Questionable choices by Joe Mazzulla, Celtics fuel Game 5 collapse to Hawks

https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2023/04/questionable-choices-by-joe-mazzulla-celtics-fuel-game-5-collapse-to-hawks-brian-robb.html



Questionable choices by Joe Mazzulla, Celtics fuel Game 5 collapse to Hawks


Updated: Apr. 26, 2023, 8:48 a.m.|Published: Apr. 26, 2023, 7:09 a.m.


By Brian Robb | brobb@masslive.com


BOSTON — The Celtics were six mere minutes away from the perfect ending unfolding on Tuesday night at TD Garden. Three days off loomed before a second round tilt against the 76ers if Boston was able to take care of business against a shorthanded Atlanta Hawks squad playing without a suspended Dejounte Murray. A Game 5 victory would have also cut down on potential recovery time for Joel Embiid with his sprained knee as well, forcing the MVP into action on Saturday, a potentially big edge in the heavyweight tilt.

The Celtics led by 111-99 with 5:15 left in regulation before an unprecedented collapse turned a dream scenario into a nightmare as the Hawks closed the game out on a 20-6 run in the final five minutes to escape with the win. Trae Young scored the game’s final 14 points for Atlanta while Boston’s offense, which had scored with ease for the past three games self-combusted when it mattered most. What happened and how exactly did it happen in Game 5? A perfect storm of mistakes and missteps breathed life into Atlanta.


A bizarre Blake Griffin appearance

The TD Garden loved to see the veteran big man enter the game with 10:24 left in the game as he checked in for Sam Hauser in an eight-point contest. It was the first appearance of the series for Griffin with Joe Mazzulla largely sticking to a eight-man rotation leaving bigs like Griffin and Grant Williams on the bench.

Griffin’s appearance in this spot made for a fun story but was bizarre situationally as he took the floor with Rob Williams to see a Hawks team that was going smaller with DeAndre Hunter playing power forward at the time. Griffin made a couple of hustle plays that the crowd enjoyed but was targeted on a pair of pick-and-rolls that led to easy layups at the start of Atlanta’s game-changing 12-0 run midway through the frame.

Griffin was a net neutral in the plus/minus but the fact he got six minutes in a surprise stint during a crucial fourth quarter was bizarre. Boston’s offense started to sputter with him in the game and foreshadowed a poor choice by Joe Mazzulla to go with double bigs in his lineup for almost the entire fourth quarter, which opened the door for open uncontested 3s in the pick-and-roll in drop coverage for a team that was playing small and hitting those shots all night.


Derrick White gets benched for stints as big lineup choices give Hawks opportunities

One player who scored the ball consistently well all night was White (18 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field) and amid a strong game, good things have also happened all year long when he was on the floor in crunch time. Still, as Boston’s offense sputtered late, Mazzulla opted to go with Marcus Smart over White (and Malcolm Brogdon) with three minutes left and the Celtics winning 111-105. Young proceeded to hit two straight 3s after White hit the bench while Smart piled up gaffes including an ugly pass that led to a turnover, a moving screen and an ill-advised loose ball foul that put the Hawks ahead with 15.1 seconds left.

While the Celtics defense had some bad letdowns due to the clean looks they give Trae Young in switches against their bigs, the team offensively also let the Hawks off the hook here by not playing some of their best shot creation weapons (Malcolm Brogdon, White) against the Hawks weaker defenders when it mattered most. With Jayson Tatum struggling through a dud of a quarter offensively, alternatives better than Marcus Smart were available to win the game with offense. However, Brogdon didn’t play for the final seven minutes, while White sat for a key three-minute stretch in which Atlanta took the lead with 1:39 left.


Sloppy turnovers

Boston shot 50 percent in the fourth quarter but their five turnovers gave Atlanta 10 points that proved to be the difference on a night they were hitting from all over the floor. Four of those turnovers came in the final three minutes of the game and featured bad decisions from everyone (bad passes from Tatum, Smart and Jaylen Brown in key spots) that kept the hosts from putting the Hawks away. The lineup decisions are worth the second guess but there’s no doubt that the Celtics’ cavalier passing choices fueled a horrific collapse here. They deserve responsibility for that.


