As I type this somewhere somehow Paul George is still shooting three point shots and probably missing them.
I couldn’t have felt any worse at the end of this game if Paul Pierce had come into the stands and kicked me in the shin. Did we blow it? Did Boston cause us to blow it? Are we better than this? Are they really this good? All of this was swirling around in my head and ultimately I came to the decision that it really didn’t matter. It was what it was and now we just have to move on.
Hicks after the game said he felt that this was a fluke and that in a 7 game series he felt we could overcome the problems that plagued us tonight. I countered that this didn’t feel like a fluke to me and that the reason we were missing the shots we were taking is because we were taking the shots they were giving us (forcing us) to take. In other words he felt that our offense was the issue and could adjust and I felt that their defense was the issue and the problem was we couldn’t adjust.
But after reconsidering it I think it’s possible we could do better in a series with them but to do so we are going to have to have some major changes or we will lose in the first round 4-2.
Yes Paul George played offense as though he had gone to the World B Free School for shooters, if you’re in view of the basket your open. And yes David West was missing shots that on occasion he can hit (I’ll cover this more shortly) and Roy all but fouled out in the first quarter (well he played like he did anyway or better yet the rest of the team played like he did).
But to me this loss starts with the bench, now don’t get me wrong I’m not saying they were the only fault or even the main fault but games like this show that our starting unit basically has to provide every single point that we as a team are going to get because these guys can not be counted on for anything.
Orlando Johnson gets a pass here for two reasons, first he is a second round rookie so IMO anything short of 3 fouls you get from him is a bonus. Secondly he actually contributes and again tonight contributed. Now he also was standing near the Paul George aerosolized zone and caught the air born threepointitus bug. But he did drive a few times with success and he played hard nosed defense including but not limited to being totally screwed on that blocking call vs. Garnett because not only did he not foul him K.G. offensively fouled him by pushing off with his off hand.
But other than that? Mahinmi hasn’t been right for a few games now but you can always count on him. You can count on him to drop a perfectly catchable pass and like clockwork tonight was no different.
Tyler was just absolutely taking up space out there and not in the good defending the rim and boxing out kind of way. It’s a real problem because when he is off he is just absolutely horrible and we have to do everything in our power to try and either sustain a lead or not get buried when he is in there and then we have to rush West back into the game to save us. Sadly there are nights when he isn’t the savior either; tonight was one of those nights.
D.J. Augustine has been bad again; there is just no other way of putting it. He was just bad.
Sam Young may or may not be a victim here as he only got 4 min of play so it’s hard to fault him for much considering he came in hit a shot and drew a foul. But on the other hand if he were producing in the time on the floor he might get some more time.
I won’t even talk about Gerald Green. In fact we should make that a thing; we should never talk about Gerald Green because that contract is depressing.
Look it’s just one loss but damn does it feel like a 3 game losing streak, maybe that’s what happens when you get spoiled by winning like we have. On the other hand why in the name of God can we not get any distance between us and the Knicks? We had won 7 of our previous 8 games and this loss tonight dropped us below them in the standings.
I know that it’s just one loss though and we shouldn’t sweat it but I do believe I would really rather not play the Celtics in the playoffs. I still think a lot of our problems tonight was because they typically rope a dope us (old time Ali ref. for some of you younger fans) into taking crappy shots. They give you open low % shots and unless your name is Kyle Korver you really should not settle for the first open shot that comes your way because it’s not always the best shot.
Also this is the part I spoke to Hicks with about David West. Miami did the same thing to the Pacers in the playoffs last year, they didn’t match up LeBron James very often to him and they didn’t do well when they tried to put Haslam on him. When they succeeded was when they went to Battier on West and didn’t try and muscle him up. He used speed and leverage to throw West off and to give West open fade away jumpers. Now West certainly can hit those but they aren’t his best shot. The Celtics tonight did the same thing with Green and again West often settled for weak fade away shots that went off the back iron.
Also I’m still trying to figure out what we did wrong that kept leaving Jason Terry open for the corner three’s so often because normally that is not something we do.
I really wish we would not have had to bench Roy at the beginning of the game because he was on a personal mission to destroy the Celtics and it was working. But then he went out and when he came back he missed a couple and frankly we just didn’t even try to work it to him very often.
Oh well life goes on and we need to make certain that we don’t go down to Orlando again and lay another turd on their court like we did the last time. Damn I just now thought Danny is out a week so he won’t be available for either of these games this weekend.
Oh yea before I forget, remember when I said that the only thing worse than the lousy Bulls fans was the old Celtic fans. Well there were a crap load of them there tonight (btw another great home crowd that had to be near a sell out) but no, this group of Celtic fans are nowhere near what those old Bird fans were so therefore not even in the same hemisphere of what the Bulls fans are.
No grades, no bullet points and no good bad or ugly tonight. Just not feeling it.
