Saturday 2 February 2019 04:11, UK
The New York Knicks play host to the Boston Celtics, at Madison Square Garden at 12.30am on Saturday morning, live on Sky Sports USA.
The Knicks (10-40) became the talk of the league, as they dealt away Kristaps Porzingis, along with Courtney Lee and Tim Hardaway Jr to the Mavericks in exchange for Dennis Smith Jr, Wesley Matthews and DeAndre Jordan. It is uncertain whether any of the new additions will suit up for the Knicks on Friday, which could lead to extra minutes for some of the rotation guys.
Kevin Knox led the Knicks in scoring, with 17 points on 6-of-16 shooting in their most recent contest. Knox is averaging 12.3 points on 37 per cent shooting, and 4.2 rebounds, in 27 minutes per game, so far in his rookie campaign.
Mario Hezonja has been playing well lately, averaging 9.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.1 assists, in 24 minutes per game over his last 10 games. The Knicks sit dead last in the East. They are 4-18 at home this season.
Meanwhile, the Celtics (32-19) have won seven of their last 10 games, including their last two in a row.
Despite missing Kyrie Irving for the last two games, the Celtics have managed to find success with their depth, as Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart have done an excellent job maintaining the back court, while Al Horford and Jayson Tatum have kept up the work up front. Irving (hip) remains questionable for action against the Knicks.
The Celtics continue to be one of the better defensive teams in the league, as they are holding opponents to an average of 105.6 points per game, which is fourth fewest in the league. On the other hand, they are scoring an average of 112.4 points per game.
However, the Celtics have dropped three of their last four road games, and are 11-13 on the road this season.
Last time out
Numbers game - the Knicks have lost a team-record 11 home games in a row. They have lost 19 of their last 20 games in total. Disarray.
Ones to watch (Knicks) - Enes Kanter should play, despite not receiving as many minutes as he has wanted recently. The Knicks have been looking at more long-term options leading Kanter to say "you never know how long I'm going to play here".
One to watch (Celtics) - Kyrie Irving, their best player, has sat out three of the past four due to a hip injury but the Celtics won all three. He could be back to pile more misery onto the Knicks.
Key battle - Lance Thomas needs to help the Knicks improve their average of 106.2 points per game, the 23rd best in the NBA. They are 30th with their field goal percentage. At the other end, Jaylen Brown has proved a consistent scorer even in Irving's absence.
