Nenad Krstic a Mixed Bag in Clippers Defeat

I pointed this out in one of my comments under Post Game LAC. Got to be tougher! hope he can learn quick!

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Jay King | March 10, 2011 at 10:54 am | 2 Comments

Doc Rivers believed Kevin Garnett was human, and last night’s 5-19 shooting (yuck) confirmed that suspicion. But Garnett’s shooting will likely return for next game, and the Celtics need not worry about their starting power forward. A more urgent matter illustrated by last night’s loss was Nenad Krstic’s interior defense, which still needs some work.

“He’s got to hold his ground a little bit,” said Doc Rivers.

Criticizing Krstic, after 20 points and nine rebounds, sounds harsh. But Rivers tells the story well. (WEEI)

Rivers would like Krstic to, in coach-speak, “Do his work early. You can see he allows a big to catch it deep and then he tried to defend. With his size, that’s just too late.”

On one occasion, Chris Kaman bullied through Krstic for a two-foot hook shot. On approximately fifteen hundred occasions, DeAndre Jordan worked loose for a dunk. The Celtics bottled up Blake Griffin, almost entirely, but Kaman and Jordan combined for 26 points and 14 rebounds. That said, Rivers believes Krstic’s mistakes are correctable. He’s capable of forcing big men into tougher shots, but — whether because he has never been taught to, or because he doesn’t have the proper defensive focus — does not always succeed in doing so.

Still, Krstic’s early days as a Celtic have elicited far more

smiles than frowns. As Ray Allen noted yesterday, Krstic has fit in since day one. He already knows where to find his offense, and his polished skills have given Boston a new wrinkle.

“Krstic, he’s been fine,” said Rivers. “Listen, he’s been better than I knew.”

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Doc is working to improve Krstic's defense, and that's fine, but you cannot put the blame for Jordan's big game or the Celtics' poor defense solely on Krstic. The Celtics excel and playing good team defense, and the team defense was not there for most of three periods. Yes, Jordan worked loose for dunks, but where was the pressure on the passer? Or the help once it became evident that Jordan was an issue? Is it Krstic's job to guard both Jordan and Kaman, even though they played together?

Improving Krstic's defense is fine, but the implication here is that the poor defensive performance last night, and the Celtic loss, was his fault, and that's not true. Doc could've justly called out Pierce and Rondo for their defense last night as well.

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