Are we tanking

[konkmv]

I do not understand the coaching.. I do not understand why g.williams is still playing.. I I do not get it why smart shoots so many 3s... if we want to get to the 9th position to have a lottery pick and try from there just shut the team down.. they are getting outcoached and embarrassed... let them rest and heal till the play in game.. do some training

[Ogaju]

tanking for what?

[Celtics2021]

tanking for what?

The 14tb pick when we wind up the 7th seed and lose in the play-in tourney.

[Goldstar88]

I do not understand the coaching.. I do not understand why g.williams is still playing.. I I do not get it why smart shoots so many 3s... if we want to get to the 9th position to have a lottery pick and try from there just shut the team down.. they are getting outcoached and embarrassed... let them rest and heal till the play in game.. do some training

Bad coaching. These are all decisions made by Brad.

[satch]

How many players on the current team were drafted by the C's? Maybe they are better off tanking as the current free agents are slightly above to average for the most part.

[konkmv]

Maybe after Brad Danny goes too.. drafting was bad.. signing kemba was bad... decision making the last 2 years is bad

[Celtics4ever]

I do not understand the coaching.. I do not understand why g.williams is still playing.

Playing him, may be the best tanking strategy ever.  JK

No depth, can't have a team of half g league talent this year proves it.

[DocomoCelts]

We're tanking, but not deliberately. Which is the worst, really.

[nickagneta]

Tanking involves purposely trying to lose through coaching and team management. I don't think they are trying to lose.

I think one of the biggest problems this year is the mandate from ownership not to go into the luxury tax. Danny then had to spend as little as possible on his bench, which meant keeping a ton of young players still on rookie deals. The bench was terribly constructed and sucked after the 7th man.

Then Covid and injuries happened, especially to their top 7 players and that forced Brad to try to get good results using massively inferior talent to play in roles they weren't prepared or good enough to fill.

Games missed by our best players:

Brown...7... 11% of season
Tatum...7...11%
Smart...20...32%
Kemba...23...37%
Thompson...15...24%
Timelord...15...24%
Payton...6...10%

17 different players have started games. 29 different starting units. And after the deadline, of the 4 players brought in, only Kornet has played decent. The other 4 guys have been a load full of suck.

It's been a perfect storm that has made this team unwatchable for most of the season. But I don't think it's because Brad and Danny are trying to lose. They both were dealt bad hands, Ainge by ownership and Brad by Ainge and missed games.

[BMark]

I still don't understand what the Cs' strategy is.  Was this year meant to develop the younger players, and to establish JT and JB as the leaders, or was the strategy to contend?

Based upon the Theis trade it appears that the Cs intend to turn the keys over to the younger players with upside.  If so, why is Semi playing so much?  I have lost faith in Gwill, as he is not an effective small ball center. 

I called for a special advisor, like Jerry West, to be hired.  Shortly thereafter the Cs went on a winning streak, but the streak is in the rear view mirror now. 

[PhoSita]

Tanking involves purposely trying to lose through coaching and team management. I don't think they are trying to lose.

I think one of the biggest problems this year is the mandate from ownership not to go into the luxury tax. Danny then had to spend as little as possible on his bench, which meant keeping a ton of young players still on rookie deals. The bench was terribly constructed and sucked after the 7th man.

Then Covid and injuries happened, especially to their top 7 players and that forced Brad to try to get good results using massively inferior talent to play in roles they weren't prepared or good enough to fill.

Games missed by our best players:

Brown...7... 11% of season
Tatum...7...11%
Smart...20...32%
Kemba...23...37%
Thompson...15...24%
Timelord...15...24%
Payton...6...10%

17 different players have started games. 29 different starting units. And after the deadline, of the 4 players brought in, only Kornet has played decent. The other 4 guys have been a load full of suck.

It's been a perfect storm that has made this team unwatchable for most of the season. But I don't think it's because Brad and Danny are trying to lose. They both were dealt bad hands, Ainge by ownership and Brad by Ainge and missed games.

