Boston Celtics (19-11) at Portland TrailBlazers (12-19)
Sunday, December 28, 2025
6:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #31, Road Game #16
TV: NBCSB, KATU/BlazerVision, NBA-LP
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, Rip City Radio 620
Moda Center
The Celtics continue their 5 game road trip as they visit the Portland Trailblazers. This is the first of 2 games between these two teams this season. They will meet again on January 26 in Boston. The Celtics won the series between these two teams 2-0 last season. The Celtics are 77-49 overall all time against the TrailBlazers and they are 36-27 when playing in Portland.
There are a few story lines to watch in this game. First, Anfernee Simons returns for the first time, since the trade in the off season, to play in Portland where he played the first 7 years of his career. Jrue Holiday won’t be playing against his former team as he is out with a calf injury. Robert Williams, who has been playing is being held out of this game for injury management. This is also a homecoming for Payton Pritchard, who will have family and friends in the stands for the game.
The TrailBlazers are not much different from last season. They have 4 of the same starters as they did when they played the Celtics last season. The starter that is missing is Anfernee Simons who was traded to the Celtics for Jrue Holiday. They signed Damian Lillard, who was waived by Milwaukee after he tore his Achilles last season and who is expected to miss this season. They bought out DeAndre Ayton, who was signed by the Lakers. They signed Blake Wesley as a free agent and they took Yang Hansen with the 16th pick in the draft.
The Celtics are 3rd in the East, 4.5 games behind 1st place Detroit, and 2.5 games behind 2nd place New York. They are 2 games ahead of 4th place Orlando and 5th place Toronto and 2.5 games ahead of 6th place Philadelphia. They are 3 games ahead of 7th place Miami. The Celtics are 4-3 against Western Conference opponents. They are 9-6 on the road and 8-2 in their last 10 games. They have won their last 4 games.
The TrailBlazers are 10th in the West, 14 games behind first place Oklahoma City, 6 games behind 7th place Phoenix, 4 games behind 8th place Golden State and 3 games behind 9th place Memphis. They are tied with 11th place Utah and 1 game ahead of 12th place Dallas. They are 2-7 against Eastern Conference opponents. They are 5-9 at home and 4-6 in their last 10 games. They have lost their last 3 games.
This is the second game of a 5 game road trip. They will continue the trip through Utah, Sacramento and the LA Clippers. All 5 teams on this road trip are below .500 so if the Celtics don’t slack off and take their opponents for granted, they have a chance to solidify their spot in the East. After the trip, they will head home for a 4 game home stand where they host Chicago, Denver, Toronto, and San Antonio before a 4 game road trip through Indiana once again, Miami, Atlanta and the final game at Detroit.
This is the 4th game of a 5 game home stand for the TrailBlazers. They will host Dallas after this game before they head out on a 3 game road trip through Oklahoma City, New Orleans and San Antonio. They then host Utah, Houston twice, and New York before playing at Golden State. Then they host Atlanta and the Lakers, play one game at Sacramento before hosting Miami and Toronto.
Jayson Tatum (Achilles) and Chris Boucher (personal) are out for the Celtics. Jerami Grant (Achilles), Scoot Henderson (hamstring), Jrue Holiday (calf), Damian Lillard (Achilles), Matisse Thybulle (thumb) and Blake Wesley (foot) are all listed as out for the TrailBlazers. Robert Williams, who has been playing, is being held out for injury management. He has yet to play against his former team after the trade.
