Celtics (10-15) at Magic (10-20) Game #23 12/23/14

[hwangjini_1]

couldn't catch some parts of the game. How did Wright look?

He had a nice block before he was pulled

i only saw the 1.5 quarters. wright looked good on defense, especially since he new to the defensive sets. he changed a number of shots, played tough defense on the perimeter, rebounded fairly well.

on offense, he scores on loose balls near the basket, no news there.

over all, he had energy and helped the team.

[tazzmaniac]

What is our away record?

Was wondering about this one too.
Could not find the data collected at one place, so did the arithmetic by myself. I'm quite sleepy, but I double checked 
11 games away. 3 wins. 2 of them against Philly, the other against Chicago.
Which suggests there is a big difference in how we play at home and away.
7/15 (0.46) in TD Garden and 3/11 (0.27) away.
http://espn.go.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/bos/boston-celtics

We've played some tough teams on the road.  Other than the last two games, the only win you might have expected would have been against Charlotte but they are not a good matchup with their slow half court pace and limited turnovers.

That's very true. Dallas, Houston, Memphis. But we also played the League's worst team twice.
Having watched most of our games, I think we actually play more confidently in TD. This is hardly surprising for a young team. I expect the disparity in our home-away record to continue throughout the season.

Role players generally play worse on the road too.  We have no star players, a general lack of veteran leadership and a young coach with limited NBA experience.  I expect lots of losses both home and away from now on unless Ainge pulls off some kind of miracle trade.   

[jpotter33]

So guys I missed the game because I'm driving home for Christmas. Was it as bad as what I'm reading in the game notes? And what's the deal with Sully and Green being p---y?

[Beat LA]

I missed it as well.  All I want to know is were there any more funny exchanges between Scal and Downton Abby?

[Nerf DPOY]

I missed it as well.  All I want to know is were there any more funny exchanges between Scal and Downton Abby?

Not that I witnessed. I think while we're all pulling for them to get together, it'll ruin the tension like with Sam/Diane and Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepard on Moonlighting.

[Beat LA]

I missed it as well.  All I want to know is were there any more funny exchanges between Scal and Downton Abby?

Not that I witnessed. I think while we're all pulling for them to get together, it'll ruin the tension like with Sam/Diane and Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepard on Moonlighting.

Lol, TP. How does Smart not take a single shot, btw, and then compounds this mistake by making only 3 of 7 free throws!? Man oh man, lol.

[MBunge]

Nine minutes for Sully... any guesses as to why?

Fat...lazy....

You win most unintelligent guess of the night.

Say what? He played fat and lazy in the first half. Why do you think he is on the bench?

People on this forum were screaming that he was fat and lazy when he was averaging 16/8/3. Just seems like a talking point to me with no real evidence to back it up.

He looks fat. Maybe he's not. But standing aroung the 3 point line on most possessions, is a bit lazy. Stevens must have noticed too.

Sully shoots almost double the percentage of his total FGAs at rim as he does behind the 3PT line. As BBallTim said earlier, anyone complaining about Sully's three-point obsession while simultaneously calling him lazy because of those shots lacks an understanding of NBA basketball. This isn't playground ball where guys just what they want. In all likelihood Sully hangs around the perimeter because his coaches were telling him to. Before he went into this freezing cold shooting streak, it was working.

So I'm unintelligent and lack an understanding of basketball. Nice. I will leave you to yourself.

Sorry, just get a little tired of posters who continually bash Sully for doing what CBS wants him to do and then salivate over Rondo who is known to mail games in if he's not motivated.

You are intelligent and understand the game of basketball clearly. Your individual observations here, though, make me frustrated.

We have different opinions. Not a big deal. TP for your passion.

TP for your patience. Let's hope there's an explanation and we hear about it soon.

There could be a lot of reasons for Sully's poor play recently.  Even the greatest players go through slumps.  The question is how good of a player can he become.  Some people were saying he can be an All Star.  I just don't see it.  I'm not sure he's even a starter caliber.  I think he'll top out as a good bench player like Bass.   

Slumps, sure, but a starter, even a slumping one, playing nine minutes is fishy. Just seems like there's more to it than a typical basketball stinkfest. Maybe I'm being optimistic because I am a big fan of Sully.