On the other hand this video did make me smile a little.
I couldn’t have felt any worse at the end of this game if Paul Pierce had come into the stands and kicked me in the shin. Did we blow it? Did Boston cause us to blow it? Are we better than this? Are they really this good? All of this was swirling around in my head and ultimately I came to the decision that it really didn’t matter. It was what it was and now we just have to move on.
Hicks after the game said he felt that this was a fluke and that in a 7 game series he felt we could overcome the problems that plagued us tonight. I countered that this didn’t feel like a fluke to me and that the reason we were missing the shots we were taking is because we were taking the shots they were giving us (forcing us) to take. In other words he felt that our offense was the issue and could adjust and I felt that their defense was the issue and the problem was we couldn’t adjust.
But after reconsidering it I think it’s possible we could do better in a series with them but to do so we are going to have to have some major changes or we will lose in the first round 4-2.
Yes Paul George played offense as though he had gone to the World B Free School for shooters, if you’re in view of the basket your open. And yes David West was missing shots that on occasion he can hit (I’ll cover this more shortly) and Roy all but fouled out in the first quarter (well he played like he did anyway or better yet the rest of the team played like he did).
But to me this loss starts with the bench, now don’t get me wrong I’m not saying they were the only fault or even the main fault but games like this show that our starting unit basically has to provide every single point that we as a team are going to get because these guys can not be counted on for anything.
Orlando Johnson gets a pass here for two reasons, first he is a second round rookie so IMO anything short of 3 fouls you get from him is a bonus. Secondly he actually contributes and again tonight contributed. Now he also was standing near the Paul George aerosolized zone and caught the air born threepointitus bug. But he did drive a few times with success and he played hard nosed defense including but not limited to being totally screwed on that blocking call vs. Garnett because not only did he not foul him K.G. offensively fouled him by pushing off with his off hand.
But other than that? Mahinmi hasn’t been right for a few games now but you can always count on him. You can count on him to drop a perfectly catchable pass and like clockwork tonight was no different.
Tyler was just absolutely taking up space out there and not in the good defending the rim and boxing out kind of way. It’s a real problem because when he is off he is just absolutely horrible and we have to do everything in our power to try and either sustain a lead or not get buried when he is in there and then we have to rush West back into the game to save us. Sadly there are nights when he isn’t the savior either; tonight was one of those nights.
D.J. Augustine has been bad again; there is just no other way of putting it. He was just bad.
Sam Young may or may not be a victim here as he only got 4 min of play so it’s hard to fault him for much considering he came in hit a shot and drew a foul. But on the other hand if he were producing in the time on the floor he might get some more time.
I won’t even talk about Gerald Green. In fact we should make that a thing; we should never talk about Gerald Green because that contract is depressing.
Look it’s just one loss but damn does it feel like a 3 game losing streak, maybe that’s what happens when you get spoiled by winning like we have. On the other hand why in the name of God can we not get any distance between us and the Knicks? We had won 7 of our previous 8 games and this loss tonight dropped us below them in the standings.
I know that it’s just one loss though and we shouldn’t sweat it but I do believe I would really rather not play the Celtics in the playoffs. I still think a lot of our problems tonight was because they typically rope a dope us (old time Ali ref. for some of you younger fans) into taking crappy shots. They give you open low % shots and unless your name is Kyle Korver you really should not settle for the first open shot that comes your way because it’s not always the best shot.
Also this is the part I spoke to Hicks with about David West. Miami did the same thing to the Pacers in the playoffs last year, they didn’t match up LeBron James very often to him and they didn’t do well when they tried to put Haslam on him. When they succeeded was when they went to Battier on West and didn’t try and muscle him up. He used speed and leverage to throw West off and to give West open fade away jumpers. Now West certainly can hit those but they aren’t his best shot. The Celtics tonight did the same thing with Green and again West often settled for weak fade away shots that went off the back iron.
Also I’m still trying to figure out what we did wrong that kept leaving Jason Terry open for the corner three’s so often because normally that is not something we do.
I really wish we would not have had to bench Roy at the beginning of the game because he was on a personal mission to destroy the Celtics and it was working. But then he went out and when he came back he missed a couple and frankly we just didn’t even try to work it to him very often.
Oh well life goes on and we need to make certain that we don’t go down to Orlando again and lay another turd on their court like we did the last time. Damn I just now thought Danny is out a week so he won’t be available for either of these games this weekend.
Oh yea before I forget, remember when I said that the only thing worse than the lousy Bulls fans was the old Celtic fans. Well there were a crap load of them there tonight (btw another great home crowd that had to be near a sell out) but no, this group of Celtic fans are nowhere near what those old Bird fans were so therefore not even in the same hemisphere of what the Bulls fans are.
No grades, no bullet points and no good bad or ugly tonight. Just not feeling it.
On the other hand this video did make me smile a little.
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