No clutch performers!

[OhioGreen]

Like many Connecticut natives, I'm a C's fan and a Yankee fan.  I just realized quite the analogy between our big three and ARod!  All have never won a championship, while each has enjoyed numerous monster regular seasons, stat-wise.
Each year as a Yankee, ARod has crumbled under the pressure of the post season.  Our big three, now appears to be crumbling in the playoffs with the pressure of trying to win on the road in a hostile environments.  At home, in friendly confines, no problem. Well, you say, only one other team has won on the road in the second round. True, but no other team won 66 games, and had the leagues best ROAD record!
It's what defines a "clutch" performer!  That ability to raise your performance to another level in pressure situations.  The C's have had a ton of these guys down thru the years, LB probably being the last. Magic, MJ, and in current times, Kobe and LeBron, just to name a couple.  Guys who more often than not come thru in those crucial, pressure packed games.
Now our three have won their share of games, but never taken their teams to the final glory!  This is their chance to get the monkeys off their backs-for one, or all of them.  ARod hasn't yet.  May never!
Hopefully we'll get to uncover our "clutch" guy this year!

One other note. If, heaven forbid, we would get knocked out, the thing that really stinks, is that it will kind of put a damper on NEXT season, cause we could go 80-2, and all everyone would be thinking is we'll blow it in the playoffs again!
It was a strange year. Maybe we got too good, too fast!  The bar isn't too high, it's on the ceiling! No where to go but a championship!! Anything else is a disappointment.
So come on you sons of b's, get your act together and kick some Cav butts!

[Celtic]

Please never compare any one of the Celtics to A-rod. Just kidding, but not really. It's also a hard comparison between sports, baseball is such an individual sport where all the spotlight is on one guy, especially compared to a team like the Celtics that play team basketball. Yes, all three have yet to win a ring, but they haven't disappeared to the extent that A-Rod has in the playoffs. The series ain't over and I expect our stars to shine.

[Bahku]

Like many Connecticut natives, I'm a C's fan and a Yankee fan.  I just realized quite the analogy between our big three and ARod!  All have never won a championship, while each has enjoyed numerous monster regular seasons, stat-wise.
Each year as a Yankee, ARod has crumbled under the pressure of the post season.  Our big three, now appears to be crumbling in the playoffs with the pressure of trying to win on the road in a hostile environments.  At home, in friendly confines, no problem. Well, you say, only one other team has won on the road in the second round. True, but no other team won 66 games, and had the leagues best ROAD record!
It's what defines a "clutch" performer!  That ability to raise your performance to another level in pressure situations.  The C's have had a ton of these guys down thru the years, LB probably being the last. Magic, MJ, and in current times, Kobe and LeBron, just to name a couple.  Guys who more often than not come thru in those crucial, pressure packed games.
Now our three have won their share of games, but never taken their teams to the final glory!  This is their chance to get the monkeys off their backs-for one, or all of them.  ARod hasn't yet.  May never!
Hopefully we'll get to uncover our "clutch" guy this year!

One other note. If, heaven forbid, we would get knocked out, the thing that really stinks, is that it will kind of put a damper on NEXT season, cause we could go 80-2, and all everyone would be thinking is we'll blow it in the playoffs again!
It was a strange year. Maybe we got too good, too fast!  The bar isn't too high, it's on the ceiling! No where to go but a championship!! Anything else is a disappointment.
So come on you sons of b's, get your act together and kick some Cav butts!

Good points ... TP. I really want this Celtics team to go all the way, not only for all the obvious reasons, but also so they won't fall into that category that the Pats did this year, by having the best record, and yet having people say it's worth nothing if you can't win it ALL! That would really stink, and would be a bad omen for the Sox. Let's hope they can pull it out, so we won't have another contingent of people saying that another Boston team with the best record, has come up short ... again. Ugh!

[OhioGreen]

Please never compare any one of the Celtics to A-rod. Just kidding, but not really. It's also a hard comparison between sports, baseball is such an individual sport where all the spotlight is on one guy, especially compared to a team like the Celtics that play team basketball. Yes, all three have yet to win a ring, but they haven't disappeared to the extent that A-Rod has in the playoffs. The series ain't over and I expect our stars to shine.

I'm just saying Arod performs great when there's no pressure. During the season, there will always be another day, another game. No big deal, and I thing the C's are mirroring that! In fairness to the C's, this is their first shot at a title together-so they're learning on the fly. They just don't have the luxury of taking long to get it right!
One of them has to step up and be that "clutch" guy and pull them over the top, and then all the talking will stop, and the media will just shut up!!! --------------and we can finally hang #17!!!!!!!!!!

[Celtic]

I agree with you, I'm just giving you a hard time, any time you compare a member of a Boston team to arguably the most hated member of the Yankees, it's going to happen. You are right though, one of them needs to step up on the road, and prove that they are a dominant player on a dominant team.

