Post Game Bulls - Away

So many missed bunnies. So many turnovers. Such a disappointing game.

Celtics can't hold lead once again, lose to Bulls, 101-92

CSNNE

Sherrod Blakley

All of a sudden, the Celtics can't hold onto 10-point leads.

After starting the season with a 19-3 record when leading by 10 or more points, the Celtics have lost their last two after doing so, the most recent being Thursday night in Chicago.

Boston took a 43-33 lead over Chicago with just under four minutes to go in the second quarter before watching the Bulls score 10 straight points and tie things up. The Bulls would take a one-point lead into halftime and only build on it in the second half.

They went on to beat the Celtics, 101-92.

Isaiah Thomas once again had a rough night from the field, shooting 5-for-17 for 14 points. In Wednesday's loss to the Pistons, Thomas was 2-for-15 before finishing 6-for-20. And like Wednesday night, there was nobody to pick up the offensive slack.

Evan Turner was 4-for-12 from the field for 10 points and Marcus Smart was 3-for-11 from the field for 10 points.

Jae Crowder led all Celtics scorers with 17 points. Jared Sullinger was perhaps the lone bright spot for the Celtics in this one, as he played well off the bench and finished with a double-double, 13 points and 11 rebounds, though he too struggled from the field (5-for-13).

The Celtics as a team shot just 35.7-percent from the field, and scored just 16 points in a third quarter that saw the Bulls lead by as many as 12 points.

The Bulls, meanwhile, got a balanced attack from all over the court. Pau Gasol finished 8-for-19 for 17 points and dominated on the glass, ripping down 18 rebounds. Derrick Rose had a nice game as well, finishing 9-for-16 from the field for 18 points.

They sent Boston to its fourth loss in its last five games.

It's also uncharacteristic of the C's to lose on the second night of a back-to-back. Boston came into this game 10-1 on the second game of a road back-to-back, but couldn't keep up with the Bulls in the second half.

The Celtics were not just without Avery Bradley in this one, but head coach Brad Stevens, who missed the game to visit a former player at Butler, Andrew Smith, in nearby Indiana who is battling non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Stevens was replaced by assistant coach Jay Larranaga.
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STUDS AND DUDS: DERRICK ROSE, BULLS HAND CELTICS 4TH LOSS IN 5 GAMES

By WEEI

The Bulls defeated the Celtics 101-92 on Thursday night in Chicago, handing Boston its fourth loss in five games and second defeat in as many nights.

After a sloppy first half in which both teams struggled to find open looks, the Bulls pulled ahead in the third quarter, outscoring the C’s 26-16. In the quarter, the Celtics shot 7-for-32 from the field, missing all six of their 3-point attempts.

Pau Gasol’s 17 points and 18 boards led the Bulls (22-12). The rest of Chicago’s starters also scored in double figures, as the dynamic backcourt of Jimmy Butler (19 points, 10 assists) and Derrick Rose (18 points) combined for 37 points.

Seven different Celtics scored in double figures, led by Jae Crowder (17 points). The loss was Boston’s fourth in its last five games, and the C’s dropped to 19-17 — ninth in the East. The Celtics will look to end their two-game skid on Sunday in Memphis.

STUD OF THE NIGHT: Derrick Rose.

After suffering a broken orbital bone during training camp, it looks as if Rose has regained the full use of his face. The former MVP scored 19 points on only nine shots. He did an excellent job in the paint, making use of a jump hook while being guarded by the smaller Isaiah Thomas.

DUD OF THE NIGHT: The Celtics’ offense.

Without Avery Bradley, the C’s offense has been atrocious. Thomas has attacked the basket, but that has not translated to made shots. As opposing defenses collapse on Thomas (14 points on 17 shots), he is forced to pass to teammates who similarly can’t put the ball in the basket. When I.T. is out of the game, there is no semblance of ball movement. Against the Bulls, backup ball-handlers Evan Turner and Marcus Smart only scored 10 points apiece, combining to shoot 7-for-23 from the field.

WHINE OF THE NIGHT: Mark and the Martinis.

For some reason, TNT broadcast live from Las Vegas. Obviously, they brought in a house band called Mark and the Martinis. The band featured seven white dudes dressed in tuxedos and must’ve been the saddest grouping of individuals I’ve ever seen on TNT — and I’ve watched an episode of “The Closer.”

STAT OF THE NIGHT: 3-point shooting, again.

Without any ball movement or basic offense, the Celtics settled for contested 3-pointers. In Chicago, the C’s finished 5-for-23, missing all six of their attempts in the third quarter.

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Shooting 35% FG percentage and 20% or 5/25 from beyond the arc is a killer.

Be patient, draft night is only 6 months away!

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Two things I'm tired of seeing: IT driving hopelessly into the lane time after time only to get stuffed or to turn the ball over and KO falling down when someone breathes on him.

Berlin-T

Like Bharles Charkley (LOL) said last night, we are a 6-8 seed in the east right now.

it shows.

Danny will almost certainly make some trade before the deadline, though it may not move the bar much.

we certainly need more length inside, as it shows up against the teams that DO have size.

and of course we need a go-to scorer as Danny has said is his first priority.

if nothing else, it should be an interesting year to see how Ainge remolds this team.

Can't win shooting 35%.  We wouldn't have shot 35% if we just hit our open shots, and we had a lot.  It's a hit-or-miss league and our jumpshooting is, to put it nicely, volatile.

