Portland Trail Blazers (31-34, 12th in the Western Conference) vs. Boston Celtics (45-21, second in the Eastern Conference)
Boston; Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Two of the league's best scorers, Jayson Tatum and Damian Lillard, meet when Boston and Portland hit the court. Tatum ranks sixth in the NBA averaging 30.3 points per game and Lillard is third in the league averaging 32.4 points per game.
The Celtics are 25-9 in home games. Boston is second in the Eastern Conference with 26.3 assists per game led by Marcus Smart averaging 6.7.
The Trail Blazers have gone 14-19 away from home. Portland averages 13.8 turnovers per game and is 12-9 when turning the ball over less than opponents.
TOP PERFORMERS: Tatum averages 3.3 made 3-pointers per game for the Celtics, scoring 30.3 points while shooting 35.0% from beyond the arc. Jaylen Brown is averaging 26.6 points, seven rebounds and 3.3 assists over the last 10 games for Boston.
Lillard is averaging 32.4 points and 7.2 assists for the Trail Blazers. Jerami Grant is averaging 15.7 points over the last 10 games for Portland.
LAST 10 GAMES: Celtics: 5-5, averaging 118.2 points, 46.8 rebounds, 26.3 assists, 6.7 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 118.0 points per game.
Trail Blazers: 4-6, averaging 116.2 points, 37.3 rebounds, 24.3 assists, 7.8 steals and 5.9 blocks per game while shooting 47.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 122.2 points.
INJURIES: Celtics: Al Horford: out (back), Jayson Tatum: out (knee), Payton Pritchard: day to day (ankle), Robert Williams III: out (hamstring), Danilo Gallinari: out (knee).
Trail Blazers: Jusuf Nurkic: out (calf), Anfernee Simons: out (ankle), Justise Winslow: out (ankle), Ibou Badji: out (knee), Ryan Arcidiacono: out (back).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Associated Press