The impact of the luxury tax is only going to get worse this summer

[Celtics4ever]

The sad thing about last night was we could not even beat a team that was actively tanking.

Then Covid and injuries happened, especially to their top 7 players and that forced Brad to try to get good results using massively inferior talent to play in roles they weren't prepared or good enough to fill.

Games missed by our best players:

Brown...7... 11% of season
Tatum...7...11%
Smart...20...32%
Kemba...23...37%
Thompson...15...24%
Timelord...15...24%
Payton...6...10%

This is true and it certainly hurt us.   But do you think we can or could beat the elite teams even if healthy?  I think we have a puncher's chance in a seven game series with Philly, Milwaukee and the Nets.  Meaning, that we could beat them but it is not likely and some things would have to go our way.

I do think some other teams made moves to get better more so than we did.  Now, we are painted in a corner with little options.

[Celtics2021]

The sad thing about last night was we could not even beat a team that was actively tanking.

Then Covid and injuries happened, especially to their top 7 players and that forced Brad to try to get good results using massively inferior talent to play in roles they weren't prepared or good enough to fill.

Games missed by our best players:

Brown...7... 11% of season
Tatum...7...11%
Smart...20...32%
Kemba...23...37%
Thompson...15...24%
Timelord...15...24%
Payton...6...10%

This is true and it certainly hurt us.   But do you think we can or could beat the elite teams even if healthy?  I think we have a puncher's chance in a seven game series with Philly, Milwaukee and the Nets.  Meaning, that we could beat them but it is not likely and some things would have to go our way.

I do think some other teams made moves to get better more so than we did.  Now, we are painted in a corner with little options.

This team is both physically and mentally exhausted.  The best hope we have is that we don't get the 7th seed, and we can use that gap before the playoffs to physically recharge while also having a couple of full-team practices to get back into the proper mental space.  It's not impossible, and I'm pretty sure the Bucks would be disappointed to draw us a 6th seed.  I don't think this team is trying to coast until the playoffs, like teams sometimes do, but I do think they need something to reset their level of energy and focus, and hopefully the playoffs can provide that.

I'm not confident it will.  It's just my hope.

[nickagneta]

Also want to point out the following:

These are players that have started this year and the amount of games they started:

Fournier…1
Grant…8
Teague…5
Semi…13
Romeo…3
Javonte…2
Edwards…1
Waters…1
Wagner…1

Most of those guys don’t belong in the rotation, never mind starting games

[slamtheking]

The sad thing about last night was we could not even beat a team that was actively tanking.

Then Covid and injuries happened, especially to their top 7 players and that forced Brad to try to get good results using massively inferior talent to play in roles they weren't prepared or good enough to fill.

Games missed by our best players:

Brown...7... 11% of season
Tatum...7...11%
Smart...20...32%
Kemba...23...37%
Thompson...15...24%
Timelord...15...24%
Payton...6...10%

This is true and it certainly hurt us.   But do you think we can or could beat the elite teams even if healthy?  I think we have a puncher's chance in a seven game series with Philly, Milwaukee and the Nets.  Meaning, that we could beat them but it is not likely and some things would have to go our way.

I do think some other teams made moves to get better more so than we did.  Now, we are painted in a corner with little options.

This team is both physically and mentally exhausted.  The best hope we have is that we don't get the 7th seed, and we can use that gap before the playoffs to physically recharge while also having a couple of full-team practices to get back into the proper mental space.  It's not impossible, and I'm pretty sure the Bucks would be disappointed to draw us a 6th seed.  I don't think this team is trying to coast until the playoffs, like teams sometimes do, but I do think they need something to reset their level of energy and focus, and hopefully the playoffs can provide that.

I'm not confident it will.  It's just my hope.

that will be the offseason that starts a lot sooner for this team than was expected at the beginning of the year.   Question at that point is whether a disaster of a regular season and early playoff exit is used by management and the players as an incentive to perform better and comeback with a purpose next year OR just sloughed off as no big deal and we get the same thing again next year.