BOSTON — On a night when the Celtics and the Atlanta Hawks square off with both teams at full strength, it's a thrill to watch — All-Stars everywhere you look, a marquee matchup in every sense of the word.
This won't be one of those nights.
Both teams will have limited personnel on Thursday night when they meet up at the TD Garden. The Celtics will be without Rajon Rondo, who's out for the foreseeable future with an ankle injury, and Shaquille O'Neal, who's still recovering from calf pain.
As for the Hawks, they're without Joe Johnson, who's recovering from elbow surgery, and Jamal Crawford will sit out Thursday as well, nursing a sore back.
It's never easy to play shorthanded, but Thursday night will be especially difficult for the host Celtics, who are playing the second night of a back-to-back. They just barely survived on the road Wednesday against the Knicks, and now their 11-game winning streak will be on the line again.
Here's how the lineups fall into place for C's-Hawks:
Celtics
Nate Robinson, PG
Ray Allen, SG
Paul Pierce, SF
Kevin Garnett, PF
Semih Erden, C
Hawks
Mike Bibby, PG
Maurice Evans, SG
Marvin Williams, SF
Josh Smith, PF
Al Horford, C
