Post Game Thread - vs LA Clippers, Away

[bobheckler]

http://www.csnne.com/boston-celtics/Stars-studs-and-duds-Boston-Celtics-have-to-be-better




Stars, studs and duds: Celtics 'have to be better'

March 29, 2016, 1:15 am








The Boston Celtics couldn’t make shots.

Defensively, they couldn’t get stops.

Mix those two together against a team like the Los Angeles Clippers and the outcome as you might expect, wasn’t a pretty one.

The Clippers pulled away for a decisive 114-90 win, a victory fueled in large part by Boston’s poor shooting.

For the game, Boston shot just 34.8 percent from the field.

“Anytime that we got close, we didn’t play with any composure to get back over the hump,” Celtics head coach Brad Stevens told reporters after the loss.

While the loss was certainly disappointing, the Celtics knew going into tonight’ s game that they would have their hands full against a Clippers squad looking to avenge a 139-134 overtime loss in Boston on Feb. 10.

“We have to be better than that,” Stevens said. “We have to play better next time we take the court Thursday.”

Here are the Stars, Studs and Duds from Monday’s game.


STARS

Chris Paul

There were others who scored more points, but it was Paul’s play that set the tone for this dominant performance by the Clippers. He finished with a double-double of 13 points and 14 assists, most of which he tallied in the first half.

Isaiah Thomas

He continues to score better than any Celtic player around, leading the team for the 13th straight game which ties a franchise record, with 24 points.

Clippers bench

They have been a much-maligned group at times, but came through with their best collective scoring night of the season on Monday in tallying a season-high 67 points which had four different double-digit scorers off the bench.


STUDS

DeAndre Jordan

His scoring around the basket and usual rim protection were huge for the Clippers. Heck, he even made most of his free throws where he made five of his seven free throw attempts. Jordan had 15 points and 13 rebounds along with three blocked shots.


DUDS

Celtics bench

The second unit did very little to give Boston a lift on a night when they desperately needed someone to emerge. And while the final numbers don’t look that shabby, keep in mind that a good chunk of those stats came about when the outcome was no longer in doubt.


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BRAD STEVENS DEFENDS (SORT OF) HIS TEAM’S LACK OF DEFENSE: ‘WE DIDN’T PLAY WITH ANY COMPOSURE’

03.29.16 at 2:35 am ET

By Mike Petraglia





Isaiah Thomas couldn't find a way to clear the Clippers Monday night.  (Richard Mackson-USA Today Sports)
Isaiah Thomas couldn’t find a way to clear the Clippers Monday night. (Richard Mackson-USA Today Sports)



All effort and no execution will make for a losing formula every time on the road in the NBA.

That was certainly the case Monday as the Celtics, fighting for playoff positioning at 43-31, allowed the Clippers to shoot a scorching 58.5 percent from the field in the first half while yielding a remarkable 7-of-11 from beyond the arc. Those two stats alone allowed Los Angeles to race out to a 67-50 halftime lead.

Everyone was hitting shots in a Clippers uniform Monday night, including four players off the bench who scored in double figured and led a season-best 67-point effort.

“I don’t how you would say it’s bench or starters, but it’s depth,” Stevens said, referring to the 16 points of Austin Rivers and 15 of Jamaal Crawford. “It’s the ability to bring Evan [Turner] off and be versatile at that spot and play him and Smart together with the skilled bigs is obviously we like to do. But we haven’t been able to do it. Hey, those guys in the last few games have been pretty good off the bench. I thought certainly, today wasn’t a bench or starters thing. It was a Clippers thing. Credit goes to them.

“They deserve a lot of credit for the way they made shots, the way they made plays,” Stevens told reporters after his team’s 114-90 loss that ended a four-game win streak. “I thought any time we got close, we didn’t play with any composure to get back over the hump. Part of that has to do with being competitive and trying to hit home runs all the time when you’re trying to mount a comeback.

