 BOSTON CELTICS
 at SAN ANTONIO SPURS
Tip-off: Friday, 9:30 p.m. ET
Line: NA, Total: NA The Celtics look to sweep their season series with the Spurs on Friday. Over the years, there has been plenty of evidence that San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich can turn any team not just into a winner, but a top-four finisher in the brutal Western Conference. But the single best argument to that point may be the Spurs' start to this season, in which the team has gone 17-8 without SF Kawhi Leonard, who many projected to be the MVP of the league this season. San Antonio has won six out of its last seven, most recently outscoring the Heat by eight points in the fourth quarter to wrap up a 117-105 win on Wednesday night. On Friday, the Spurs will close out a three-game home stand with a showdown against the visiting Boston Celtics. Boston is 22-4 and sitting in first place in the Eastern Conference after a 97-90 win over the Mavericks on Wednesday, also giving them six wins in their last seven games. Late in October, Boston beat the Spurs 108-94 at home in a game in which San Antonio was without PG Tony Parker, as it has been until quite recently, and chose to rest SG Manu Ginobili. Both players will likely be on the floor Friday night, while SG Jaylen Brown and SF Marcus Morris are questionable for the Celtics.Given the great extent to which they rely on inexperienced players, the Celtics have surprised almost everyone with their success to this point. PG Kyrie Irving wanted his own team, and he has indeed taken absolute ownership of this Boston squad—without being a ball hog. His 23.5 PPG, 5.0 APG statistics aren't in normal MVP range, but the poise he's shown as a leader has put him into early-season consideration for the award. He can explode as a scorer when necessary—he had 47 to carry the C’s past Dallas last month—but is still fairly judicious in his shot selection. He's shooting .490 from the floor this season, third among points guards behind only Ben Simmons (who is far from a typical PG) and Ish Smith (who takes fewer than half the shots Irving does). Kyrie has shown awesome chemistry with PF Al Horford, who looks more aggressive and engaged in this Kyrie-led offense. In 33 minutes against Dallas, he put up 17 points, eight assists, eight rebounds, three blocks and two steals, all without commiting a single turnover despite handling the ball often. It was a stat line that reflected just how wide-ranging his role is for Boston. The youth comes in the form of Brown and SF Jayson Tatum, who both start and are in their second and first years in the league, respectively. Tatum posted 17 and 10 against Dallas, the second double-double of his young career. Brown sat out the game, with PG Marcus Smart sliding in to take his place in the lineup. PF LaMarcus Aldridge has had a bumpy tenure in San Antonio, generally struggling to find a role that suited his formidable skill set. But after things bottomed out last year in the playoffs, Popovich seemed recommitted to giving a large share of the offensive workload. And once it became clear that Leonard was going to miss serious time, he had no choice. Aldridge is leading the team with 22.6 PPG, which would be the third-highest-scoring season of his career and easily his highest average since arriving with the Spurs for the 2015-16 season. He dropped 41 on the Grizzlies on November 29th, the most he has scored as a Spur. But this is still an egalitarian offense, and with 18 points against the Heat on Wednesday he was one of eight San Antonio players to score in double figures. SG Bryn Forbes and SF Rudy Gay were also standouts versus Miami, scoring 17 and 16 respectively—and Forbes did so off the bench. Gay, known as something of a chucker throughout a beleaguered career, has been reigned in by Pop and has displayed measured shot selection in San Antonio. Parker, Ginobili and C Pau Gasol are nearing the end of their careers, but Popovich keeps them effective by limiting their minutes. Ginobili's 25 against the Heat were the most that any of the trio received. SG Danny Green is currently shooting over 40% from the floor, something he's failed to do in either of the last two seasons.
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