Isaiah Thomas: 'We gotta punch first'

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/celtics/post/_/id/4718625/isaiah-thomas-we-gotta-punch-first




Isaiah Thomas: 'We gotta punch first'
March, 29, 2015
MAR 29 11:35 PM ET
By Chris Forsberg | ESPNBoston.com




BOSTON -- The Boston Celtics, plagued by slow starts in recent games, watched the Los Angeles Clippers build as much as a 25-point first-half lead during Sunday's 119-106 loss and Isaiah Thomas implored his teammates to be more aggressive out of the gates.

"I don’t know [why the Celtics are starting slow]; it needs to change," said Thomas. "We gotta be the team that punches first, and not just gets hit first. The Clippers hit us first and it was all she wrote after that."




Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Will Isaiah Thomas give Boston more punch if inserted into the starting lineup by Brad Stevens?


Later, he added, "It’s just something that needs to change. Like I said, we gotta punch first. I don’t know what it is, but we’re waiting to get hit and then it’s tough for us to get back in it. We gotta change that as soon as possible."

Asked specifically whether he might be able to provide a spark to a sluggish first unit, Thomas ran with the starter suggestion.

"If coach puts me in the starting lineup, I’ll be happy," he said. "If he doesn’t, it is what it is. I definitely can help. That’s my game: Bring energy and make plays."

It's hard not to wonder if Stevens, who has admitted to pondering lineup changes recently, all while often running with different groups to open the second half, might consider plugging Thomas into the starting role and shuffling an offensively frustrated Marcus Smart to the second unit.

Smart went scoreless on 0-for-6 shooting during Sunday's loss. He logged only 18 minutes, 22 seconds of floor time and came off the bench in the second half.

"I wanted to be a little bit bigger and I didn't think he was having his best night," said Stevens.

Pressed on Smart's frustrations, which manifested itself with a couple dust-ups with Clippers players, Stevens added, "He's frustrated offensively and, so, I felt like we were going to try a different direction."

After being the NBA's rookie of the month in February, Smart has struggled in March. He's averaging 8.2 points on 31.4 percent shooting overall. In his last four games since being suspended for a low blow to Matt Bonner, Smart is averaging just 3.5 points on 20 percent shooting (overall and beyond the 3-point arc).

Thomas is still working his way back from a lower back bruise that forced him to miss eight games this month. He finished with 19 points on 4-of-12 shooting in Sunday's loss. He took a hard fall in the second half against the Clippers, but said he's OK.

"That fall hurt me. I’m going to be fine. I’ll be all right," said Thomas. "It wasn’t as bad as the fall a couple weeks ago."

Thomas called Monday's game against the Hornets a "must-win," but said he's confident the Celtics will bounce back regardless of lineup configuration.

"I’ll put this group against anybody in the NBA," said Thomas. "We can compete against anybody and win games against anybody."

• Playoff race reset: Brooklyn, Miami, and Indiana all won their games on Sunday night, exacerbating Boston's loss. The Celtics and Pacers now sit tied in ninth place in the Eastern Conference with matching 32-41 records. The Nets are a half game up and own the eighth seed for the moment. The Celtics have games against the Hornets (Monday), Pacers (Wednesday) and Bucks (Friday) that will go a long way towards determining their playoff fate. As Thomas noted after Sunday's loss, "Our focus is on the Hornets now. Like Coach said when he came in here: Have a short memory and let’s focus on the Hornets. We need that win [Monday]. I believe in these guys and I think we’ll be as focused as possible and be ready."

• Emergency delays game: A fan seated near the Clippers bench experienced a medical emergency in the fourth quarter that forced about a five-minute stoppage in play while being attended to by both team doctors and trainers. The fan appeared conscious while being stretchered out of the arena. Said Stevens: "From everything I was told, it was addressed appropriately and quickly, and hopefully, from what I was told, they think the person’s going to be OK. And hopefully they will be. Certainly, our thoughts are with them. It puts everything into perspective pretty quickly."

•Wild, wild West: The Celtics have struggled to be competitive against Western Conference playoff teams like the Clippers, Thunder, and Spurs in games this month. Even still, Boston finished 12-18 (0.400 winning percentage) against the West this season, a pretty respectable mark for a team that's 20-23 (.465) against the lowly East. Said Stevens of Sunday's loss: "I didn’t think we played well and [Sunday] we just got manhandled. I would say that [Sunday] is a combination of -- there were some things we didn’t do, and they’re playing at a very high level."



bob


.

There are good reasons to consider inserting Thomas into the starting lineup.  Mostly because their offense lately has been incredibly deliberate with almost no pace.

On the other hand, I like the group of Isaiah, Crowder, Jerebko, Olynyk, and whoever.  I have doubts that, even if Isaiah were a starter, the starting unit would exude the energy the bench does with Isaiah.  With Isaiah churning up things offensively, Crowder creating all-around mayhem, and Jerebko and Kelly appearing as though they're free to do what they do best, it's great unit.  If Smart were to switch places with Isaiah, the second team could become a defensive force—even with Jerebko playing center.  I just think they might be too point-challenged.

Sam