[tanner]

I refuse to accept that GPA can't hack it down the stretch.  Individually they're fine.  Paul and Ray have been clutch historically.  KG is more questionable but he's ok once he gets into a flow.  I don't see why they should be different now.

I think the problem is an offense that hasn't integrated all three (particularly Ray) very well. Moreover, the team is doing a poor job working mismatches and going to the hot hand and staying with it.  GPA are not able to get into a good rhythm throughout the game as the offense switches from one thing to another. 

We see KG working the post successfully in the 1Q. Come 2Q, the bench comes in and Sam does his own thing sometimes for quite a stretch w/o involving Ray or Paul.  They work Ray in the 3rd but after hitting two or three shots in a row they go away from him.  It's bad offense.  Hardly any rhythm or flow to it.  That's why we see them searching and forcing things so much down the stretch.

[wdleehi]

Pierce has been clutch in the past.  He just never had a team around him to go that far.


But now, all star players are playing like poor man versions of themselves on offense. 

[OhioGreen]

Pierce has been clutch in the past.  He just never had a team around him to go that far.


But now, all star players are playing like poor man versions of themselves on offense. 

I respectively would have to disagree. Not in the playoffs, he hasn't! In his biggest chance he had somewhat of a meltdown in Indiana, some would say!  Actually none of the big three has really been clutch in the playoffs. (Does anything else REALLY matter?) I think this is the current team's real problem. As great as this team was this year, they, and the big three individually, still are trying to learn how to win in a playoff setting.
When the Cavs, or Lakers, the C's or Bulls of old, are/were playing, there's no doubt who is getting the ball in crunch time.  In crunch time now for us, ________(?who) is Mr. Clutch, our go to guy?  They better figure it out soon, and one of them has to reach down into his soul and pull that player out! It's a career defining time for one or all of them. Good or bad!  Those player # banners that hang in the rafters aren't for guys that "did it" during the regular season!  This is the time when GPA can show they are "worthy". Now come on guys, let's kick some Cavs A///ss!!

[wdleehi]

Pierce has been clutch in the past.  He just never had a team around him to go that far.


But now, all star players are playing like poor man versions of themselves on offense. 

I respectively would have to disagree. Not in the playoffs, he hasn't! In his biggest chance he had somewhat of a meltdown in Indiana, some would say!  Actually none of the big three has really been clutch in the playoffs. (Does anything else REALLY matter?) I think this is the current team's real problem. As great as this team was this year, they, and the big three individually, still are trying to learn how to win in a playoff setting.
When the Cavs, or Lakers, the C's or Bulls of old, are/were playing, there's no doubt who is getting the ball in crunch time.  In crunch time now for us, ________(?who) is Mr. Clutch, our go to guy?  They better figure it out soon, and one of them has to reach down into his soul and pull that player out! It's a career defining time for one or all of them. Good or bad!  Those player # banners that hang in the rafters aren't for guys that "did it" during the regular season!  This is the time when GPA can show they are "worthy". Now come on guys, let's kick some Cavs A///ss!!

Pierce's play help lead the Celtics to the biggest 4th quarter come from behind performances in the playoffs against the Nets in the East finals.


It wasn't until Doc got here that he started allowing himself to lose it in the playoffs.

[OhioGreen]

Pierce has been clutch in the past.  He just never had a team around him to go that far.


But now, all star players are playing like poor man versions of themselves on offense. 

I respectively would have to disagree. Not in the playoffs, he hasn't! In his biggest chance he had somewhat of a meltdown in Indiana, some would say!  Actually none of the big three has really been clutch in the playoffs. (Does anything else REALLY matter?) I think this is the current team's real problem. As great as this team was this year, they, and the big three individually, still are trying to learn how to win in a playoff setting.
When the Cavs, or Lakers, the C's or Bulls of old, are/were playing, there's no doubt who is getting the ball in crunch time.  In crunch time now for us, ________(?who) is Mr. Clutch, our go to guy?  They better figure it out soon, and one of them has to reach down into his soul and pull that player out! It's a career defining time for one or all of them. Good or bad!  Those player # banners that hang in the rafters aren't for guys that "did it" during the regular season!  This is the time when GPA can show they are "worthy". Now come on guys, let's kick some Cavs A///ss!!

Pierce's play help lead the Celtics to the biggest 4th quarter come from behind performances in the playoffs against the Nets in the East finals.


It wasn't until Doc got here that he started allowing himself to lose it in the playoffs.

