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1. The Boston Celtics aren’t a nasty basketball workforce. However they aren’t precisely a very good one in the intervening time both.
A foul defensive recreation or two to open the season isn’t a lot to get fearful about. 5 consecutive poor defensive video games are fairly worrisome, nonetheless.
Maybe worst of all, the shortage of offensive execution that plagued the “previous” Celtics got here again late. The ball acquired sticky, sloppy turnovers occurred, and it resulted in a loss.
2. You could possibly sort of inform issues may get sideways on Boston firstly of the third quarter. Postgame, Al Horford stated, “I felt like the start of the third we didn’t come out in the suitable mindset.” That feels fairly spot-on.
The quarter opened with Jaylen Brown forcing a contested fallaway after dribbling away a lot of the clock:
3. The second possession of the third quarter, Marcus Sensible took this contested step-back three with half of the shot-clock remaining:
4. On the third possession of the third quarter, Jayson Tatum ran right into a cost after one other messy offensive set.
5. On the fourth play of the third quarter, Jaylen Brown misplaced the ball out of bounds on this drive:
4 empty possessions in a row. The Celtics had a 12-point halftime lead, and the Cavs didn’t rating on their three possessions to open the second half. If Boston had scored on even a few these possessions, they may have buried Cleveland and gained the sport.
6. Turnovers…ugh. So many turnovers. 19 giveaways, together with 10 mixed from Jaylen Brown (six) and Jayson Tatum (4).
Boston shot 51.2% from the sphere for the sport. They have been 26-of-32 from the free throw line. That ought to be sufficient to win in a blowout. However tossing away roughly a sixth of their possessions is a recipe for catastrophe.
7. Additionally disastrous is the Celtics protection. Sure, Boston is lacking Robert Williams. However all the different parts of final season’s Finals workforce are mainly there. What isn’t there may be the scheme or the execution from a 12 months in the past.
For no matter purpose, the Celtics have gone away from the switch-everything coverages that made them a traditionally particular protection a 12 months in the past. As an alternative, it’s this odd mixture of drop protection and asking gamers to combat by means of screens. Over and again and again, ballhandlers are strolling into open jumpers. Or, worse, they’re getting straight traces to the rim.
What spurred this transformation in scheme is unknown. It may possibly’t all be that Williams is lacking, as a result of Boston continued to modify all the pieces on the finish of final common season, in addition to all through the playoffs when Williams was out. It’s actually solely a query that Joe Mazzulla can reply.
As well as, defensive rebounding has been unhealthy for Boston. Al Horford needs to be higher than this. Getting beat to the board by Caris LeVert is one factor. Turning to yell at somebody as an alternative of closing out to LeVert on the arc is one other factor totally. This can be a uncommon lapse in judgement from Boston’s regular veteran:
8. The Celtics had 24 assists by means of three quarters. That’s a very, actually good charge. The ball was popping, the drive-and-kick recreation was working and Boston was scoring at will.
Within the fourth quarter, the Celtics had one help.
As all the pieces crumbled, they reverted to the Celtics of previous. All one-pass, followed-by-a-contested-jumper possessions.
Jayson Tatum noticed three photographs throughout his 6:49 of fourth-quarter play. A kind of was the tried game-winner on the buzzer. The opposite two have been a missed three-pointer and a missed floater.
Boston’s star had 30 factors on 10-of-14 taking pictures by means of the primary three quarters. Then he took simply three photographs throughout the complete fourth quarter. It’s completely non-sensical to not get him extra touches.
9. The very last thing we need to concentrate on listed here are the minutes totals. Jaylen Brown performed 42:48. Jayson Tatum performed 42:11. And shockingly, Al Horford went 41:25.
These are all approach too excessive in an October recreation for a workforce that hopes to play into late-June.
Certain, Boston was coming off of three days off, however they’ve 4 video games over the subsequent week. It’s far too early to be placing this sort of load onto the workforce’s finest gamers. Brown and Tatum will probably be tremendous. Besides Brown tends to select up nagging accidents, and Tatum admitted to being fatigued by the top of the Finals. And this workforce wants Horford if they will be an actual contender. Even with different bigs unavailable, he can’t be going 40-plus minutes. Discover one other approach, both with present personnel, or by bringing in some completely different guys who can choose 10-Quarter-hour an evening.
10. This isn’t as unhealthy as final 12 months’s uneven mess of a workforce. However one way or the other, it virtually feels worse. That’s as a result of everyone knows the Celtics can, and may, be higher than this. It may possibly’t all be “Wait till Rob will get again”, as a result of that’s: 1. Too distant and a pair of. Unsure as to when it’ll occur.
Boston has to repair the protection. The offense must play the suitable approach for 48 minutes. Not simply the primary 36-40. Joe Mazzulla wants to start out taking timeouts and cease letting so a lot of them whither on the vine.
In any other case, this gained’t simply really feel worse than final season’s October by means of December mess. It is going to be worse, as a result of there are actual expectations this season. It’s nonetheless early, however it gained’t keep that approach for lengthy.
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