The Los Angeles Clippers play host to the Boston Celtics at Staples Center on Wednesday.

The Celtics (13-12) come into this matchup winning 11 of their last 18 games, turning their ugly start into a decent season. They now find themselves with the record everyone expected at the beginning of the season, but there's still some room to grow. Jaylen Brown has been in and out of the lineup all season due to a hamstring issue, and it'd be nice to see this team get those 25 points into their lineup every night. Robert Williams has also been a slight disappointment, and it'd be a huge boost to see him return to the guy we saw last year. If those two things can come to fruition, this could be one of the most dangerous teams in the Eastern Conference, with Dennis Schroder and Jayson Tatum playing so well.

The Clippers (13-12) were lucky to grab a win on Monday, beating the Portland Trail Blazers, 102-90. That game was much closer than it looked, with neither team leading by more than seven points until the final minute. Los Angeles also had to finish that game on a 12-2 run to prevail, and it's certainly not a win to be proud of with Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum both missing that game. That tells how much this club is struggling right now, losing eight of their previous 12 games before that victory on Monday. Guys like Marcus Morris and Serge Ibaka returned amid that poor run, and it's possible that this club is trying to figure out their rotation with the new pieces. They eventually will, but they need to maintain a decent record until Kawhi Leonard (knee) returns to stay in the playoff hunt.

These teams played two narrow games last season, with Boston winning both. They were each decided by five points or fewer. That's ironic because they played two overtime games in the season series prior.