C’s reportedly interested In D’Antoni

[Birdman]

I think he would be a great fit in Portland

[ETNCeltics]

I would not want D'Antoni.   Just hated that Houston offense.  Hated it.

I'm not advocating for MD, but I think that was more of a function of James Harden than MD. His Phoenix teams didn't look like that.

[Phantom255x]

Not that I want D'Antoni btw, but I find it funny that everyone's like, "oh please don't hire him and replicate Houston's system".

Umm, don't we basically do that anyways? Live by the 3, die by the 3. Jack up like 50+ 3s in a game even when they aren't falling. Settling for long jumpers and iso-shots far too often. 

Part of the difference is that Morey actually tried to build the roster so that it could work, and they nearly did reach the Finals if it weren't for those Warriors team. Ainge honestly didn't as the C's lacked the shooting outside of their few stars.

[PhoSita]

Not that I want D'Antoni btw, but I find it funny that everyone's like, "oh please don't hire him and replicate Houston's system".

Umm, don't we basically do that anyways? Live by the 3, die by the 3. Jack up like 50+ 3s in a game even when they aren't falling. Settling for long jumpers and iso-shots far too often. 

The Houston system was not simply "take a lot of threes."

It was: "Never take a mid range jumper" + "Never post up" + "If you can't get a three point attempt, drive to the basket and try to get fouled."

It worked because they had a primary ball handler who was very good at creating step back threes out of nowhere and in getting within 10 feet of the basket and drawing fouls.  It was very effective but also not particularly fun to watch (in my opinion).


The Celtics have two lead stars with excellent mid range games, not to mention pretty good mid-post back to the basket fades / step throughs etc.

Implementing the Houston system would mean asking our best players to give up a significant chunk of how they've had success scoring in the league and focus on things they are not currently particularly good at (i.e. forcing contact inside and drawing fouls).


I certainly want to see Tatum and Brown get to the line a lot more.  It should be a point of emphasis for the team next season.  But I don't want to see the Celtics play offense the way those Houston teams did.

[Kernewek]

Not that I want D'Antoni btw, but I find it funny that everyone's like, "oh please don't hire him and replicate Houston's system".

Umm, don't we basically do that anyways? Live by the 3, die by the 3. Jack up like 50+ 3s in a game even when they aren't falling. Settling for long jumpers and iso-shots far too often. 

Part of the difference is that Morey actually tried to build the roster so that it could work, and they nearly did reach the Finals if it weren't for those Warriors team. Ainge honestly didn't as the C's lacked the shooting outside of their few stars.

The short answer is "no."

The long answer is that Houston shot many, many, many more three pointers. Harden's usage was hovering at 30-40% for nearly his entire tenure with the team, and the offense really never developed beyond isolation plays that featured him -  in part because he showed absolutely no interest in any play that didn't involve the ball in his hands.

The Celtics' offense looked broken and your-turn my-turn more than any of us would have liked, but it was leagues and bounds above the play that was happening in Houston. Harden's just a generational offensive talent, so the team was able to turn that into wins.