1.  Kelly had 16 points on 6-14 and 9 boards.  When the team is shooting 35% and you're shooting 43% (6-14) it's not your fault.  You're dragging that awful average up.  He was 2-5 from 3.  He got credit for zero steals, but he did create a turnover late in the game by hawking the inbounds that gave us another possession and a shot.  Our shot missed because our offense sucked, but we had a chance.  If you look at his shot chart, he 6 shots from outside (1 from the top of the key and 5 from 3) and 8 from the painted area (4-eight).  Against Detroit he was calling for the ball in the low blocks against Ilyasova and last night he was working Mirotic and Taj Gibson in the low blocks too.  His issue, like most of the rest of the roster, is consistency.  With the occasional off games by Bradley and Crowder, nobody on this team is predictable.  His 3pt fg% is "down" to 39% on the season.  That makes him the #1 3pt shooter on the team by fg% with Bradley's down to 38%.

2.  Another awful night from Thomas.  5-17 and 0-4 from 3.  2 assists and 4 TOs.  His defense is such a liability if he isn't putting up big numbers he's a drag.  Unfortunately, his fg% is horrendous.  He is a high-volume, low-percentage shooter, shooting 41% this year and 32% from 3.  The good news is that he had fewer live turnovers last night, turnovers where the other team can take off and run it down our throats.  That is what is known as a back-handed compliment.  He just cannot seem to accept the fact that just because you think you can do something, that doesn't mean you should do it.

3.  Crowder was 6-17 and 1-4 from 3.  3 steals.  He made a few nice drives to the hoop but way too many jumpshots that did not go in.

4.  Sully worked hard on the boards.  He had 11 but some of them were offensive putbacks off his own point-blank misses or blocked shots.  So that increases his rebound total but ups his points scored.  He was last night.  9 of his shots were from outside and 4 went in.  4 shots were in the paint and he was 1-4.  This is the exact opposite, in my opinion, of what we should be seeing.  We should be seeing Kelly outside to open the floor up, especially with Bradley out, and Sully down low in the blocks working his man.  He was taking 20'ers last night.  Hasn't the coaching staff told him that, if he's going to take shots from out there, make sure you are on the other side of the arc?  Sully's a beast, and he's shooting 42% on the season.  Why?  Too many outside.  Over the last 10 games, 39.5%.  If there's some good news (and I am desperately looking for good news about Sully) his ft% is up to 73% over the last 5 games.  That has dragged his season average up to 61%.  Yuck.

5.  Evan Turner was 4-12.  Only a few of his fgas were in the paint.  His shooting limitations are painful.  He was 0-2 from 3 and is shooting 16% for the season.  Why are the Celtics running plays that put him out there?   I'm starting to question Brad. He was out last night, visiting a former Butler player with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, but it's his playbook.

6.  Amir with a solid night, battling Gasol, who put up big numbers.  He's 35 and still has it.

7.  Jimmy Butler is something else.  He is a far better 2-way player than Derrick Rose ever was.  He was really taking it to us and then Marcus Smart was assigned to defend him and his production fell off.  Smart also made a great play, flying in to grab an offensive rebound and throw it out to the perimeter and save the possession.  He really gives up his body.  His offense is killing us.  3-11.  Where is his conscience?

8.  Tyler Zeller is strictly a catch-and-shoot player in the half court set.  You MUST get him the ball in his sweet spot.  Give him the ball 12' out and you'll get a quick 12' flip shot.  Give him the ball 4' out along the baseline and you'll get a quick 4' baseline flip shot.  He can't put the ball on the floor.  Maybe he shouldn't anyway, but it's really not an option.

9.  Stat Roundup:  Our inability to hit open shots killed us.  We had 17 fast break points vs 7 for them.  We had 11 TOs vs 16 for them.  We had 11 steals vs 4 for them.  We shot 20% from 3.  1/4 of our shots were 3pt fgas and we shot 1-5.  We stopped moving and took the easy 3ptr instead, and missed.  Play lazy, look bad.

Danny's looking.  He has come right out and said he is looking "to consolidate".  He wants to trade quantity for quality (who doesn't?).  We need length and we need another killer shooter.  I wonder what Chicago would want for Noah and McBuckets?  I watched the first half of the Sacto-LA game after this travesty was over.  I know all about Cousins' personality issues but his talent level is off the charts (29 points on 8-12, 2-3 from 3, 11-13 from the line, 10 rebounds, 7 assists).  He got a rebound, dribbled it full court into the paint and hit Quincy Acy with a perfect bounce pocket pass in the paint for a layup.  Kelly can do that (not the rebounding etc, but the dribbling/passing) and Lee could do it but I don't know many other bigs like Cousins that can.  11-13 from the line?  Name a center in the league today that can shoot fritos like that?  You can't draft 5 or 6 players this year, Danny.  You.  Can.  Not.

Not a happy team.  People are unhappy about not playing (Lee) about losing their starting job (Sully, even though he is in a slump) and the unset nature of Brad's rotations (Thomas).

Approaching 2 1/2 years into a minimum 3-5 year rebuild.  Painful, the roster is still unbalanced.  Our perimeter defense is better with the versatility of Jerebko than Bass, but Bass would be stabilizing our offense.  This is not a precise science, nobody could have predicted Jonas' offense would fall the table like this.


bob


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Ball movement has also deteriorated lately as well. When the Cs are doing well on offense they assist on more than half of their baskets. Not seeing those stats lately with last night being 17 assists on 38 baskets.

There is a lot to be said about everyone feeling better on offense when the ball moves more and not less. They have shown that they can perform this task in many games this season, but for some reason it has not been happening much lately.

Shooting contested three pointers is not this team's strength as was witnessed again last night (5 for 23).

What I took from last night is =
Kelly is a keeper.
So is Jae.
IT is a role player off the bench as is Marcus though Smart did make a great save and pass to the perimeter.
The rest, meh.

Actually I enjoy the posts here more than yesterday's game. Much more. Thanks guys.