Celtics' Bradley: 'Expect to see different team'

Celtics' Bradley: 'Expect to see different team'






Brian Babineau/NBAE/Getty Images
Chris Forsberg, Celtics reporter, ESPNBoston.com




CLEVELAND -- Boston Celtics coach Brad Stevens admitted that game film from Sunday's Game 1 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers showed his team came up short in more areas than was initially obvious.

"The positive is hopefully we can improve from it," Stevens said. "But we're going to have to play a lot better than we did."

During a nine-minute chat with reporters before Boston's off-day practice at Quicken Loans Arena, Stevens seemed a bit more, let's say, concise with his answers. His team had already engaged in a morning film session heavy on correcting the errors from Sunday's 113-100 loss. That video session was heavy on eliminating the mistakes Boston can control -- turnovers, rebounding, offensive execution -- and Stevens seemed eager to get back on the court with his team on Monday afternoon.

"I'm encouraged by the guys that we have in this room," Stevens said. "They usually respond well, they're able to change on the fly, they're really good guys, they play really hard. I'm encouraged."

Avery Bradley, the self-professed team captain of positive thinking, said he believes Boston will correct its issues.

"Everyone should expect to see a different team," Bradley said. "We were able to watch film [Monday] morning and we know what we need to improve on. We know how we need to execute on the offensive end. That's our main focus going into [Game 2]."

Asked if he's given thoughts to shortening his rotation moving forward, Stevens said the Celtics are more likely to try to accentuate their depth. After Game 1, it seems obvious Boston needs to lean heavily on someone like Isaiah Thomas to generate consistent offense, and Jae Crowder to help limit LeBron James defensively.

"We talk about [the rotation] every minute of every day, but we got a lot of good performances at times from a lot of different guys," Stevens said. "We'll figure that out. But the biggest thing is we have to utilize our depth as an advantage. And continue to move in that regard."

Asked later how he might avoid making reactionary changes and simply focus on playing better, Stevens gave an interesting response that seemed to suggest he's potentially open-minded to lineup or rotation tweaks.

"We'll just do that appropriately," he said. "I'm going to put a lot of thought into trying to make it as concise as possible."

• The King has come home! Leave it to Evan Turner to bring a little levity to Boston's early series deficit. When a reporter asked Turner about James' presence in the region after returning home this season, Turner changed the direction of the conversation by noting how he attended Ohio State in nearby Columbus. "When I walked the streets it's like, 'The King came home!'" cracked Turner. "No, I'm joking."

• Family matters: Stevens noted how his wife, Tracy, is an area native and a reporter wanted to known if she rooted for James and the Cavs. Replied Stevens, "I think she's a Cleveland sports fan, but not this week."

• Still cleaning up: The Cavaliers released red-and-yellow streamers and confetti at the final buzzer of Sunday's Game 1 triumph. On Monday morning, workers were still cleaning it off the floor at Quicken Loans Arena.



bob
MY NOTE:  I fully expect adjustments.  Also, how pathetic that Cleveland dropped streamers and confetti because they won the first game of the first playoff series.  How emotionally needy for any kind of success is that?  Just imagine what they'd do if this was a first game win in a 2nd or 3rd round of the playoffs.  Gladiator vs wild animal bouts?  Chariots driving across the basketball court throwing loaves of bread into the stands? Such is the culture of losers. Thank God I'm not a Cleveland sports fan...



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Brad's answer underscores one of the opportunities available only when being in the playoffs—the experience of adjusting on the fly with the advantage of playing the same team in as many as seven consecutive games and (in essence) sharpening your own scouting report in every game.

The Cavs are a heck of a team, but that doesn't change the fact that Cleveland is amateur hour as far as the fans are concerned.  That was evident in Bob's quotes from the other side.  And it appears that the fans and whoever's in charge of the Cavs' game presentations feed each other's need to be unsophisticated.

Sam