The Boston Celtics will attempt to cool off the visiting Los Angeles Lakers when two of the NBA’s marquee franchises meet Saturday night.
The Lakers stretched their winning streak to eight games by beating the New York Knicks 113-109 in overtime on Thursday after trailing by 10 points midway through the fourth quarter.
“We haven’t had many of those games because frankly, we’ve had the lead a lot lately,” Los Angeles coach JJ Redick said. “I think it’s a good reminder for our group going forward that we can win games like this where we’re not at our best offensively, where we get off to a slow start defensively but we have enough toughness and grit to get these games.”
The Lakers have won 18 of their last 21 games. Luka Doncic is averaging 23.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 8.1 assists in 10 games since the Lakers acquired him in a trade with Dallas.
Their current winning streak has moved the Lakers into second place in the Western Conference.
“I think we have a great team, we have great players,” Doncic said. “Chemistry is building. They’re all great guys. I am just happy to be part of this.”
Saturday’s matchup will begin a four-game road trip for Los Angeles that includes stops in Brooklyn, Milwaukee and Denver.
“We gotta approach next game with the same mentality, go game by game,” Doncic said. “I know we got a tough stretch but we gotta approach these games with the same mentality.”
Boston has won three in a row, but has been using a makeshift lineup recently. Kristaps Porzingis (illness) and Jrue Holiday (finger) have each missed the team’s last four games and are questionable for Saturday. The Celtics were also without Jaylen Brown (knee), Al Horford (toe) and Sam Hauser (ankle) during Thursday’s victory over Philadelphia. Hauser is questionable to face the Lakers.
The Celtics have won 18 NBA championships, including the 2023-24 title, and the Lakers have won 17. No other NBA franchise has won more than seven.
“You respect and understand the history and all the guys that wore the Lakers and Celtics uniform and what it means for the game of basketball and the NBA,” Boston star Jayson Tatum said. ‘It’s an honor to be a part of that, for sure, so I’m certain everybody’s looking forward to that matchup, as they do every single year.”
The game will feature four players who are averaging more than 23.0 points per game: Tatum (26.9), Doncic (26.8), LeBron James (25.1) and Brown (23.1).
“As much as we probably talk about LeBron, we probably don’t talk about him enough,” Tatum said. “Being 40 in his 22nd season, playing at an All-NBA level, is incredible. It’s a testament to the work that he puts into this game, to his body to stay in the best shape to be able to compete and perform at the highest level for over two decades now.
“It’s something that we should all strive to do, even if it might be unlikely. But it’s a joy to be able to compete against him in these matchups for however long we get to do it.”
–Field Level Media
