Can Boston cut into Detroit’s lead?
At the start of the season, most fans expected Boston to be middle of the pack due to Jayson Tatum’s injury and the offseason losses of Kristaps Porzingis, Luke Kornet,
Al Horford and Jrue Holiday. Instead, through 41 games, Boston sits second in the Eastern Conference, 4.5 games behind Detroit. A win against the Pistons would cut the deficit to 3.5 games.
This marks the fourth meeting between Detroit and Boston, with one matchup coming during the In-Season Tournament. Boston has won just one of the first three meetings, a 117-114 victory in November when Jaylen Brown scored 33 points and Derrick White added 27.
The series has typically been tightly contested, with the largest margin of victory so far being just seven points.
This game is one of the biggest games of the week and with Boston closing in on the No. 1 seed, it will be a perfect time for the Celtics to send a message in enemy territory.
Can Boston keep up its hot shooting from Atlanta?
Boston — led primarily by Sam Hauser — was red-hot against Atlanta, cruising to a 26-point win Saturday. The Celtics shot 22 of 52 from 3-point range, with Hauser accounting for 10 of those makes on 21 attempts. Hauser did not attempt a shot inside the arc and finished with 30 points.
Brown scored 41 points while playing in his home state of Georgia, where his high school jersey was also retired. He shot 14 of 30 from the floor, but what stood out most was his ability to get to the free throw line. Drawing fouls has been a talking point for Brown, who has previously criticized officiating. Against Atlanta, he went to the line 12 times and made 11.
Detroit is an athletic team whose offense is difficult to stop when it’s flowing. Boston cannot afford a slow start and will need to be locked in on both ends of the floor to tie the season series at two games apiece.
Hugo Gonzalez and Derrick White vs. Cade Cunningham
There is no secret that the key to beating Detroit is slowing down Cade Cunningham. Cunningham is having the best season of his young career, averaging 25.9 points, 9.6 assists and six rebounds, and has firmly entered the MVP conversation.
Derrick White and Hugo Gonzalez are expected to be the primary defenders tasked with slowing Detroit’s All-Star. White and Cunningham have had several memorable matchups, including Cunningham dunking on White and White blocking Cunningham at the rim.
Earlier this season, coach Joe Mazzulla assigned Gonzalez to guard Cunningham, and the rookie held his own, making life difficult for the 6-foot-6 guard. White is one of the league’s top defenders, but rotating in the bigger, longer Gonzalez could give Boston another effective option against Cunningham over the course of the game.
