Celtics (3-3) at Raptors (3-3) Round 2 Game 7 9/11/20

[Tr1boy]

Issues going forward:

Gotta say, I'm not loving the "clear it out for Tatum" thing Brad is doing late.

Why not run our weak side secondary stuff?

Kemba won't be played like that again. He needs to keep his confidence up and keep shooting.

I'd like to see a little more Grant.

thats how it works at the NBA.  This is why a guy like Tatum is important to have

[keevsnick]

Really I'm just happy to eliminate Nick Nurse. That guy really started bothering me by the end of the series. I dont think I've ever seen a guy complain more.

[keevsnick]

Issues going forward:

Gotta say, I'm not loving the "clear it out for Tatum" thing Brad is doing late.

Why not run our weak side secondary stuff?

Kemba won't be played like that again. He needs to keep his confidence up and keep shooting.

I'd like to see a little more Grant.

thats how it works at the NBA.  This is why a guy like Tatum is important to have

Maybe, but it didnt work very well.
 
The Celtics finished the last 5:21 seconds of the game without making a field goal. Their only points were 2 FT's from Tatum, 2 FT's from Kemba, and 1 FT from Smart.

[tenn_smoothie]

People have a lot to say about Brad. Some of it is warranted, but this is his 2nd conference finals appearance in 3 years.

My view is that there's a lot more positive about him than there is negative.

He has some tendencies that I don't like, but I'm overall happy that he's the coach of the Celtics.

He's not perfect by any means, but he's a good NBA coach. He's good for this team and franchise. I think sometimes people get too focused on his demeanor (or lack of) and just don't appreciate the stability he brings.

Yes, Stevens brings a lot of good things to the table - I just fear he doesn't have that something special to lead us to championships. Also, what he was praised for being so good at in past years seem to have faded. He did not seem to help the offense adjust to Toronto's defensive strategies this series and his "famous" out of bounds plays out of timeouts have turned into Tatum isos every time.

[86MaxwellSmart]

The Celtics finished the last 5:21 seconds of the game without making a field goal. Their only points were 2 FT's from Tatum, 2 FT's from Kemba, and 1 FT from Smart.

Story of the series almost...C's get a 9-10 point lead, then slow it down to let Raps come back.....this game they tried dribbling out the clock with 3 minutes to go....frustrating.

[Greenality]

Trying to summarize.
I give even more credit to Tatum (as if I could), considering how good a defense he had to overcome (Raps as a team and Anunoby&VanVleet in particular).
Smart is just incredible, all around, Celtics' guy.
IMO Brad outcoached NN (who is one of the best in the business himself), it's just all the bad things had to happen to make it this close.
Jaylen with several huge games and awesome D against Siakam (I think it was the way JB treated him in the early games, that affected PS' spirit).
Really happy for Kemba, he actually DID show up in the most important quarter of his career. And yes, for C's success against the Heat, he should play better
Theis was very valuable, I think he had a very experienced opposition with Gasol and Ibaka to compete against. And IMO Rob should get a lot of minutes vs Miami.
I guess Kanter will get some playing time, don't really expect Gordy to come back (especially given his personal circumstances).
And GWill... I just like him. 2 FT missed, rather uncharacteristically (maybe the stage was a liiiittle to big for him first time around), but he certainly redeemed himself later. He is our future, absolutely reliable kid.
Semi will also get his minutes in the next round: his D is there, a slightly better 3p% will be welcomed))

[jambr380]

Issues going forward:

Gotta say, I'm not loving the "clear it out for Tatum" thing Brad is doing late.

Why not run our weak side secondary stuff?

Kemba won't be played like that again. He needs to keep his confidence up and keep shooting.

I'd like to see a little more Grant.

thats how it works at the NBA.  This is why a guy like Tatum is important to have

Maybe, but it didnt work very well.
 
The Celtics finished the last 5:21 seconds of the game without making a field goal. Their only points were 2 FT's from Tatum, 2 FT's from Kemba, and 1 FT from Smart.

Yeah, that 10 point lead was slowly disappearing and there was nothing we could do to stop it. However, unlike the 3rd quarter (when we got into the bonus early and didn't shoot any FTs), we totally started drawing fouls left and right. I can't believe how badly we shot them, but that is usually a recipe for success. Enough to hold on this game and that's all that matters!