Probable Starting Matchups
PG: Derrick White vs Deni Avdija
SG: Payton Pritchard vs Shaedon Sharpe
SF: Jaylen Brown vs Kris Murray
PF: Jordan Walsh vs Toumani Camara
C: Neemias Queta vs Donovan Clingan
Celtics Reserves
Anfernee Simons
Hugo Gonzalez
Xavier Tillman
Josh Minott
Sam Hauser
Luka Garza
Baylon Scheierman
Chris Boucher
2-Way Players
Ron Harper, Jr
Max Shulga
Amari Williams
Injuries/Out
Jayson Tatum (Achilles) out
Chris Boucher (personal) out
TrailBlazers Reserves
Duop Reath
Rayan Rupert
Robert Williams III
Yang Hansen
Two Way Players
Sidy Cissoko
Javonte Cooke
Caleb Love
Injuries/Out
Jerami Grant (Achilles) questionable
Scoot Henderson (hamstring) out
Jrue Holiday (calf) out
Damian Lillard (Achilles) out
Matisse Thybulle (thumb) out
Blake Wesley (foot) out
Robert Williams III (injury management) out
Head Coach
Tiago Splitter (Acting Head Coach)
Key Matchups
Derrick White vs Deni Avdija
Avdija is averaging 25.6 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game while shooting 46.7% from the field and 36.4% from beyond the arc. In the 2 games against the Celtics last season, he averaged 14.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 block. Defending Avdija well will be key.
Payton Pritchard vs Shaedon Sharpe
Sharpe is averaging 21.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He is shooting 45.8% from the field and 31.9% from beyond the arc. In the 2 games against the Celtics last season, he averaged 24 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal per game. Pritchard has been playing very well so this should be a good matchup.
Honorable Mention
Neemias Queta vs Donovan Clingan
Clingan is averaging 10.4 points, 10.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.6 blocks per game. He is shooting 51.4% from the field and 31.9% from beyond the arc. In the 2 games last year, he averaged 3 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist per game. The Celtics need to keep him off the boards. He doesn’t shoot a lot of 3’s but he is capable of hitting them.
Keys to the Game
Defense – I know I say it every game, but defense is the key to winning every game and will be the key to winning another championship. The Blazers have an offensive rating of 113.0 while the Celtics have an offensive rating of 121.4. The Celtics are 15th in the league with a defensive rating of 114.3 while the Blazers are 22nd with a defensive rating of 116.6. The Celtics need to keep making tough defense their priority and identity. They must make defense their identity consistently in every minute of every game.
Rebound – As Pat Riley once stated, “No rebounds, no rings.” The Celtics are 17th with 44.1 rebounds per game while the Trail Blazers are 9th with 45.2 rebounds per game. The Celtics must make an extra effort to grab rebounds in order to give themselves extra possessions as well as to keep the Blazers from scoring second chance points, as the Trail Blazers are 4th with 17.5 second chance points per game. The Celtics must be the team that works harder on the boards if they want to win this one. Much of rebounding is effort and desire and the Celtics need both to out-rebound the Blazers.
Be Aggressive – The Celtics have to be the team that works harder and wants the win more. They have to dive for loose balls, go for every rebound and just hustle on every play on both ends of the court. They have to be aggressive in getting to the basket as well and not settle for outside shots, especially if they aren’t falling. Whether it’s the starters or reserves, they need to go all out with maximum effort. And they need to show that effort for all 4 quarters.
Don’t Underestimate – It would be easy for the Celtics to underestimate the Blazers and expect an easy win against a 12-19 team that is missing 7 players, but that would be a mistake. Any team can win on any night if the other team lets down their guard. The Blazers have wins over the Warriors, Nuggets, Thunder, and Cavs among others, proving that they can beat good teams. The Celtics have to come out strong from the start and play hard right up until the final buzzer. The Blazers are capable of beating them if they don’t play their best.
X-Factors
On the Road – The Celtics are on the road and have to deal with travel, a hostile crowd, and an unfamiliar court along with a time change. They have to block out all the distractions that playing on the road brings and concentrate on playing Celtics basketball. The Moda Center has a great atmosphere for the home team and the Celtics will need to work hard to beat them there. With travel and jet lag, fatigue may become a factor in this one.
Officiating – I know that I say this every game, but the officiating really is always an x-factor in every game. Every crew calls the game differently whether they call every little ticky tack foul or they let a lot of contact go and let the teams play. Some refs favor the home team and some not so much and sometimes they just make a bunch of head scratching calls. The Celtics have got to adjust to the way the game is being called and not let themselves get frustrated by the officiating.
