Boston Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis out for No. 1 team
The Boston Celtics will sideline big man Kristaps Porzingis for at least a week as he recovers from a calf injury.
Porzingis underwent an MRI on Saturday to evaluate the severity of his left calf strain, but the Celtics did not release the results. Porzingis hinted vaguely on social media that he had avoided serious injury and would be back soon.
We will re-evaluate Kristaps in about a week," head coach Joe Mazzula said.
The Celtics have the best record in the NBA this season at 13-4 and have yet to lose a game at TD Garden at 7-0. The visiting Chicago Bulls will look to spoil their perfect home record when they take on the Celtics on Tuesday night.
Porzingis injured for the first time this season
Porzingis suffered a left calf injury Friday afternoon against the Orlando Magic. The injury occurred early in the third quarter and Porzingis missed the remainder of the second half.
The upstart Magic have a record of 113 wins and 96 losses. With seven consecutive victories, they currently rank second in the Eastern Conference with a record of 12 wins and 5 losses.
The Celtics completed a blockbuster trade to acquire Porzingis from the Washington Wizards. The three-team trade sent veteran point guard Marcus Smart to the Memphis Grizzlies and the Celtics acquired Porzingis as part of the deal.
On paper, the Porzingis trade makes sense for the Celtics, as they add a much-needed scorer who has great spacial awareness and can knock down three-pointers. . However, general manager Brad Stevens knows he's betting on Porzingis' health. Porzingis previously battled injuries with the New York Knicks, Dallas Mavericks and Wizards.
Before suffering a calf injury, Porzingis seemed like a good fit for the new Celtics. In 15 games for the Celtics, he averaged 18.9 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.7 blocks per game. He shot a career-high 54.7 percent from the field and 32.4 percent from 3-point range.
Porzingis is the Celtics' third-leading scorer, behind Jayson Tatum (28.1 points per game) and Jaylen Brown (21.4 points per game). With Porzingis out, the Celtics will rely on veteran center Al Horford (6.3 points, 6.5 rebounds per game). Luke Kornet (averaging 4.7 points, 3.6 rebounds per game) is retained.
Celtics and In-Season Championships
The Celtics are on a mission to win an NBA championship, rather than focusing on winning their first tournament of the season.
Celtic have a chance to win Group C and advance to the single-elimination quarterfinals. The winner of each group (six teams in total) will automatically qualify for the knockout rounds. Two wild-card teams - one from each conference - are chosen based on their best records in the tournament. Point differences in the group stages will result in ties being broken.
The Magic currently sit first in Group C with a 3-1 record. The Celtics (2-1) are in second place heading into their final group game against the Bulls on Tuesday night.
The Celtics currently sit eighth on DraftKings' futures rankings and have +1400 odds to win the in-season tournament.
The semifinals and finals of the in-season tournament will be held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The semi-finals are scheduled for Thursday, December 7. The championship game will be held on Saturday, December 9.
Futures darling, but ATS has a loss record
The Celtics are the consensus favorite to win the NBA championship at +380 odds. The defending champion Denver Nuggets and Milwaukee Bucks are the second favorites at +425 odds.
The Celtics have been at the top of their future roster since signing point guard and defensive guru Jrue Holiday in a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Celtics have a +150 chance to win the Eastern Conference for the second time in the past three seasons and are slightly ahead of the Bucks at +190.
The Celtics have a -400 chance of winning the Atlantic Division. They are ahead of the Philadelphia 76ers (+330), New York Knicks (+2500), Toronto Raptors (+25000) and Brooklyn Nets (+25000).
Although the Celtics lead the league with 13 wins, they have a losing record of 7-8-2.
The Celtics are -13.5 favorites to face the struggling Bulls (5-13) on Tuesday. The Bulls have a 5-12-1 betting record this season, the worst in the NBA. The Bulls have lost four straight games and are mired in locker room drama and ongoing trade rumors surrounding All-Star guard Zach LaVine.
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Source: www.casino.org
