Editorial by Graydon Fox

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Overview:

On Tuesday, March 20^th, the (42-29) Oklahoma City Thunder will be on the road to take on the (47-22) Boston Celtics.

The Crowd:  

“The Crowd” is projecting a final score of Thunder 107.8 – Celtics 101.8 with an over/under of 209.7.

Statistics (2017-18 season):

Point differential: Celtics +4.3 (4^th) > Thunder +3.3 (5^th)

Points per game: Thunder 107.1 (13^th) > Celtics 104.6 (19^th)

Points allowed per game: Celtics 100.3 (3^rd) > Thunder 103.8 (7^th)

Field Goal Percentage Offense: Thunder 45.5% (18^th) > Celtics 45.1% (22^nd)

Three Point Percentage: Celtics 37.4% (4^th) > Thunder 35.2% (24^th)

Field Goal Percentage Defense: Celtics 43.6% (1^st) > Thunder 45.7% (13^th)

Turnovers committed per game: Celtics 13.2 (9^th) > Thunder 13.5 (14^th)

Turnovers forced per game: Thunder 15.1 (1^st) > Celtics 13.5 (21^st)

Rebounds per game: Thunder 44.9 (5^th) > Celtics 44.5 (8^th)

Assists per game: Celtics 22.5 (18^th) > Thunder 21.4 (25^th)

Summary:

Oklahoma City certainly looked impressive Sunday in their 132-125 victory in Toronto.  The Thunder are riding a six-game winning streak and are (8-2) in their last ten games.  Reigning league MVP Russell Westbrook (25.2 PPG, 9.7 RPG, and 10.2 APG) is having another phenomenal season and is the youngest player ever to record 100 career triple doubles.  Paul George (21.8 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and 3.4 APG) is a force on both ends of the floor and ranks third in the league in steals per game (2.04).  Carmelo Anthony (16.7 PPG and 5.9 RPG) has had to sacrifice the most and is having his worst statistical season in years.  Steven Adams (13.8 PPG and 9.0 RPG) is one of the most underrated players in the league and helps the Thunder to dominate teams on the glass.  The injury to Andre Roberson hurt the Thunder defensively but I really liked the addition of Corey Brewer.  Oklahoma City thrives on their league leading 15.1 forced turnovers per game and are lethal in the open court.  Their half-court offense leaves a lot to be desired as they play far too much isolation basketball.  The Thunder have one of the league’s better starting five but their bench unit ranks 28^th in scoring (26.3 PPG).  The Thunder average 107.1 points per game (13^th) and allow 103.8 (7^th).

Brad Stevens should garner strong Coach of the Year consideration for guiding his team to second place in the Eastern Conference despite losing All-Star Gordon Hayward for the entire season.  The Celtics are (7-3) in their last ten games despite all their health problems .  Kyrie Irving (24.4 PPG, and 5.1 APG) is enjoying arguably his finest season shooting career highs both from the field (49.1%) and three-point range (40.8%).  Irving has battled a nagging knee injury that has sidelined him for the last few games and will need to have offseason surgery.  Boston has other injury problems as they recently lost Marcus Smart for the regular season after he tore a ligament in his thumb.  Jaylen Brown (14.1 PPG) and Jayson Tatum (13.3 PPG) are two of the league’s most exciting young players and probable future All-Stars.  Al Horford (12.9 PPG, 7.6 RPG, and 4.8 APG) is so consistent and arguably the best passing big man in the NBA.  The Celtics youth and athleticism allow them to be one of the best defensive teams in the league but they lack offensive firepower beyond Kyrie.  The Celtics average 104.6 points per game (19^th) and allow 100.3 (3^rd).

Bottom Line:

The Celtics are (23-13) at home this season while the Thunder are (15-16) on the road.  Boston won the only previous match-up this season 101-94 but that was back in November.  The Celtics have too many injury issues to overcome especially if Kyrie Irving is still not healthy enough to play.  Oklahoma City is rolling on all cylinders right now and I expect them to cover the (-6.0) spread even on the road.

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