Here are five things to watch out for when the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic meet at 6 p.m. tonight at Amway Center.
The Boston Celtics will look for their first home-and-home sweep of the season Sunday night when they take on the Orlando Magic.
Boston beat the Magic handedly Friday night, 113-94. But as history suggests, its not easy winning two games on the same weekend against the same team. The Celtics split both of their previous home-and-homes this season with a mediocre Brooklyn team.
Home-and-homes are somewhat of a double-edged sword. C’s coach Brad Stevens pointed out Friday evening that it takes away from the usual variety of the NBA schedule. On the other hand, it gives an opportunity to take a step back and evaluate the team since there is not as much preparation needed when going up against the same opponent twice in a row.
“You really get a chance to not only focus on your opponent, but maybe take a breath and focus on your team because you’re not playing a different team the next night,” said Stevens.
Based on Friday night’s game, the Magic seem like a much different team than the one that pummeled the Celtics by 19 points in November.
That version of the Magic was energetic and aggressive, but Orlando has hit a major rut this month, and its players are growing frustrated.
Orlando guard Victor Oladipo said following Friday night’s loss, “We are playing soft right now. We’re not playing together and its not working.”
The Celtics, meanwhile, are on the other end of the spectrum. They have been extremely aggressive during their current five-game winning streak, and they should not let up against a Magic team that’s in dire straits right now.
One of the reasons why Boston has been so energetic and aggressive lately is because Marcus Smart is currently playing his best basketball of the season, particularly at the offensive end.
Smart had struggled with his shot, especially from 3-point range, for the majority of the season, but he’s been shooting lights out of late.
The guard has shot 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) from beyond the arc during his last four games, after shooting just 17-of-88 (19.3 percent) from 3-point range during his previous 23 contests.
Now that Smart is healthy and playing confidently, Boston’s bench appears to be unstoppable. The Celtics’ second unit scored a whopping 60 points in D.C. Monday night, and topped that performance with a 62-point effort on Friday.
Kelly Olynyk, Evan Turner, Jonas Jerebko and Smart are all scoring threats, and their versatility is giving opposing teams fits right now.
“It takes practice time and it takes games to play together, and I think we’re starting to find each other on the court,” said Jerebko, after compiling 13 points and 10 rebounds Friday night. “We’re starting to get a rhythm and it’s starting to show.”
Orlando is one of the warmest locations in the country during the month of January, but not inside Amway Center, which houses an ice-cold basketball team at that time of year.
The Magic have not have not won more than three or lost fewer than 12 during the month of January since 2012. During that span, they have compiled a dismal 8-51 January mark. That includes a 1-12 record this month, and a current eight-game losing streak.
Fortunately for Orlando, Sunday marks the last day of its most cursed month of the season. But before it flips the calendar, it has one more team to face: A red-hot Boston squad that is riding a season-high five-game winning streak.
