George Karl thinks Boston Celtics have a chance against Cleveland Cavaliers

http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2016/02/george_karl_on_boston_celtics.



George Karl thinks Boston Celtics have a chance against Cleveland




Boston Celtics' Avery Bradley, top, and Isaiah Thomas hug after the Celtics defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 104-103 in an NBA basketball game Friday, Feb. 5, 2016, in Cleveland. Bradley made a corner jumper at the horn to give the Celtics the win. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)


Jay King | mjking@masslive.com By Jay King | mjking@masslive.com

on February 07, 2016 at 12:55 PM, updated February 07, 2016 at 1:09 PM




BOSTON -- Sacramento Kings head coach George Karl believes the Boston Celtics can compete with any team in the Eastern Conference. Even the Cleveland Cavaliers.

After watching tape to prepare for Sunday afternoon's meeting with the Celtics, Karl thought very highly of them. The coach's film study included Boston's recent buzzer-beating thriller against the Cavaliers, which led him to a surprising conclusion.

"I'll tell you what," Karl said. "I think they have a chance against Cleveland."

The implication, of course, is that Karl thinks the Celtics could potentially knock off Cleveland in a playoff series. Most analysts consider the Cavaliers a step ahead of the Eastern Conference competition, and the obvious choice to reach the NBA Finals. They swept Boston in the playoffs last season before eventually falling to the Golden State Warriors with the championship on the line.

But Karl gives the Celtics a shot. They have won eight of their last nine games, including the 104-103 victory Friday night in Cleveland. The Kings coach believes Isaiah Thomas is "turning into a premier point guard in the league" and raved about the Celtics' energy level.

"They're a 48-minute team, that's what I like," Karl said. "The first thing I saw was that their bench is probably as strong as their starters. Their energy is good – more consistent than most NBA teams I watch on video. They don't have a lot of ego, and I think they know that their defense creates offense for them, so they play that at a very difficult and high-energized level."

Karl added: "I think NBA players play hard. It's the teams that have the talent to play harder than their opponent that is what I think Boston has. In a 48-minute game it's not dominant. But they have those five-minute moments, or those 15-possession moments where their energy is very much substantially stronger than their opponent. Some of it comes because they're a defensive team that creates turnovers. Some of it comes because they're young kids fighting for minutes, and (head coach Brad) Stevens does a great job of pushing buttons and keeping everyone highly motivated. But they're a fun team."

Other pregame notes

Despite saying he had "nothing" physically against the Cavaliers, Jae Crowder (ankle) planned to suit up against the Kings, according to Stevens. ... The Kings will be missing Rudy Gay and Ben McLemore. ... After missing a late free throw against Cleveland, Evan Turner claimed (jokingly, I believe) that he intended to do so. "That wasn't my suggestion," Stevens said, playing along with the joke. "Maybe he came up with that plan on his own. So it was a good plan. It worked." Turner's brick allowed Marcus Smart to work for a loose ball, which set up Avery Bradley's buzzer-beating corner three.


bob



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Rondo v. Thomas - both are having very good years, yet who would claim we'd be better with Rajon as our point guard? Way to go Danny!

worcester wrote:Rondo v. Thomas - both are having very good years, yet who would claim we'd be better with Rajon as our point guard? Way to go Danny!

Not me!

Berlin-T

worcester wrote:Rondo v. Thomas - both are having very good years, yet who would claim we'd be better with Rajon as our point guard? Way to go Danny!

As Roland Deschain was wont to say, "The world has moved on."