That was an incredible performance, albeit one game! I'm just saying that history will need to look back on these playoffs, this Championship, and say "man, that _____ ______ of the Celtics just took that team on his back and led them to the title!"
We certaintly have the triumverate capable of doing it--but can they? It would sure make this the sweetest of all the titles I've seen, going back to 1957!(I was 7 at the time)
Pressure, playoffs, Championships! It's what define a Celtic fan! Not waiting 20 years to win 66 games, but to win it ALL! It's what sets Celtic fans apart from other NBA fans! WE NEED TO FEED!!!

[wdleehi]

Pierce has been clutch in the past.  He just never had a team around him to go that far.


But now, all star players are playing like poor man versions of themselves on offense. 

I respectively would have to disagree. Not in the playoffs, he hasn't! In his biggest chance he had somewhat of a meltdown in Indiana, some would say!  Actually none of the big three has really been clutch in the playoffs. (Does anything else REALLY matter?) I think this is the current team's real problem. As great as this team was this year, they, and the big three individually, still are trying to learn how to win in a playoff setting.
When the Cavs, or Lakers, the C's or Bulls of old, are/were playing, there's no doubt who is getting the ball in crunch time.  In crunch time now for us, ________(?who) is Mr. Clutch, our go to guy?  They better figure it out soon, and one of them has to reach down into his soul and pull that player out! It's a career defining time for one or all of them. Good or bad!  Those player # banners that hang in the rafters aren't for guys that "did it" during the regular season!  This is the time when GPA can show they are "worthy". Now come on guys, let's kick some Cavs A///ss!!

Pierce's play help lead the Celtics to the biggest 4th quarter come from behind performances in the playoffs against the Nets in the East finals.


It wasn't until Doc got here that he started allowing himself to lose it in the playoffs.

That was an incredible performance, albeit one game! I'm just saying that history will need to look back on these playoffs, this Championship, and say "man, that _____ ______ of the Celtics just took that team on his back and led them to the title!"
We certaintly have the triumverate capable of doing it--but can they? It would sure make this the sweetest of all the titles I've seen, going back to 1957!(I was 7 at the time)
Pressure, playoffs, Championships! It's what define a Celtic fan! Not waiting 20 years to win 66 games, but to win it ALL! It's what sets Celtic fans apart from other NBA fans! WE NEED TO FEED!!!

And game 7 against the Pacers was one game.


I don't think the Celtics are set up to let one of these guys step up.  As soon as one guy gets going, the offense becomes about getting one of the other guys going, ignoring the hot hand. 

[Frontierboy]

The problem is that all the 3 stars are deferring too much to each other....... I'm surprised that KG is so quiet emotionally during these playoffs..... that's one thing I miss about Antoine, he would get into players faces if they weren't doing things right ( remember that playof game against the Nets when he got into Pierce's face.....  we need someone like that....

Bring back Antoine as the 13th man.... don't play him, jut use him as our emotional leader!!!!!!!!!!

[Who]

I don't think the Celtics are set up to let one of these guys step up.  As soon as one guy gets going, the offense becomes about getting one of the other guys going, ignoring the hot hand. 

Oh c'mon .... there's been lots of times this season where the Celtics have rode the hot hand. They've done great jobs of riding Paul Pierce in some fourth quarters like down in Utah, against Seattle. Of riding Ray against the Blazers at home, and Pierce away to the Blazers.

The offense has done a great job of getting Paul Pierce quality scoring opportunities all season. Same for KG. No so for Ray, he was sacrificed for the good of his fellow teammates, which I never liked.

The players just aren't executing the offense anymore. It'd work just as well in the playoffs but the players aren't playing with enough composure or enough trust in each other or enough in their game plan. That's the problem = Not the offense, the execution of the offense.

Look if it was about the defense denying and stopping our offensive I'd agree with you but it's not. That didn't happen in Atlanta and it's not happening in Cleveland. The Cavs have done something the Hawks didn't do, and forced some changes to our offensive execution but it's only a little wrinkle and it's not stopping our offense or our ability to get the shots we want. It's simply not doing that. The Celtics are doing that all by themselves. It's all about the player's execution.

[Andy Jick]

David West dropped 38 and 14 on the Spurs last night...

HEY KG - how about you do the same to Cleveland!!  Time for you to show up HUGE!!!

[PierceMVP08]

Hey OhioGreen.... Have you been watching Paul Pierce throughout his career or have you periodically peeked in?  As someone who has watched him play from game 1 of his career I can tell you that he is a very clutch player.  He even led the league in fourth quarter scoring one year.  He's hit countless big shots and for you to hold game 6 against the pacers as a measure of who he is in the clutch is unfair and shows me you really haven't watched his career all too much.  Pierce has to be the guy that takes this team on his back but Rivers has to give him the ball over and over again.  The problem is that when he tries to take over a game and misses a couple of shots everyone stops saying he's forcing things and taking hero shots.  You know what? we need someone to take hero shots.  Someone has to take on that responsibility but we can't be critical of that.