Brooklyn Nets (4-4) at Boston Celtics (7-2) Game #10 11/8/24

The Celtics look to bounce back from their first home loss when they host the Brooklyn Nets. This is the first of four meetings between these two teams this season. They will compete again on November 13th in Brooklyn, then on March 15th in Brooklyn and finally on March 18th in Boston. The Celtics won the series 4-0 last season. The Celtics are 141-73 overall against the Nets and 75-33 overall in Boston.

This is the first of three road games for the Nets and the first night of back-to-back games for them. They play the Cavaliers on Saturday and then the Pelicans. They then return home to face the Celtics on Wednesday. The Celtics are playing their second home game in a row. They will travel to Milwaukee on Sunday and then face the Hawks at home on Tuesday and face off in Brooklyn on Wednesday.

The Celtics remained mostly unchanged in the offseason, returning their entire roster and only losing Svi Mykhailiuk and Oshae Brissett. They added Baylor Scheierman, who was the 30th pick in the draft, and signed second-round pick Anton Watson to a two-way contract. They have a vacant roster spot that they will likely keep open in the event of an injury during the season. It’s also evident that some of the returning Celtics improved significantly over the summer.

The Nets decided to rebuild this season by trading their most valuable player, Mikal Bridges, to the Knicks. They received Shake Milton as a sign and trade from the Knicks. They brought in Bojan Bogdanovic and Ziaire Williams from Memphis. They received their own draft picks in ’25 and ’26 from Houston and five first-round picks in the Bridges trade. They lost Keita Bates-Diop, Jacob Gilyard, Dennis Smith Jr. and Lonnie Walker IV.

The Celtics will be without Kristaps Porzingis, who is still recovering from offseason ankle surgery and is not expected back until December. Jaylen Brown will miss his fourth straight game with a hip injury. I expect Joe Mazzulla to start again in the double bigs, while Queta will start again. Luke Kornet is questionable for this game as he had to leave Wednesday’s game with a hamstring strain.

Bojan Bogdanovic will miss this game as he continues to rehab from offseason foot surgery. He has yet to suit up and play this season. Day’Ron Sharpe will be out until at least mid-November with a hamstring strain. Trendon Watford is expected to miss at least the Nets’ third road trip game with a hamstring injury. Noah Clowney is questionable about being sick.

Likely Celtics starters

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Celtics reserves
Payton Pritchard
Luke Kornet
Jaden Springer
Xavier Tillman, Sr
Jordan Walsh
Sam Hauser

2-way player
JD Davison
Drew Peterson
Anthony Watson

Injuries/losses
Kristaps Porzingis (ankle) is out
Jaylen Brown (hip) is out
Baylor Scheierman (GLeague) is out
Luke Kornet (Hamsting) doubtful

Head coach
Joe Mazzulla

Likely Nets starters

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Grid reserves
Keon Johnson
Shake Milton
Ben Simmons
Dariq Whitehead
Ziaire Williams
Jalen Wilson

2-way player
Jaylen Martin
Tyrese Martin
Cui Yongsi

Injuries/losses
Bojan Bogdanovic (foot) is out
Day’Ron Sharpe (hamstring injury) is out
Trendon Watford (thigh) is out
Noah Clowney (illness) questionable

Head coach
Jordi Fernandez

Key Matches

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• Derrick White
  
  

  Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images
  

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  Cam Thomas
  
  

  Photo by Elsa/Getty Images
  

Derrick White vs. Cam Thomas
Thomas averages 24.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1 steal per game. He shoots 42.3% from the field and 30.6% from distance. The Celtics definitely have to defend him well. Derrick White played very well to make up for Jaylen Brown’s absence, and the Celtics will need him to continue to improve his game in this game.

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  Jrue holiday
  
  

  Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
  

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  Dennis Schröder
  
  

  Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images
  

Jrue Holiday vs. Dennis Schroder
Schroder is averaging 19.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, 7.3 assists and 1.4 steals. He is shooting 50.5% from the field and 49% from distance. The Celtics will have to defend him both inside and outside because he shoots very well. You also need to use him for passing as he can move the ball very well.

Honorable mention
Jayson Tatum vs. Cam Johnson
Johnson is averaging 16.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. He shoots 36.4% from the field and 45.5% from distance. The Celtics need to stick with Johnson especially on the perimeter as he shoots very well from there.

Key to the game
defense – Defense is always the key to victory. The Celtics rank 7th in the league with a defensive rating of 109.3. The Nets are 19th in the league with a defensive rating of 114.2. The Nets average 113.5 points per game (15th). The Celtics are third in the league with an average of 122.3 points per game. The Celtics will need to pay particular attention to the perimeter as the Nets rank 6th with 40.1 three-point attempts per game. On Wednesday, the Celtics allowed the Warriors to hit 41.2% on three-pointers. The Celtics need to defend much better in this game.

rebound – The Celtics need to box out and crash the boards. They can’t score without the ball and it will take extra effort on their part to beat the Nets on the boards. The Nets rank 29th with 39 rebounds per game. The Celtics rank 18th with 44.1 rebounds per game. The Celtics were outrebounded 53-47 on Wednesday and will need to be better in this game. The Celtics will have to work harder to get rebounds ahead of the Nets and prevent second and third chance shots.

Be aggressive – The Celtics need to come out and be aggressive from the first tip. You have to be aggressive on defense, drive to the basket, rebound, dive for loose balls and just generally play harder. What the Nets lack in star power, they make up for in commitment. The Celtics need to balance their effort and aggressiveness. They also have to play hard until the final whistle. This Nets team without stars plays hard and wins by putting in more effort than its opponents.

Move the ball and play correctly – Against the Warriors, especially at the end, the Celtics stopped moving the ball and players tried to do too much instead of playing team ball. They didn’t move the ball and shot rashly. They only had 22 assists for the game. They have to trust each other and not fall into a hero ball. They need to get back to playing the Celtics ball, especially on defense.

X factors
Home game and bounce back – The Celtics played very well at home last season, only losing four games at TD Garden all season. They have to feed off the crowd’s energy and hope the Nets are distracted by travel and the very loud crowd. The Celtics will have to personally absorb the loss on their home court and bounce back to win this game. The Celtics need to protect their home field.

Officiating – The office is always an x-factor. Some referees consider the game to be close, others let it play. Some favor the home team, others think it’s even. Some referees just seem to have an agenda that doesn’t match what’s happening on the field. Sometimes they miss important decisions that change the dynamics of the game. The Celtics have to play well enough not to leave the game in the hands of the referees at the end, and they can’t let bad decisions affect their concentration.

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