“We’ve got to do a better job in those situations than we did tonight. Defensively, I actually felt like, especially on the perimeter, we were pretty locked in and pretty good, for the most part. I thought they obviously made some contested shots that you’re going to have to defend and make. We missed some opportunities to challenge them at the rim with some rotations. All told, their play is the reason they won the game.”


The Celtics fell behind 20 points early in the third quarter and never got the Clippers lead under 10 the rest of the game.

“When you’re down 20, it’s not an easy thing, right? You’re competitive spirit, the part of you that wants to get it all back at once and thinks home run, home run and you really have to just hit singles and hope that you can chip away one possession at a time. We did that at times but then when they make a basket, I thought we had three or four possessions there in the third quarter where we just came down haphazard, and we’re hoping more than knowing. We just have to be better than that.”

The Clippers (even with the loss of Paul Pierce to a sprained right ankle) is poised to lock up the No. 4 playoff spot in the West.

“It’s a good team. We knew obviously this was going to be a really tough game and we just have to play better the next time we take the court on Thursday,” Stevens said, referring to the next game in Portland Thursday night.

“It’s all relative. Five days ago, we had lost four straight. I think just because we had won four straight, I think that when you play good teams in their place and, with that kind of talent and obviously, great coaches, and obviously great coaching, that can happen. You have to do everything you can to try to avoid it. But basketball’s basketball. That happens.”


_______________________________________________________________________________________________________



LOS ANGELES -- Chris Paul's reward for posting a double-double was a trip to the bench, where he was quite happy to remain seated.

Paul had 13 points and 14 assists to go with DeAndre Jordan's 15 points and 13 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Clippers cruised to a 114-90 victory over the Boston Celtics on Monday night.

"It's great. It's amazing," Paul said. "Not only do we get a chance to rest, it's all about everybody getting into a rhythm and a flow. We have to make sure everybody has that as we get ready to play in the playoffs."


Clippers coach Doc Rivers was happy to limit Paul to 26 minutes one night after the point guard played just 23 against Denver.

"It's huge. Right after the All-Star break he played a ton of minutes," Rivers said. "I thought that was a tough stretch for him. Now, allowing him to play low minutes in back-to-back games, going on the road, it's good for us."

The Clippers got 67 points from their bench and racked up 29 assists on 44 field goals.

"I think our ball movement was what it was," Paul said. "Doc has a way of coming in the day after a game and telling us how many passes we made in the game. I'm sure tomorrow will be another one of those days when he tells us we made a lot of passes."

Los Angeles won its third in a row and moved 5 1/2 games ahead of Memphis, which lost to San Antonio on Monday night, for fourth place in the Western Conference with nine games to play. The Clippers clinched a playoff berth on Sunday.

Austin Rivers scored 16 points to lead the Clippers, who shot 52 percent. Jamal Crawford added 13, Wesley Johnson 11 and Jeff Green 10.

"I thought (the Clippers) deserved a lot of credit for the way they made shots, the way they made plays," said Boston coach Brad Stevens. "And then any time we got close we didn't play with any composure to back over the hump."

Isaiah Thomas scored 24 points and Avery Bradley and Marcus Smart each added 13 for the Celtics, who shot just 35 percent and had a four-game winning snapped.

Jared Sullinger added nine points and 11 rebounds for Boston.

"I think it is natural for a young team to try and make up a deficit with `home run plays,' Bradley said. "We were out there playing 1-on-1 basketball, and that's not the kind of team we want to be."

The loss dropped the Celtics, one of four teams separated by two games in a fight for Nos. 3-6 in the Eastern Conference standings, to fifth place, a half-game behind Miami. The Heat beat Brooklyn on Monday night.

Ahead 30-26 in the second quarter, the Clippers ran off a 22-8 burst, taking a 52-34 lead on Rivers' 3-pointer with 4:47 left in the half. The Clippers led 67-50 at halftime shooting 59 percent, 64 percent on 3-pointers.

