than the one against the Hornets or the Heat.  If we're still neck-and-neck with Charlotte at that time a victory over them might kill them.  If Miami sags then we have a chance to catch them for #7.  To me, the important games are against your opponents that could steal your playoff spot.  That means Brooklyn more than Detroit, Charlotte more than LAC, Utah more than Cleveland (if we don't make the playoffs then Utah is an opponent for pingpong balls) and Indy as well as the Heat in Week 2.

Here's our schedule for April, which he doesn't address in this article:

Indy @ Boston
Bucks @ Boston
Boston @ Toronto
Boston @ Detroit
Boston @ Cleveland
Cleveland @ Boston
Toronto @ Boston
Boston @ Bucks

Only 2 easier games out of 8.  April might be tough for us.


.

I predict that the Celtics will play every game through the end of the season—unless they're snowed out.

I love predictions!!!

Sam