[footey]

Grant was huge, despite the missed FTs (actually the 2nd was how Tatum drew foul).  Some good defense, especially late vs FVV on that 3.  He's earning more minutes. Very mature.

I'm hoping we see Rob against Adebaye.  That will be fun to watch.

[keevsnick]

Issues going forward:

Gotta say, I'm not loving the "clear it out for Tatum" thing Brad is doing late.

Why not run our weak side secondary stuff?

Kemba won't be played like that again. He needs to keep his confidence up and keep shooting.

I'd like to see a little more Grant.

thats how it works at the NBA.  This is why a guy like Tatum is important to have

Maybe, but it didnt work very well.
 
The Celtics finished the last 5:21 seconds of the game without making a field goal. Their only points were 2 FT's from Tatum, 2 FT's from Kemba, and 1 FT from Smart.

Yeah, that 10 point lead was slowly disappearing and there was nothing we could do to stop it. However, unlike the 3rd quarter (when we got into the bonus early and didn't shoot any FTs), we totally started drawing fouls left and right. I can't believe how badly we shot them, but that is usually a recipe for success. Enough to hold on this game and that's all that matters!

I really did think for a minute there the c's were gonna blow it, but its also a testament to their defense that they could score  points in the last five minutes and still win.

[Mahk E Mahk]

Issues going forward:

Gotta say, I'm not loving the "clear it out for Tatum" thing Brad is doing late.

Why not run our weak side secondary stuff?

Kemba won't be played like that again. He needs to keep his confidence up and keep shooting.

I'd like to see a little more Grant.

thats how it works at the NBA.  This is why a guy like Tatum is important to have

Maybe, but it didnt work very well.
 
The Celtics finished the last 5:21 seconds of the game without making a field goal. Their only points were 2 FT's from Tatum, 2 FT's from Kemba, and 1 FT from Smart.

Yeah, that 10 point lead was slowly disappearing and there was nothing we could do to stop it. However, unlike the 3rd quarter (when we got into the bonus early and didn't shoot any FTs), we totally started drawing fouls left and right. I can't believe how badly we shot them, but that is usually a recipe for success. Enough to hold on this game and that's all that matters!

thank goodness there’s two ends of the court. while we weren’t getting FGs, and the free throws weren’t falling either, our defense in the final minutes was outstanding and won the game.

[Redz]

People have a lot to say about Brad. Some of it is warranted, but this is his 2nd conference finals appearance in 3 years.

My view is that there's a lot more positive about him than there is negative.

He has some tendencies that I don't like, but I'm overall happy that he's the coach of the Celtics.

He's not perfect by any means, but he's a good NBA coach. He's good for this team and franchise. I think sometimes people get too focused on his demeanor (or lack of) and just don't appreciate the stability he brings.

Yes, Stevens brings a lot of good things to the table - I just fear he doesn't have that something special to lead us to championships. Also, what he was praised for being so good at in past years seem to have faded. He did not seem to help the offense adjust to Toronto's defensive strategies this series and his "famous" out of bounds plays out of timeouts have turned into Tatum isos every time.

3rd in 4 years, right?

[Mahk E Mahk]

[jpotter33]

https://twitter.com/smart_MS3/status/1304634577961582592

[jpotter33]

https://twitter.com/smart_MS3/status/1304634577961582592

Oh, Smart, I couldn't love you anymore.

[Somebody]

Issues going forward:

Gotta say, I'm not loving the "clear it out for Tatum" thing Brad is doing late.

Why not run our weak side secondary stuff?

Kemba won't be played like that again. He needs to keep his confidence up and keep shooting.

I'd like to see a little more Grant.

thats how it works at the NBA.  This is why a guy like Tatum is important to have

Maybe, but it didnt work very well.
 
The Celtics finished the last 5:21 seconds of the game without making a field goal. Their only points were 2 FT's from Tatum, 2 FT's from Kemba, and 1 FT from Smart.

Isolation-heavy basketball usually isn't great even in crunch time, off-ball action should be run to attempt unlocking some easy looks.