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Celtics showing weaknesses despite 7-1 start
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AP Photo/Matt Slocum: Doc needs to continue to mix up his five on the floor.
As the season approached, fans and players alike did not shy away from declaring the Celtics as a loaded, history challenging group. Rasheed Wallace declared that the Celtics would challenge the Bulls’ single-season wins record. Fans on various internet boards wrote posts dripping with a wide range of emotions, but that range went from pure happiness to utter euphoria. In other words, the Celtics community was excited for the season to commence.
Nothing happened during Boston’s season-opening win in Cleveland to lessen the excitement. Boston looked to be in mid-season form (after spotting the Cavs a nice early lead), and the newcomers looked like they were already warmly accepted by the Celtic fraternity. Boston went on to win its next five games, and all was well.
That is, if you don’t have a discerning, objective eye. Boston crushed the Bobcats, Bulls, and 76ers, and had a nice home win against the Hornets. But then, they only won by two over the TWolves on the second game of a road back-to-back. Then came Boston’s first loss, at home against the Suns. And finally, the lackluster win in New Jersey against a short Nets squad.
The start of the season showed everyone what this team can play like at 100%, on full rest, excitement, and energy thanks to the opening of the season. The last three games showed us what this team can play like when they are tired and uninspired. The variance in the team’s play shouldn’t come as a surprise, as all teams have ups and downs, with a myriad of bumps in the road along the long, draining season. But for Boston to already show signs of wear and some pure disinterest this early in the season should be cause for concern.
Take a look at the Minnesota game. This was Boston’s first road back-to-back, and it should be expected that any veteran squad will struggle a bit on the second leg, especially against a young team like Minnesota that would look to run Boston out of the building to capitalize on the latter’s tired legs. Minnesota got off to a great start and led by eight at the half, which is especially troubling considering that the TWolves are a poor 1-5 to start the season. Boston went on to win the game, but they allowed Minnesota to shoot over 50% from the field and were outrebounded 40-36. Boston was simply lucky that they played a young squad like Minnesota, as otherwise they would have lost this game.
Now, the home game against the Suns, which actually did result in a loss. Absolutely no defense was played in this game. That is not a surprise for the Suns, but when Doc Rivers preaches that his team will live on its defense, it can’t leave the coach with a good feeling when his team allows a team to score 122 in four quarters on Boston’s home floor. What may be the worst part about this game was the play of the bench. This was a true test for Doc’s bench to step up in a fairly big game at home, to strengthen the coach’s faith in them collectively, and they let him down. Marquis Daniels and Shelden Williams finished with a -14 each and combined for only 11 points while Sheed provided only 8 points on 4-12 shooting. Eddie House, normally serving as a boost of energy off the bench and a sparkplug of offense offered 0 points in 11 minutes. Doc was forced to play Paul Pierce 42 minutes in a losing effort, which I’m sure is not something that he wants to do.
Then the rebound game, which should have been a blowout for the Celtics. Coming into the game, you expected to see a fired up Boston squad ready to take its frustrations out on a depleted Nets team (no Devin Harris, Yi, Courtney Lee, or Chris Douglas-Roberts). Instead, the Celtics were sluggish on offense and repeatedly allowed the Nets to blow by them in the first half for easy shots. Only Rajon Rondo (not coincidentally, one of the youngest Celtics) showed life throughout the game, as he finished with 16 points and 5 steals. Boston even trailed by two points heading into the fourth quarter.
In the first half, we saw KG get blocked by Josh Boone, which is not something that anyone expected to see in a video game, let alone real life. The Celtics were only saved by the Nets terrible ball possession, as they jumped in the Nets passing lanes repeatedly and often forced errant passes. However, while the Nets turned the ball over 15 times in the first half (and 23 times overall), the Celtics only scored nine points off of those turnovers. That is a terrible scoring off turnover ratio. Couple that with only shooting 41% from the field and you have a terrible first half against a weak opponent.
The Celtics were able to win this game because they simply flipped their “veteran mode” switch. They started playing more team-oriented basketball, using screens more and denying shots in the paint. They rebounded better and found the open man for good looks on offense. They played the fourth quarter like they should have played the entire game. And while the bench played terribly against the Suns, Doc’s pine unit deserves credit for being on the floor to start the fourth quarter come back, as Doc played Ray, Sheed, House, Scal, and Shelden Williams. The latter four combined to be a +44 despite only providing 24 points on 7-19 shooting. Recap video is below:
These first two weeks have shown us quite a bit about this Celtics team already. When the national spotlight is on them, they can play, and beat, anyone (Cavs, Hornets). And when they are focused, mediocre teams have no chance (Bobcats, 76ers, Bulls). However, when the focus is shone on another team, and Boston is left to compete in obscurity or in dreaded back-to-backs, they lose focus (Minnesota, Nets). And when an opponent catches them just right, and plays their A game versus Boston’s B or lower, the Celtics were surely come out on the losing end (Suns).
Doc admitted that he has already played his starters too many minutes, and I agree. The Nets game showed us what this unit can do (while the Suns game may have also shown us what they can’t), and Doc needs to rely on them more. Especially with guys like Marquis Daniels and Sheed playing like they are hungry to fit in and win a championship. It’s jarring to the soul to think that a KG-led team can suffer through such an early malaise and allow its aging legs to force them into some low-intensity performances, but that is what we’re seeing here. Doc’s team has earned its record, but they have certainly earned some doubt and skepticism along the way.
Solutions:
1) Play the bench more, and start relying on better pairings of the bench with the starters. Shelden Williams was productive in Jersey, and each bench player has shown the capability to boost the starters when necessary. Time for Doc to capitalize on this more, while resting his core guys, to inject life earlier into the game when necessary.
Who is to say that a five of Rondo, Daniels, Pierce, Scal, and Sheed wouldn’t do some damage?
2) Continue to preach defense. Boston’s D was blown up by Phoenix, and while they forced a ton of turnovers against New Jersey, the D has simply looked off lately. Whatever it takes for Doc to get his point through, whether it be Ubuntu or defense-focused practices, the defense needs to be fixed and returned to its championship level.
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