Nets Coverage: netsdaily.com | netsophobia.wordpress.com
Boston Celtics @ New Jersey
Tuesday, October 23, 2007 – 7:30 pm ET
IZOD Center (East Rutherford, NJ)
Game aired on Comcast Sports Net
Last night, the Celtics made a trip to New York to take on the revengeful Knicks. The Knicks got what they wanted, beating the Celtics 94-87 in a game where it was all about the veterans. Granted, things could have been different had Kendrick Perkins been in the lineup, but we don’t need to go there. The bottom line is that last night’s game was a hard-fought, competitive game where the starters got a ton of run. It was truly a regular season setting. With that said, it’s hard to imagine Doc playing the trio tonight, as they all played 38+ minutes last night. Ray Allen may play, seeing how he has stated that he’d rather play in order to catch a rhythm (which wouldn’t hurt, as he has shot a combined 8-26 from the floor in the past two games), but I’d imagine we won’t see any Kevin Garnett and possibly Paul Pierce as well. I’m all for resting them, it’ll be interesting to see what Doc does after giving them regular season-like playing time against the Knicks.
Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson, and Nenad Krstic didn’t make the trip to Worcester this past Friday, but they are expected to be there tonight. If they suit up and Doc gives our top guns the night off, then I wouldn’t expect a W (not that it really matters anyway). I hope we get a long look at Gabe Pruitt, Glen Davis, and Brandon Wallace in this one. Limit Posey’s minutes, limit Rondo’s minutes, and give these young guys a chance to shine before we wrap up preseason play on Friday night at the Garden. They only got roughly 10 seconds of playing time last night, which is understandable given the setting and intensity level of the game, but these "kids" need to get on the floor tonight.
Projected Starting Lineups
C Kendrick Perkins / Nenad Krstic
PF Brian Scalabrine / Jason Collins
SF James Posey / Richard Jefferson
SG Tony Allen / Vince Carter
PG Rajon Rondo / Darrell Armstrong
Key Matchup
Kendrick Perkins vs. Jason Collins
Alright, this is the third straight game I’ve attempted a key matchup involving Kendrick Perkins. Let’s hope Doc can end my misery and play the big fella tonight. God knows, we could have used him last night in New York.