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The Boston Celtics continue their Western Conference road trip when they face the Los Angeles Clippers. The Celtics won their previous match against LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center. Now, they visit the high flying Clippers who are increasingly looking like a side that is going to make this year's playoffs.
The Celtics have a 41-26 record and are the 5th ranked team in the Eastern Conference. They have started to get some good playing chemistry and have won their last three road matches.
Kyrie Irving starred against the Lakers with 30 points in the last match. Irving is having a great individual season but his individual impact is not seen in his team's displays. The Celtics have a better record without Irving than with Irving in the lineup.
They need to figure this out before the start of this year's playoffs. The Eastern Conference teams have become better and this will be a much tighter playoff than last year.
Meanwhile, the Clippers have continued their consistent display for most of the season. They have a 38-29 record and are the 8th ranked team in the Western Conference playoff standings. They are currently 4 games ahead of the 9th placed Sacramento Kings. The Clippers made a lot of trade sales at the deadline but have maintained their momentum.
Lou Williams and Danilo Gallinari have been genuine threats on the offensive end for the Clippers. Beverley and Harrell have provided with huge bursts of energy on both the ends and have been very critical to the team's success this season.
Let's have a look at the predicted starting lineups and the match prediction:
Boston Celtics: Kyrie Irving (PG), Marcus Smart (SG), Jason Tatum (SF), Marcus Morris (PF), Al Horford (C).
Los Angeles Clippers: Landry Shamet (PG), Patrick Beverley (SG), Shai Gilgeous Alexander (SF), Danilo Gallinari (PF), Ivica Zubac (C).
Match prediction
The Celtics have improved in recent games and had a huge blowout win against the Warriors at the Oracle Arena. They are one of the most talented teams in the NBA. The Clippers have been playing consistent basketball but they might find it tough to cope up with the depth of the Celtics.
I predict the Celtics to win a tight game against the Clippers.
Guess the Lakers players!