If he was hurt, I don't think he would be playing at all.  Stevens seems to allocate playing time to whoever happens to be playing best on a particular night.

That's not really accurate.  There have been several nights when Thorton, for example, was playing well and didn't even get 20 minutes.  Or take a look at how poorly KO had to play before Zeller could start.  Or how the heck do you justify giving Nelson the start over Smart or Turner based on what Nelson did his first game?

Stevens is a smart guy but it seems like he still hasn't come to grips with how different the NBA is from college.

Mike

[33_Larry Legend_33]

I live in Florida (Tampa area).  I took my son to the game tonight for his 15th birthday (which is Sunday).  I bought really good seats (10 rows up, just shy of center court and near the Celtics bench).  Some observations from my vantage point...

- Sully is fat.  I mean, out of shape fat.  His thighs and butt are husky and he can't move laterally.  I posted in another thread of my impressions of him, which are not good.  But Sully does not fit this team.

- Brad needs to figure out a rotation plan or he's going to destroy the morale of this team.  I give credit to the guys on the bench for their team-oriented celebration in the 4th qtr, but you can see the disgust on players who sat a LOT during this game.

- Brad turned toward the crowd and rolled his eyes when that 1st qtr layup was missed near the end.  You could continually see his exasperation throughout the game.  I want to believe he's committed to this, but I wouldn't fault him if he took the next train out of town.

- Marcus Smart lacks bball IQ.  You can tell that other players are a step ahead of him.  He's physically talented, but he lacks the understanding of the PG position.  He got banged up again, and I wonder if he's fully recovered from his other injuries.  He looked out of sorts.

- Jameer Nelson will actually help this team.  The dilemma: Smart needs to PLAY.  But Brad is in a bind as those minutes need to be earned.  In the 4th qtr you could see Jameer just playing basketball, and he showed some bursts that showed he still has it.  But he's really a role player.  I think his presence will help this team, but I'm not sure if he's a fit for what we are doing.  The problem is that Smart and Pressey are unreliable.  And Evan Turnover is not a PG...  I don't know how Brad doesn't see that.

- We have no real inside presence.  I give Zeller credit, but he's far from what we need inside.  I think we'll draft a rim protecting big this year because I don't see any way anyone hands us one (Gobert or Drummond - someone of that ilk).  Bass can't play bigs on D as he gets shoved around.  Wright appears lost right now, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

- Jeff Green disappeared tonight.  It was pathetic watching this team stand around the perimeter all night, not really looking to drive the ball to the rim.  Green sat a LOT down the stretch, and though it was frustrating, he just wasn't looking to score tonight.

- Crowder is everything we had hoped Gerald would be.  I think he's kind of an x-factor for us.  His offense is limited, but he has intangibles that really helped us in our run in the 4th.  Wallace should never play again as Crowder should get those minutes.

- Brad simply needs to cut down the rotation.  Danny will need to move a couple guys as this 13-man rotation is NOT working.  Unfortunately that probably means very little of Bass, or maybe even Sully.  Pressey shouldn't play - split the minutes between Smart and Nelson.  Zeller and Olynyk need to play together more to see if that's a possibility.

Lastly, this team is just a mess.  I love the Celtics.  I've been attending games live since the 1987 season when my dad took me, and now I get to take my son.  But this team is just lost.  Rotations are a mess and need to be cut down, but we simply don't have any star talent.  There is not a go-to-guy on this roster.  Danny might want to say publicly that we don't need a star type player, but Danny is dead-wrong.  This team is still going to be lucky to win 25 games.  I'd clear out guys - deal Bass and Thornton for sure.  Try to move Green and Nelson.  Just go with the kids.  James Young deserves a shot.  We can be Philly 2.0.  I'd rather do that than try to be Milwaukee 2.0.  I'm trying to enjoy "the process" but I admit it's hard as this team is just clueless right now.  I don't know what Brad is thinking or why, but it's not making much sense and he'll start to lose this team if the rotations of the moment are any precursor of what's to come...

