Celtic Frontline Continues To Falter

Lakers frontline has 38 points at halftime tonight. It is obvious Perkins, Garnett, Pierce, Wallace, and Davis cannot get it done this year. Ainge is giving this group enough rope to hang themselves. Will make his decision-making in off-season a whole lot easier. Just hope this group plays well enough to find at least some demand on NBA market.

I believe Perkins needs a week off. His movement is becoming less and less, and his hands are becoming harder and harder. Wallace is nailed to the floor. Glen Davis is our best rebounder at 6' 7". Length kills the Celtics, and the NBA is getting longer each year!

Again the Celtics started out well, but as usual player and ball movement slowed toward the end of 1st half.
Let's see if the Celtics 2nd half struggles continue.

Go Celtics!!

Lakers scored 2 points in the final 7:14 after going up 84-80.

The key to that total shutdown was Perk,his D on Gasol textbeastbook

Good call, Cow. Perk just stiffed Gasol toward the end. And he also had a huge putback in the clutch.

It's going to be a long haul to get back to contender status. But I certainly see positives in tonight's game. And Perk's play was one of
the keys. I think the bench is on a bit of a hiatus, as far as evaluations, because they're in a little state of flux right now. But
I was really encouraged by the play of the starters.

Sam

sam

they showed old testament heart all night. they FOUGHT.

Sam that putback slam was huge!!!!and he hit some FT'S love the Beast!!

Long haul, Sam? The only long haul will be getting the once bitten twice shy media telling the world what we already know about the Celtics and what Danny told us yesterday.

1) The Celtics are great at playing to the level of the competition. They absolutely wrote the book on that one. They can "easily" win the playoffs this year that way more so now since they can win on the road.

2) Danny basically said this team is the same team that started 23-5 this season, if not better now since we've had some RIDICULOUS adversity to overcome to get to this point. I just tweaked it and made it slightly better by dumping Eddie who was wildly inconsistent this season and bringing on a scoring b/u point who is starving to help.

In 2008 it took them until the last game (Game #26 of a possible 28) to unleash the beast and innihilate LAL in Boston by 41. Of course, that's the (unrealistic) team we are looking for to almost peak right at the first game of Round 1. I'll settle for something in between. Remember our strengths. All we need to do is GET to the finals. After that, our record speaks for itself (17-3). This team, as is, can and will get to the finals.

All Doc needs to do is slightly raise the bar on playing to the competition from here to the end. We don't (and won't) have to crush every team, every game, night in and night out to win this thing. Just like Sam's been saying about improvement and chemistry. The winning has to (will)follow.

This team will require a miraculous string of events to reach the Finals, though I hope this occurs, it is, while not impossible, highly improbable.

KG's health is one concern, and the fact many of our adversaries got markedly better at the deadline is another.

Once more, I will enjoy every step this team takes and revel in their successes. Do feel hedging bets on this groups potential to defeat LA or Cleveland in a 4-7 game series is wildly optimistic.

Just feel, objectively, they are not of the same quality as '07 and their performance all season reflects that. Injuries be damned, every team has 'em and they are nothing but an excuse.

'You are what your record says you are' - Bill Parcells

Tark

dbrown4 wrote:Long haul, Sam? The only long haul will be getting the once bitten twice shy media telling the world what we already know about the Celtics and what Danny told us yesterday.

1) The Celtics are great at playing to the level of the competition. They absolutely wrote the book on that one. They can "easily" win the playoffs this year that way more so now since they can win on the road.

2) Danny basically said this team is the same team that started 23-5 this season, if not better now since we've had some RIDICULOUS adversity to overcome to get to this point. I just tweaked it and made it slightly better by dumping Eddie who was wildly inconsistent this season and bringing on a scoring b/u point who is starving to help.

In 2008 it took them until the last game (Game #26 of a possible 28) to unleash the beast and innihilate LAL in Boston by 41. Of course, that's the (unrealistic) team we are looking for to almost peak right at the first game of Round 1. I'll settle for something in between. Remember our strengths. All we need to do is GET to the finals. After that, our record speaks for itself (17-3). This team, as is, can and will get to the finals.

All Doc needs to do is slightly raise the bar on playing to the competition from here to the end. We don't (and won't) have to crush every team, every game, night in and night out to win this thing. Just like Sam's been saying about improvement and chemistry. The winning has to (will)follow.

dbrown,

I agree with everything you said except when you say,

"All we need to do is GET to the finals. After that, our record speaks for itself (17-3)."

Past results do not guarantee future success

Up until last year, the Celtics had never lost a seventh game after being up in a series, 3-2. How'd that work out?

Up until this season, the Celtics had never lost a game after being ahead by 17 points. That one went by the board as well.

It is one thing to be proud of past success (or failure), but it is another thing to hang you hat on it as a reason why we will (or won't) win in the finals. The Celtics won't win just because we got there. The team representing the West will not lay down and die for us.

gyso

Jerry, it sounds as though you're covering all the bases.

In the first place, you express doubts about the potential of this team.

In the second place, you say they're not of the same quality as the championship team.

In the third place, you say you'll enjoy every step this team takes.

Of course they're not now at the same quality as the championship team; but that doesn't mean they can't attain that level. Hopefully, they've got the equivalent of a college season in which to do so. They've just now restarted their real development as a team during the past couple of games. It's not going all that badly at present. As I've said many times, it's a total mistake to predict the future based on the present when the present is in a state of evolution.

