Observations after 2 games

[jbpats]

Here are my initial overreactions 2 games into the season. Going into the season I had very low expectations for this team (7-8 seed at best), and I think that is still my expectation after the start.

The Good:
-Horford seems motivated
-Despite a poor game last night Jaylen seems to continue to be making strong steps to superstardom
-Grant Williams appears to have put the time in, might end up being a decent role player for us
-Robert Williams continues to trend upwards, if he stays healthy he'll be one of the best contracts in the NBA

The Bad:
-Tatums attitude is even worse than last year - if this season is a downward spiral I think we need to trade him
-We are way too small, getting crushed on boards, some of our rotations are horrendous.
-Coaching - we moved on from Brad just to have Brad 2.0?
-Smart will always be Smart - good defender but poor decisions on offense don't offset his defensive abilities
-Langford is trash

The Unknowns
- Schroder seems like a legitimate PG 40% of the time and doesn't look like he knows how to play basketball the other 60% of the time

[Sophomore]

I think we need to get a little more precise on the “tiny” thing. When we have Horford and Rob playing together in the starting lineup, with the Js and Marcus playing 1-3, we aren’t lacking for length. That just is not a tiny lineup. It probably is true that they aren’t very physical, or at least they have trouble adjusting to physical play, and if the NBA is going to a more physical game this unit may have problems. But they’re not short.

I do agree that if we play this way we have all our height in the starting lineup and man do our second units get small. Schroeder-Payton-Romeo-Richardson-Grant is absolutely not going to cut it. There is not enough skill and physicality in that group to overcome their very small size. We have no playable backups with size at 4-5 an it’s a problem. Kanter is strictly a break glass in case of emergency player.

[RJD1974]

-Langford is trash

Dunno how someone could have that takeaway after these two games.

[Ogaju]

someone please remind me why Moses Brown was traded again?

[RodyTur10]

someone please remind me why Moses Brown was traded again?

We had Kanter, Parker and Fernando on the bench and except for 3 minutes in garbage time they didn't get a chance to play. Brown wouldn't have played either.

[Walker Wiggle]

-Langford is trash

Dunno how someone could have that takeaway after these two games.

… and for a player who’s about to turn 22 years old.

[Sophomore]

someone please remind me why Moses Brown was traded again?

The same reason he was a CD-DNP in his first game with his new team. He’s not good.

People were on the board last night saying put Kanter in. In five minutes he was -15. Size is good. Bad size won’t help.

[Who]

My main takeaway I said in the game thread but it is worth repeating here

This insistence on starting Smart at PG is causing these small backcourt problems. You can't start Smart and play two 6-1 PGs off the bench substantial minutes (Schroder, Pritchard) and avoid those bad backcourts.

Smart has to start at SG with Jaylen at SF and Tatum at PF in order to bring balance to this team's rotation. Then Schroder and Pritchard can share the PG duties. Rob Williams and Horford can share the C minutes and maybe some minutes alongside each other. Romeo, Nesmith and J.Richardson can jockey for the backup SG & SF minutes.

Then the PF minutes can go in a few different directions depending on what Udoka wants. He can go Grant Williams. He can go Juancho. He can play more minutes Horford & Rob Williams together. He can go smaller with Jaylen backing up Tatum with two wings next to him and one small PG on the court.

But it all starts with how Marcus Smart is used.

Or ... bench Pritchard or Schroder. Play only one of them and glue the other to the bench. You cannot play both if Smart is your starting PG.

Basically, starting Smart at PG and shoehorning two small PGs (Schroder, Pritchard) into the rotation is causing too many lineup problems. Too many small backcourts. And then trying to fit in the backup wings (J.Richardson, Nesmith, Langford) alongside those small PGs is leading to too many small guard / forward combinations.

We had a size problem against the Knicks with Horford out but I am happy enough with the general size of the team now that Horford is back. The main issue with size is lineup decisions made by the new head coach Ime Udoka. He needs to either move Smart to SG or permanently bench one of the small PGs to restore adequate size PG-SG-SF-PF. An easy to fix problem as opposed to a structural problem that would require personnel changes (trades) to fix.

Coach just has to unplug his head from his behind.

[GreenlyGreeny]

Still early, but Ime better start getting some W’s or he’s going to feel the heat in no time. This team is too talented to finish below .500.

[Roy H.]

25 turnovers in Game 2.  That’s a lack of focus.

[OhioGreen]

Marcus Smart is NOT a PG and never will be.  We, in fact, don't really have a true PG on this team and that is a HUGE problem.  We also don't have a true offensive style, that being a compounding problem, and even if we had a true pass first PG he couldn't get anything done with this team because NOBODY MOVES.  Everyone just stands around.  It's so obvious watching the games.  Constant movement makes it tough on defenders, to either stay with their man or switch again and again.  (Much as the switching is causing our defense problems!).  We need a good offensive plan and obviously no coach on this team has a clue!

[Hoopvortex]

-Tatums attitude is even worse than last year - if this season is a downward spiral I think we need to trade him

Say what? How do you know what his attitude is?!

-We are way too small, getting crushed on boards, some of our rotations are horrendous.

I'd ask if you mean personnel rotations or defensive rotations, but it likely doesn't matter much.

-Coaching - we moved on from Brad just to have Brad 2.0?

Brad was an excellent coach with an outstanding track record. Three times to the ECF with very different personnel. It looks like there isn't much point in continuing to list his achievements, let alone to engage with the odd idea that Ime's coaching is like Brad's.

-Smart will always be Smart - good defender but poor decisions on offense don't offset his defensive abilities

At some point I hope that fans will have a better understanding of what Marcus Smart contributes when he's out on the floor.

-Langford is trash

If you want to be taken seriously, this is not the way to do it.

[Rosco917]

Tatum is struggling with "seeing" the floor and reacting to it in the way LeBron, Bird, and Magic would, rather than just going ISO crazy at his personal whim, he's thinking point-forward is his calling. It's growing pains...he's struggling with it for now. That's the reason some of us called for a real PG with experience and actual NBA gravitas to run this team. 

More importantly, Marcus Smart is not a true point guard. Besides, he's skipped past being a point guard and gone directly into coaching.

There needs to be a starting lineup change and a shuffling of the rotations. The honeymoon is ending early for some, frankly the team looks lazy. 

[Hoopvortex]

25 turnovers in Game 2.  That’s a lack of focus.

Yes, and I suppose it's hard to separate a lack of focus from a lack of energy.

This is where this team gets tested. This is where it's time for fans to rally around. I don't have faith in the cynical Boston sports fans, who've so often appointed themselves experts; thinking you're an expert while not recognizing a lack of expertise has a name: the Dunning-Krueger Effect.

[Jiri Welsch]

Steve Bulpett @SteveBHoop 4h
Complaining to refs and not getting back on defense. Not pressuring the ball. Simply getting out-toughed.

Ime Udoka identified these problems last night ("punked"), and I think he'll do all he can to fix them.

But I told you last year the Celtics' problem wasn't the coach.

My takeaway centers around this tweet that Bulpett sent out today. Something is off with this team's energy/focus. Tatum needs to grow up and stop complaining whenever things don't go his way.