Timeout mismanagement?

Mazzulla’s timeout usage questions had largely gone away in recent weeks but deserve a second look after this collapse. With the offense floundering, he declined to call a use it or lose it timeout in the midst of a Hawks 9-0 run before the three minute mark in regulation. Smart turned the ball over on that possession, leading to a game-tying Young 3.

The Celtics also gave away precious seconds with 15.1 seconds left after Trae Young took the lead with free throws. Boston simply dribbled the ball up the floor while trailing and burned six seconds before Atlanta gave a foul, shrinking their margin for error in the closing seconds.

White eventually hit free throws to put the Celtics back ahead with 7.1 seconds left but Boston could have had more time at the end of the game if they had drawn up that play a few seconds earlier with a timeout. The domino effect from there (Trae Young shoots his 3 sooner and gives Celtics more than 1.8 seconds left on clock to tie the game at the end of regulation) could have boded large. Instead, Boston came up empty on their final possession with just two seconds left and no margin for error.

The Celtics won’t have much time to stew on this one before Game 6 in Atlanta on Thursday night but this was a team collapse in every sense of the word. Poor choices by the players and the coach gave away a crucial opportunity and made things much harder for this squad than they needed to be.


Bob


.

I approve this message, per ktron

Hi,
I disagree with the article or, rather with his opinion.
a) appearance of Blake - it happened in the 3rd quarter and didn't affect the way the game was progressing. Sure, it was very unusual and easy target for criticism.
b) Timeouts - sure, they weren't perfect but you can't put a blame for the loss on them, IMO.
I think the root cause for all this was a mental collapse in the second part of the 4th quarter. And there are 2 parties to blame - players, who had this brain fart, and the coach, who should've done something.

AK

sinus007 wrote:Hi,
I disagree with the article or, rather with his opinion.
a) appearance of Blake - it happened in the 3rd quarter and didn't affect the way the game was progressing. Sure, it was very unusual and easy target for criticism.
b) Timeouts - sure, they weren't perfect but you can't put a blame for the loss on them, IMO.
I think the root cause for all this was a mental collapse in the second part of the 4th quarter. And there are 2 parties to blame - players, who had this brain fart, and the coach, who should've done something.

AK

I also approve this message, per ktron (have to call ktron and let him know)

Wow! After reading the above piece it was even worse than I thought.

Hold on there Sinus. My brother…

You can’t count non-timeouts as contributing to that mess last night?  If not then you’ve just hitched your saddle to Joe Mazzulla, Mike Budenholzer bandwagon. The results from the last 2 nights speak for themselves. I’ll say no more on that topic.

You don’t think inserting Blake hurt us in any way? Let me rephrase that. Do you think inserting Blake helped us in anyway?

Please give that some thought.

I agree with the rest of your opinion.


Looka here-

Dboss and I vented for so long last night that both spouses are contemplating divorce!

That well written piece says it all.(no mention of Grant though) We looked like the Not Ready For Prime Time Players last night.

I’m not much of a stat guy but im sure Bob H and Dboss will appreciate this-

Up until last nights debacle, Teams were 0-183 when trailing by 13 with 6 minutes to go.

I got water aerobics again on Thursday evening.

I won’t be watching.

I’d much rather spend an extra hour after class trying to drown myself.

Completely agree with the article. Joe Mazzulla needs to realize when the team is losing the mental edge and remind them to focus. Timeouts are not just about ATO plays.

Just so frustrated as to why the coaching staff is not able to see this.

Ktron,
The insertion of Blake didn't hurt. Actually, it helped us - gave a few minutes breather to Al and RWIII.
But again, it didn't alter the course of the game. Which was progressing similar to game 4 - few points up, few points down, but we kept ATL at a distance.
As for water aerobics - good for you. I will be watching - can't help...

AK

Ah, the despair and agony.

Every call the coach made was wrong again.

