The Boston Celtics are here to prove everyone wrong, about everything. The world is flat. Jayson Tatum is in fact, 12 years old. Al Horford is modern day Bill Walton. So the Raptors have 7 games on them, that’s nothing. The Celtics are eternal, Tatum is 4 years old, he’ll outlast us all. You foolish fools never saw any of this coming. The Celtics are so incredible that Bill (Simmons) Shakespeare penned a beautiful, cascading sonnet about them. A prophecy, if you would:
Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm’d;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee.
I like Bill Simmons, but the Lowe Post was funny re: Raps.
“What do you think of the Siakam-KL-Lowry-Ibaka-Green as a finals lineup?”
Lowe: “Well first of all Kawhi is rea-“
“Because I still like Kyrie, Horford, Tatum and Smart.”
Top class
— Samson Folk (@samfolkk) January 12, 2019
Jokes aside, the Celtics will always pose a threat because of their absurd talent-level. Is Tatum shooting more mid-range jumpers since hanging out with Kobe Bryant this summer? Yes. Is that something we all laugh about? Yes. Although it doesn’t stop any of us from sweating when he hits some of them. Tatum hasn’t showed particularly well against Toronto this season, and that’s largely due to a very intimidating and ‘grabby’ man, Kawhi Leonard. Still, the trio of Gordon Hayward-Kyrie Irving-Tatum is talented enough to make any game difficult. Last time the Raptors and Celtics played, Hayward threw a wrench in the Raptors defense by abusing the smaller guards in the paint. Irving is one of the most unique scorers in the league, and a terror down the stretch. There’s few players who can actually handle him when he wants to put the ball in the bucket.
The bench looms large in this one, I imagine the organization would like to keep Leonard under 32 minutes in this one – if he even plays – after he played (and was injured in) 45 minutes in Sunday afternoon’s slogfest. Fred VanVleet is questionable, and OG Anunoby is out for personal reasons. Delon Wright, Norman Powell and co. have a heavy weight on their shoulders in Boston.
Serge Ibaka seems like the most important player going into this one, though. He has the athleticism and skill to suppress all that the Celtics front-court can throw at him and pay it back on the other end. With that said, his plate has been more than full since Jonas Valanciunas’ thumb injury and he’s wearing down a tad. He’s done an admirable job as the lone big, but it looks as if he’s running on fumes. Hopefully the days off were enough to rejuvenate him, and he can make this game his own. There’s no doubt that Leonard, Green, Siakam, and Lowry (it’ll be tough) should be able to play to, or win their matchup. Ibaka holds the key to this one.
Maybe the reported turmoil in the Celtics locker room is palpable and we won’t get the typical, gritty, Celtics style. The Raptors 5-game win streak juxtaposed with the Celtics 3-game losing streak paints a picture of a good day for the Raptors. Mix in Irving’s despondent comments on the Celtics from a few days ago, and you might be more confident still.
“The young guys don’t know what it takes to be a championship level team. What it takes every day. And if they think it is hard now, what do they think it will be like when we’re trying to get to the Finals?” – Kyrie Irving
Game Info
TV: TSN | Radio: TSN1050 | Tipoff: 8pm EST
Raptors Updates
Kawhi Leonard (left leg tightness) is questionable, Fred VanVleet (thigh/hip) is questionable, CJ Miles (hip) is questionable and might not even play, if cleared, OG Anunoby (personal reasons) has been ruled out, and Jonas Valanciunas (thumb) is still on the mend.
PG: Kyle Lowry, Fred VanVleet, Delon Wright
SG: Danny Green, Norman Powell, Patrick Mccaw, Malachi Richardson
SF: Kawhi Leonard, CJ Miles
PF: Pascal Siakam
C: Serge Ibaka, Greg Monroe
Celtics Updates
Marcus Smart (sickness) is questionable, and Aron Baynes (hand) is questionable.
PG: Kyrie Irving, Terry Rozier
SG: Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, PJ Dozier
SF: Jayson Tatum, Gordon Hayward, Semi Ojeleye
PF: Marcus Morris, Daniel Theis, Guerschon Yabusele
C: Al Horford, Aron Baynes, Robert Williams
Pray to the old Gods and the new, or the Lord of Light if that tickles your fancy, for the world is flat and full of Celtics.
Have a blessed day.
