Hornets at Celtics Preview

When: 7:30 EST

Where: TD Garden - Boston, MA

Hear It: WFNZ 610 AM

See It: Buy a ticket? OK, Fox Sports South.

Monday night, the Charlotte Hornets' road trip brings them to Boston to play the 11-20 Celtics. The Celtics are a team that might be last in most divisions, but are third thanks to sharing the Atlantic with Philadelphia and New York. Since Boston dealt Rajon Rondo to Dallas on December 18th, they have been 2-6 without him-- a drop-off from their 9-14 record with him.

Saturday night, the Hornets got this road trip off to a strong start in Orlando as they stole the win, 98-90 Kemba Walker had a huge game for the Hornets: 30 points, six assists and seven rebounds. Tonight, Walker will be matched up with rookie Marcus Smart. If Walker proves to be too much for Smart, Boston could move their perimeter defense specialist, Avery Bradley, onto him; which would create an advantage for someone like Gerald Henderson.

While the Celtics may be rebuilding, you can never over look a team that has nothing to lose. Boston has lost six of their last seven games, but took the Chicago Bulls to overtime in a five-point loss Saturday night. During this streak, the Celtics have had close losses to teams like Brooklyn and Orlando, so the Hornets cannot overlook this young Celtics team.

Fortunately, looking past the Hornets shouldn't be a problem for this Hornets team. Last month, the team had a four-game winning streak before their recent five-game losing streak, and are coming off of a win on Saturday. With no Al Jefferson or Lance Stephenson, the Hornets will be shorthanded, but if they play their cards right they should be able to extend their streak to two.

Tonight for the Celtics, expect them to be without point guard Jameer Nelson who is nursing a sprained ankle. Other than that, the Celtics have no major injuries.