It's the very "steps" you talk about enjoying that will contribute to the gradual improvement of the team (barring further injuries of
significance). Do you remember the old Abbott & Costello bit titled "Niagara Falls," in which Costello’s in jail with this bum who
regales Costello with the story of the guy he tracked down in Niagara Falls after the guy stole his girl? Every time Costello says, “Niagara Falls,” the guy flips out and drones, “Slowly I turned. Step by step by step…..,” as he attacks Costello.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nr6VBg1SiYI)

Well, slowly the Celtics are turning. Step by step by step is the way they’ll have to do this thing. And I intend to be with them every step of the way.

Sam

Beat LA and they will come

Your are correct, gyso, but you certainly have to like the odds! Sorry, I'm still trying to shed some of my BDC type of arguing!! Just file it under Celtic Mystique. Clearly, something does happen to the Celtics once they make it to the finals. That's what I should have said. Thanks for pointing that out. Perhaps I should quit sneaking a peak over on BDC from time to time like I have been!

Morning, Sam,

Indeed I do have my doubts as to the team and its potential to get the job done in the playoffs, though, rather than a CYA strategy, I plan on enjoying whatever potentially they are able to achieve.

While I might have preferred other routes be taken, I recognize 'I don't buy the groceries' (Love that Parcells)......and will cheer as rabidly as anyone for what, to I, will be surprising post season success.

Go Celtics !

Tark

Tark,

Enjoy the ride.

Sam

Great win last night. Not just for the W, but for morale. They're 2-0 on a west coast road trip coming out of the all-star game. Nice. Very nice start.

Came out hot in the first and third. Those have been our weak quarters and we focused and did well. The Lakers rallied and even took the lead in the 4th and we fought back and won. They were playing without Bryant, but who knows which Bryant would have showed up? The one who shoots 45% and sets up Bynum and Gasol, or KoME who loses the game for the Lakers because he'll take 30% of all the Lakers' fga even though he's shooting 40%? Still, the Lakers shot 40% as a team last night, so KoME wouldn't have hurt them. Gasol, Bynum and Odom combined for 19-36 (52.7% on 44% of the total fga). The rest of the team shot 14-46 (30.4% on 56% of the total fga). Artest was shooting well (6-14), it was their backcourt that stunk up the Staples Center.

1. Gasol has become a great all round player. Inside/outside, left hand/right hand. He's even playing pretty good interior defense.

2. KG looked great last night. Really great. He attacked on offense, both inside and out, had elevation on his jumps and was completely wired on defense. Please Lord, don't make it a fluke.

3. Sheed looked out of it last night. Really out of it. He had one nice slither move on offense and was bad the rest. Got pushed around like a bunch of junk mail and left in the dust on defense. Didn't see him stopping anybody. Please Lord, make it a fluke.

4. Ray Allen didn't want to be traded. He wanted to be a Celtic and he wants to be here next season. He showed just how glad he was the trade deadline came and went and he was still in green last night. What a professional. 10-15 from the field, 4-6 from 3. That was vintage Ray Allen we were privileged to see last night. A lot has been made about Shannon Brown and understandable so. He's a talent. But Ray completely schooled him last night.

5. Our interior defense was weak, except for Perk. Nobody was putting bodies on anybody, ESPECIALLY Sheed and Davis. When you're playing a long frontline like Gasol, Bynum and Odom you have GOT to put a body on them and bump them or they'll just jump over or around you, just like last night. This game was a lot closer because of Laker second chances.

6. 5 steals for Rondo on national TV will help solidify his position as a future perennial all-star. Out performing Fisher and Farmar combined won't hurt either.

7. Sasha had a good game, much as it pains me to admit it. He provided energy when the Lakers were down a bunch and were in danger of having the game slip away. Too bad for him one game isn't a career. The Lakers were trying like crazy to move him before the deadline and nobody wanted him.

8. When the Celtics down-pick on Artest and let Pierce pop out and get the ball where he wants to shoot, he's effective. When they just give the ball on top to Pierce and let him try to work Artest, he isn't. Interestingly, though, Artest had the worst +/- of all the Laker players last night with -13.

9. Stick a dinner fork in D-Fish. Maybe a salad fork in Farmar. I wouldn't touch Sasha Eurobitch with a ten-foot pole.

10. The bench looked better than the starters before the all-star game. They looked like "the bench" last night. You could see what the absence of Eddie has done. We're not feared "deep". Our offensive spacing is more packed in, which helps the defense. Hopefully, Nate will fix that.

I was watching the game in a bar and the sound was turned off (let me tell you, it's pretty weird watching the drama of a Lakers/Celtics game with Ozzy yelling in your ear about how "he's going off the rails on a crazy train"). Does anybody know why Rondo got that T after Ray dunked the ball on Rondo's fast break?

bob

bobheck

taunting

dbrown4 wrote:Your are correct, gyso, but you certainly have to like the odds! Sorry, I'm still trying to shed some of my BDC type of arguing!! Just file it under Celtic Mystique. Clearly, something does happen to the Celtics once they make it to the finals. That's what I should have said. Thanks for pointing that out. Perhaps I should quit sneaking a peak over on BDC from time to time like I have been!

dbrown,

I'm glad you mentioned the "BDC type of arguing". I may have thought it, but I didn't want to say it.

I will say that just getting there is half the battle and once you are there, anything is possible. Or did someone else say that...

gyso

scoped bdc today...bummer. Glad this place is here.