But I had fun tonight and enjoyed the 4th qtr.  Celtics Nation represented well in Orlando.  And hey, my son and I made it on the CSNNE broadcast during the pre-game show, as we saw the monitor right behind Scal & Gormon's backs.

[Jiri Welsch]

I live in Florida (Tampa area).  I took my son to the game tonight for his 15th birthday (which is Sunday).  I bought really good seats (10 rows up, just shy of center court and near the Celtics bench).  Some observations from my vantage point...

- Sully is fat.  I mean, out of shape fat.  His thighs and butt are husky and he can't move laterally.  I posted in another thread of my impressions of him, which are not good.  But Sully does not fit this team.

- Brad needs to figure out a rotation plan or he's going to destroy the morale of this team.  I give credit to the guys on the bench for their team-oriented celebration in the 4th qtr, but you can see the disgust on players who sat a LOT during this game.

- Brad turned toward the crowd and rolled his eyes when that 1st qtr layup was missed near the end.  You could continually see his exasperation throughout the game.  I want to believe he's committed to this, but I wouldn't fault him if he took the next train out of town.

- Marcus Smart lacks bball IQ.  You can tell that other players are a step ahead of him.  He's physically talented, but he lacks the understanding of the PG position.  He got banged up again, and I wonder if he's fully recovered from his other injuries.  He looked out of sorts.

- Jameer Nelson will actually help this team.  The dilemma: Smart needs to PLAY.  But Brad is in a bind as those minutes need to be earned.  In the 4th qtr you could see Jameer just playing basketball, and he showed some bursts that showed he still has it.  But he's really a role player.  I think his presence will help this team, but I'm not sure if he's a fit for what we are doing.  The problem is that Smart and Pressey are unreliable.  And Evan Turnover is not a PG...  I don't know how Brad doesn't see that.

- We have no real inside presence.  I give Zeller credit, but he's far from what we need inside.  I think we'll draft a rim protecting big this year because I don't see any way anyone hands us one (Gobert or Drummond - someone of that ilk).  Bass can't play bigs on D as he gets shoved around.  Wright appears lost right now, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

- Jeff Green disappeared tonight.  It was pathetic watching this team stand around the perimeter all night, not really looking to drive the ball to the rim.  Green sat a LOT down the stretch, and though it was frustrating, he just wasn't looking to score tonight.

- Crowder is everything we had hoped Gerald would be.  I think he's kind of an x-factor for us.  His offense is limited, but he has intangibles that really helped us in our run in the 4th.  Wallace should never play again as Crowder should get those minutes.

- Brad simply needs to cut down the rotation.  Danny will need to move a couple guys as this 13-man rotation is NOT working.  Unfortunately that probably means very little of Bass, or maybe even Sully.  Pressey shouldn't play - split the minutes between Smart and Nelson.  Zeller and Olynyk need to play together more to see if that's a possibility.

Lastly, this team is just a mess.  I love the Celtics.  I've been attending games live since the 1987 season when my dad took me, and now I get to take my son.  But this team is just lost.  Rotations are a mess and need to be cut down, but we simply don't have any star talent.  There is not a go-to-guy on this roster.  Danny might want to say publicly that we don't need a star type player, but Danny is dead-wrong.  This team is still going to be lucky to win 25 games.  I'd clear out guys - deal Bass and Thornton for sure.  Try to move Green and Nelson.  Just go with the kids.  James Young deserves a shot.  We can be Philly 2.0.  I'd rather do that than try to be Milwaukee 2.0.  I'm trying to enjoy "the process" but I admit it's hard as this team is just clueless right now.  I don't know what Brad is thinking or why, but it's not making much sense and he'll start to lose this team if the rotations of the moment are any precursor of what's to come...

But I had fun tonight and enjoyed the 4th qtr.  Celtics Nation represented well in Orlando.  And hey, my son and I made it on the CSNNE broadcast during the pre-game show, as we saw the monitor right behind Scal & Gormon's backs.

Good post, always nice to hear some firsthand observations.

I think we have to accept the next two months are going to be fraught with seemingly baseless decisions by Stevens to "figure out the rotation" (tank and showcase trade bait).

Trade deadline can't come soon enough.