Amazing how someone gets so far as to be a head coach in the NBA when he knows less than a beat writer who never had his experience on the sideline and, of course, less than fans in some online forum.

The players too. How did they get to the NBA when we can see what they're doing wrong and they can't?

NYCelt wrote:Ah, the despair and agony.

Every call the coach made was wrong again.

Amazing how someone gets so far as to be a head coach in the NBA when he knows less than a beat writer who never had his experience on the sideline and, of course, less than fans in some online forum.

The players too. How did they get to the NBA when we can see what they're doing wrong and they can't?

NY, but then this is just such an averaging white wash! Either there is nothing wrong with teams or everything is wrong with teams.

Joe: Jayson I want you to hit 10% of the 10 threes you put up tonight, JT:?Say it ain’t so Joe. Joe: Now Jaylen, it’s imperative that you make 20% of your 5 free throws, got that. JB: Coach, please say it ain’t so ..

BingBang! wrote:Joe: Jayson I want you to hit 10% of the 10 threes you put up tonight, JT:?Say it ain’t so Joe. Joe: Now Jaylen, it’s imperative that you make 20% of your 5 free throws, got that. JB: Coach, please say it ain’t so ..

Haha, very good.

To read the posts here, you might think that's exactly the way it went.

sinus007 wrote:Hi,
I disagree with the article or, rather with his opinion.
a) appearance of Blake - it happened in the 3rd quarter and didn't affect the way the game was progressing. Sure, it was very unusual and easy target for criticism.
b) Timeouts - sure, they weren't perfect but you can't put a blame for the loss on them, IMO.
I think the root cause for all this was a mental collapse in the second part of the 4th quarter. And there are 2 parties to blame - players, who had this brain fart, and the coach, who should've done something.

AK

Griffin didn't belong in this game. Period. Perhaps if he was not in there the team might have been able to put the game away. IMO the root cause-and its a major cause for concern-is the lack of the "killer instinct" and the play of Tatum of whom we should expect more.

NYCelt wrote:Ah, the despair and agony.

Every call the coach made was wrong again.

Amazing how someone gets so far as to be a head coach in the NBA when he knows less than a beat writer who never had his experience on the sideline and, of course, less than fans in some online forum.

The players too. How did they get to the NBA when we can see what they're doing wrong and they can't?

Ny, you know as well if not better than most folks that all coaches are not created equal. Some are better than others. Some have reached the heights of their ability and many, despite being NBA coaches still are learning, making mistakes, adjustments and misjudgments. Human beings like us that are open to criticism especially in a highly visible job like the NBA.
Criticism comes with the territory. Just like any other line of work. Just so happens their body of work is put on display in front of millions.
Amongst those millions are very smart basketball people who know the game some more than others.
Some of the beat writers you mention have played the game at a high level.
If Pop, Doc and Eric in Miami can be open to criticism even after winning championship why can’t a 34 yr old rookie coach be as well. Should we lower our standards because of his age and experience?
I don’t think so. Its going to be there and its not unfair. Its the way its supposed to be. Just my opinion.

Hey ktron

Try not to let the benign neglect crowd that calls for the rain to stop in the middle of a drought, get you down.

'Don't let the Joneses Get You Down'

Brian Robb is one of the very best beat writers out there. He's a straight shooter and is not prone to embellishments. Even the three blind mice can learn a thing or two.

sinus007 wrote:Ktron,
The insertion of Blake didn't hurt. Actually, it helped us - gave a few minutes breather to Al and RWIII.
But again, it didn't alter the course of the game. Which was progressing similar to game 4 - few points up, few points down, but we kept ATL at a distance.
As for water aerobics - good for you. I will be watching - can't help...

AK

No problem I have it all planned out right up to the suicide note I plan to leave on Sams Forum tomorrow.

dboss wrote:Hey ktron

Try not to let the benign neglect crowd that calls for the rain to stop in the middle of a drought, get you down.

