Per The Athletic’s Jay King, Boston Celtics center Daniel Theis is questionable for Saturday night’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers as he nurses a sore left knee. Theis had one of his best games of the season on Thursday night, tallying 20 points (on 9-11 shooting from the field), six rebounds and two blocks against the Los Angeles Lakers in 23 minutes.
Theis, a 26-year-old 6-foot-8 center who’s now in his second NBA season after spending the first five seasons of his pro career playing for ratiopharm Ulm and Brose Baskets in the EuroLeague, has averaged 6.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.7 blocks in 15.2 minutes per game this season while shooting 57.2 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from three-point range.
With backup center Aron Baynes expected to be out through the All-Star Break, if Theis can’t play against the Clippers then rookie center Robert Williams III will be the next man up. Williams isn’t the floor-spacing big that Theis is but he’s a better athlete, rebounder and shot-blocker. Against a Clippers frontcourt that features a talented big man in Montrezl Harrell and 7-foot-1 center Ivica Zubac, Williams size (6-foot-10) and athleticism will be invaluable for Boston.
Though Los Angeles has the look of a tanking team after trading away an All-Star level player in Tobias Harris, as the Celtics nailbiter against the Cleveland Cavaliers in their last meeting showed, Boston has to come into the game with the same energy and focus that they would against a top team.
The Clippers, whose PACE of 101.1 ranks ninth in the NBA, will play a fast-paced game when they can and the Celtics can’t get caught on their heels. Furthermore, their revamped bench will likely give Boston’s second unit a run for their money.
Nonetheless, this is a game that Boston should win, as they’re the more talented squad and boast a far superior defense; the Clippers give up 113.7 points per game (24th in the NBA) while the Celtics only surrender 106.2 points per game (5th in the NBA).
*All stats gathered from Basketball Reference
