Tip-off: Wednesday, 9:35 p.m. ET
Line: San Antonio -8.0, Total: 201.5

The Celtics will be looking to prevent a three-game losing streak when they face Kawhi Leonard and the Spurs on Wednesday.

Boston is struggling right now, as the team has lost two straight games and really appears to be missing PG Isaiah Thomas (Groin). Thomas will not be back for this game against the Spurs, so the Celtics will need to figure out another way to win. One thing that does favor Boston is the fact that the Celtics are 19-4 ATS over the past three seasons in road games versus teams scoring 103 or more points per game. They are, however, facing a Spurs team that has won 14 of their past 16 games. San Antonio has won five straight games against Boston over the past three seasons, and the Spurs are 4-1 ATS in those contests. It’s also worth noting that the Celtics have not won a game in San Antonio since Mar. 31, 2011. They are, however, 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games in San Antonio. As previously mentioned, Thomas is out for the Celtics in this game. The Spurs do not have any significant injuries, but they could always opt to rest one of their aging players.

The Celtics can really use a victory on Wednesday, but they know that it’s not going to be easy. One guy that is going to have to step it up is C Al Horford (15.6 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 2.4 BPG). With Thomas sidelined, Horford can’t be satisfied with scoring anything less than 15. He is averaging 19.0 PPG over the past two contests, and he’ll need to have at least that on Wednesday. Look for him to be aggressive in taking the outside shot as well. PG Marcus Smart (10.0 PP, 4.2 APG, 4.1 RPG, 1.1 SPG) is also going to need to step it up. Smart is the guy seeing a bulk of the minutes with Thomas out, and he needs to find a way to score in this one. Smart plays solid basketball on both ends of the floor, but he is averaging just 11.5 PPG over the past two contests. It’d be big if Smart can reach the 15-point mark in this one. PF Jae Crowder (13.2 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 1.1 SPG) is another guy that can help this team by coming through as a scorer on Wednesday. It might be out of character for these Celtics, but things change when your leading scorer is not playing.

The Spurs will be looking to stay hot with a win on Wednesday night, and they should feel confident about their chances to do that. The Celtics are playing without their best player, and San Antonio needs to use this game as a way to get back on track at home. SF Kawhi Leonard (24.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 2.0 SPG) is the guy that the Spurs will lean on offensively in this game. He is coming off of a 30-point performance against the Nets last game and there is nobody on this Boston team that can stop him one-on-one. The Celtics will likely try to play small-ball, but the Spurs have the lineups to counter that. As always, it’s also worth watching Leonard on the defensive end. He is by far the best defender in the league, and he’ll certainly come away with a few steals in this one.