'Don't let the Joneses Get You Down'

Dboss, Cue the Temptations: “The Joneses got a new car today here’s what you should say, Hooray for Joneses, because it’s their car and they're the ones who got to pay. Worrrrryyy for the Joneses”


BTW, I’m still not watching tomorrow.

You can come and try to drag me out of that pool and may even succeed but not without me screaming and kicking!

Ktron and/or dboss,

I think you may be missing my point.

I also think my going on and on trying to spell it out further will come across pretty poorly, so I’ll stop here. We need more of the art of knowing when to give it a break in this forum anyway.

Instead, to get a better feel for the point I’m trying to make, it would be worth looking at a few recent posts I’ve left in other topics that have popped up since game five. They all kind of weave together.

Regards

NYCelt wrote:Ktron and/or dboss,

I think you may be missing my point.

I also think my going on and on trying to spell it out further will come across pretty poorly, so I’ll stop here. We need more of the art of knowing when to give it a break in this forum anyway.

Instead, to get a better feel for the point I’m trying to make, it would be worth looking at a few recent posts I’ve left in other topics that have popped up since game five. They all kind of weave together.

Regards

I agree

NYCelt wrote:Ah, the despair and agony.

Every call the coach made was wrong again.

Amazing how someone gets so far as to be a head coach in the NBA when he knows less than a beat writer who never had his experience on the sideline and, of course, less than fans in some online forum.

The players too. How did they get to the NBA when we can see what they're doing wrong and they can't?

I was fine with Blake, wonder why no GWill? It could be sometimes paired with Al they can’t rebound. I agree have to get DWhite in there at crunch time.

NYCelt wrote:Ktron and/or dboss,

I think you may be missing my point.

I also think my going on and on trying to spell it out further will come across pretty poorly, so I’ll stop here. We need more of the art of knowing when to give it a break in this forum anyway.

Instead, to get a better feel for the point I’m trying to make, it would be worth looking at a few recent posts I’ve left in other topics that have popped up since game five. They all kind of weave together.

Regards

NYCelt...chill out..I am rarely serious....Been playing the Devil' Advocate since 09 and I like to argue on both sides.    But you should already know that.  Ktron and me are from Boston and we are as thick as thieves.  We can debate each other in the extreme and then have a good laugh.  We are 70 plus AA men that grew up watching the Celtics and playing basketball all around Boston.  Basically, we are Celtics fans for life.  We already earned the right to speak the truth as we see it.  We are beyond reproach when it comes to our support for the Celtics.

dboss,

I didn't think I needed someone to tell me to chill out.

There is a little irony in your comment since that chill factor has been the exact message I've been spreading lately. Sometimes I post something in my role of acting in the best interests of the forum and the objectives we set out when creating it. It's a judgement call on my part. We don't exactly post a warning when attempting to keep the train on the track, it's a little more subtle than that.

I'm happy for you that you've earned the right to be beyond reproach and speak your truth on our little fan forum, however.

Does one pass a test and get a certificate for that?

NYCelt wrote:dboss,

I didn't think I needed someone to tell me to chill out.

There is a little irony in your comment since that chill factor has been the exact message I've been spreading lately. Sometimes I post something in my role of acting in the best interests of the forum and the objectives we set out when creating it. It's a judgement call on my part. We don't exactly post a warning when attempting to keep the train on the track, it's a little more subtle than that.

I'm happy for you that you've earned the right to be beyond reproach and speak your truth on our little fan forum, however.

Does one pass a test and get a certificate for that?

Well at least you have not lost your sense of humor.

dboss wrote:

NYCelt wrote:dboss,

I didn't think I needed someone to tell me to chill out.

There is a little irony in your comment since that chill factor has been the exact message I've been spreading lately. Sometimes I post something in my role of acting in the best interests of the forum and the objectives we set out when creating it. It's a judgement call on my part. We don't exactly post a warning when attempting to keep the train on the track, it's a little more subtle than that.

I'm happy for you that you've earned the right to be beyond reproach and speak your truth on our little fan forum, however.

Does one pass a test and get a certificate for that?

Well at least you have not lost your sense of humor.

It wasn't intended as humor.

But I think you know that.