Clippers at Celtics
The Boston Celtics will be happy to reach the All-Star break and hit the reset button, but they must first contend with a surging Los Angeles Clippers team Wednesday at TD Garden. The Celtics have dropped eight of 14 and their first two games of the three-game homestand, including an embarrassing 22-point loss to Cleveland on Sunday before Paul Pierce's number retirement ceremony.
"As we go forward I think that we can consistently learn from not only a game like tonight but the last few games with playing the high intense teams of the Eastern Conference, where we’ve been tested," All-Star Kyrie Irving told reporters after the 121-99 setback. "I have a lot to learn. I think that we as a team do as well." The Clippers would likely prefer to keep playing through the break, having won six of their last eight and 18 of 26 overall. After coach Doc Rivers was in Boston to participate in Pierce's ceremony, he helped guide Los Angeles to a 114-101 win at Brooklyn on Monday behind a balanced attack that shot 56.5 percent from the floor. "Like I told them after the game, there will be a night where only two guys get big numbers and we win, and there'll be nights where five, six, seven, eight guys will score in double figures and we win," Rivers told the media. "Doesn't matter, as long as we win."
TV: 8 p.m. ET, ESPN, FS Prime Ticket (Los Angeles), NBCS Boston
ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (29-26): Seven players scored in double figures against the Nets, led by Lou Williams' 23rd 20-point effort in the last 25 games. Austin Rivers added 17 points in his best output since returning from a heel injury, and he is impressed with how the team has jelled in the wake of the blockbuster Blake Griffin trade last month. "I think a lot of people slept on us when we got all these players but I think we're getting better and better," Rivers told reporters.
ABOUT THE CELTICS (40-18): One issue in Boston's recent slump has been the downturn of rookie Jayson Tatum, who has seen his 3-point percentage fall in every month this season, from 50 percent in October to 33.3 percent in February. The 19-year-old is averaging 9.8 points - nearly four below his average - on 37.5 percent from the field during the Celtics' current 1-3 stretch. Jaylen Brown joined Tatum in single digits with five points on 2-of-9 shooting in the loss to Cleveland, and Brown had nine points on 2-of-10 in a win at Los Angeles last month.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Clippers SF Danilo Gallinari is averaging 20.2 points in six games since returning from a glute injury.
2. Boston is 3-5 in its last eight home games but 10-2 this season at TD Garden against the Western Conference.
3. Los Angeles C DeAndre Jordan hauled in an average of 17.4 rebounds over a seven-game stretch and ranks second in the NBA with 15.1 per game.