Last time the Celtics took on the Chicago Bulls, the story of the night was Kevin Garnett and his epic clash with Joakim Noah. The two of them had had their differences, both on and off the court, and they boiled over in a TD Garden grudge match.
In Saturday’s rematch, the story will be a little different, as both teams are without their energetic big men. Garnett is out with a strained calf muscle, and targeting a possible return early next week; Noah is sitting out for the long haul as he recovers from thumb surgery.
With the Big Ticket out, the C’s have the Ticket Stub in his place, Glen Davis. Without Noah, the Bulls replace the dynamic youngster with a wily, 38-year-old veteran in Kurt Thomas.
Without the grudge match between the two bigs, we’ll have to settle for a clash between the Eastern Conference’s two best point guards, Rajon Rondo and Derrick Rose. It’s a crying shame.
Here’s the lineup card for this edition of C’s-Bulls:
Celtics
Rajon Rondo, PG
Ray Allen, SG
Paul Pierce, SF
Glen Davis, PF
Shaquille O’Neal, C
Bulls
Derrick Rose, PG
Keith Bogans, SG
Luol Deng, SF
Carlos Boozer, PF
Kurt Thomas, C
