Statistic for optimism

[Ed Monix]

The "core four" for the Celtics, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart ended up playing together a total of 292 minutes this year.

That ranks 137th in the NBA.

This is obviously not factoring in Robert Williams III either.

[Ogaju]

Stats, lies, and videotapes.

[Ed Monix]

Stats, lies, and videotapes.

My apologies, I don’t understand the reference.

What do you mean?

[Rikibellevie]

Some stats and some videotapes may bring some optimism for the future. We are in a pescimistic, sometimes panic time. We are bad, we still have great potential. The stats of our core playing toogether, the stats lattely in the second halfs (3rd of the league on +-) and the parts of the match we show off where we are almost unstopable, stats of Tatum are still extatic for his age, stats and images of Brown big offensive progress at the begining of the season before all the problems came, stats of Timelord when healthy with passing inside which is a need I guess etc..

We have plenty of reason to think it was just a bad year. Changes need to come, but not necessarly huge one, if everyone think about himself and his role for the collective, adjust; but we have allready essential, two big and young leaders and some potential youth to grow up with them (I mean guys from last draft).

If Danny will make the good choices or CBS the good adjusments, find again the same defense than most of his years here ? I don't know but I still give a little credit to Danny and a biggest one to Brad (OK last choices seemed crap but we are in a black hole... he is also). Both should be on hot sit (toogether I guess), but they still have a shot. It is a special season. Again Philly and Utah did it from one year to another, so why wouldn't we do it ?

Many disapointnemnt and hunger lead to short view and less reflexion. We will be fine if health become the average of the league. Let's see it in one year...

[Celtics4ever]

I don't think we would be fine if health was better, I think we would have been a four seed at best.   Other teams have improved a lot more than we did in the past seasons.  NJ, MIL and PHIL would still be better and we'd still be serious underdogs even if healthy.  Would we have a better chance certainly. 

But this team has flaws deeper than health related stuff.

Things I think we should be optimistic about.

1) Rob can play and has real potential if he gets healthy.   
2) Pritch is a solid backup.  Nesmith is going to be ok it seems and has some nice potential. 
3) Jaylen and Tatum are awesome.   
4) Fournier could really help us as he is a big upgrade over Marcus and a viable 3rd or 4the option.   
5) We still have our draft pick this year.

[Kernewek]

Stats, lies, and videotapes.

My apologies, I don’t understand the reference.

What do you mean?

It's a reference to Steven Soderburg's film Sex, Lies, and Videotape. Which is a great film, if you've not seen it.

On topic: I'm not feeling particular optimism or pessimism about this year's squad. Too many weird variables in a weird year to have a strong, settled opinion on the matter.

[Rikibellevie]

I don't think we would be fine if health was better, I think we would have been a four seed at best.   Other teams have improved a lot more than we did in the past seasons.  NJ, MIL and PHIL would still be better and we'd still be serious underdogs even if healthy.  Would we have a better chance certainly. 

But this team has flaws deeper than health related stuff.

Things I think we should be optimistic about.

1) Rob can play and has real potential if he gets healthy.   
2) Pritch is a solid backup.  Nesmith is going to be ok it seems and has some nice potential. 
3) Jaylen and Tatum are awesome.   
4) Fournier could really help us as he is a big upgrade over Marcus and a viable 3rd or 4the option.   
5) We still have our draft pick this year.

Yes we would probably be 4th, but not that far from Bucksand Philly, with youngest core and stars.
NJ of course upgraded a lot. Philly changed big things but it wasn't impossible to do (change coach GM and the role playing core). We heard last year all long that Embid was weak mentally, that Simmons and Embid couldn't play toogether... Many of the medias and fans speculated about their trades... About Gobert or Mitchel trades... That Bucks are just a RS team (and maybe if Heat beat them again storm will again come to them... or to Brooklyn ih hopefully they are fluke...).

I agree with your 4 of your 5 points. Not sure Fournier(contract year, older, more expensive) is such a core uprade over Smart in PO and next year with hopefully a better constructed team...

But this points are very importants one. I still think healthy Tatum and Brown next year can make a big step forward, more than Embid/Simmons, Antetokounpo.Middleton or even Harden/Durant. So yes it is very optimistic perspectiv. When we win or overachieve most see only butterfly (but overachieving is still overachieving like us and Heat last year and maybe Utah or Phoenix this one) and when we loose everyone see only bat in the darkness.

But the truth is in the long perspective. Work to do, core and system to change/adapt... But we still have talent at coaching and in our stars. That is the most important thing.

[Big333223]

Yeah, the truth is we just never got to see this team anywhere close to healthy or in rhythm all season.