The Celtics fought within 79-68, only to see the Clippers reel off 13 of the game's next 15 points. Los Angeles took a 92-70 lead on Crawford's second of back-to-back 3-pointers with 33 seconds remaining in the third quarter.

PIERCE IN PAIN

Paul Pierce was removed from the game with 2:06 left in the second quarter after scoring on a driving finger roll. He sprained his right ankle and bruised his right knee on the play, according to the Clippers. He did not return.

DEFENSIVE DISAPPEARANCE

In their first meeting on Feb. 10, each team's last game before the NBA All-Star break, the Clippers beat the Celtics 139-134 in overtime.

"Brad and I were laughing," Rivers said. "We said our defense went on All-Star break a day early."

TIP-INS

Boston: Jae Crowder, sidelined by a high ankle sprain since March 11, missed his eighth straight game. ... The Celtics have three more games on this West Coast road trip. ... There was plenty of green at Staples Center. Several times during the first half, the chant, "Let's go Celtics!" broke out.

Los Angeles: All 13 Clippers who appeared in the game scored at least 2 points. ... On the Clippers' first 11 baskets, Paul assisted on seven and scored three others. He had a double-double (10 points, 10 assists) with 2:06 left in the first half.

UP NEXT

Boston: At Portland on Thursday.

Los Angeles: At Minnesota on Wednesday.




bob


https://vine.co/v/iDwWIhmHbFK




.

[cowens/oldschool]

This confirms that this team which barely held on to beat a Suns team without 3 starters is not ready for the real elite of the Western Conference, needed more than IT to step up, ET, KO, Smart, AB nobody could step up with a big game.

[dbrown4]

I don't get to see much of the Celtics day to day games.  I have to admit, after winning 4 games in a row, I was expecting a little bit better performance vs. LAC.  

Now maybe they will get up for GSW on Friday since they nearly stopped the best start streak in Boston.  I just see them in a very mediocre zone right now.  Have they improved over last season...yes.  How much have they improved?  We are about to find out in a couple of weeks.  Of course, it doesn't help when the only games ESPN or TNT televise the Celtics are away games against CLE or SAS or GSW so the odds of them winning are not very good to start.

If they come in on the lower half of the top 8, they will have to overcome home court and our road record is less than stellar.  We are a very good team, but once the playoffs are over which will more than likely/realistically end in the first or second round this year, Danny has to make the major move we have all been anticipating.  

You can't rule out a miracle ECF appearance as a possibility.  Is this team capable?  Does it have the potential to pull that off?  Tangibly and Intangibly, absolutely.  We all hope for that.  All these guys on the current roster are fighting to stay for next year because they know what's around the corner, so a miracle playoff run is actually more likely than you would think.

My problem is I don't see the day to day games.  I can read about it on here, but actually watching all 82 games I have not done anywhere close to that.  And we've said ad nauseum on this site regular season ball vs. playoff ball are apples and oranges.  

I do think the Celtics got the shaft here toward the end of the season with their schedule.  I believe 5-6th is where we will wind up with the tightness of 3rd-6th place this year and our remaining schedule.

But it will be must see TV!  I can't wait!

db

[bobheckler]

They played, and especially shot, like veterans. We played like the young team we are.


bob


.

[dbrown4]

I don't want to put too much emphasis on just two games but everything appears to be against the Celtics with these two games and potentially very damaging to what has been a great season of improvement. Both opponents playoff bound, we're on the road where our road record is atrocious, back-to-backers, one of the games is almost a foregone conclusion of a loss, if we are swept, we're looking at a solid 6th playoff seed, potential microcosm of their season on the line...

I'd put about a 2% chance of us going 2-0, about 30% 1-1 and 68% chance of us being swept and in a real hole for the playoffs. But that's why they play the games. Who knows, they may blow both of them out! Now that would be VERY cool!

db

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