Heat (48-28) at Celtics (47-29) Game #77 3/30/22

[liam]

Just finished the game on the DVR and those refs tonight were TERRIBLE. Every bad call went against the celts and they were calling ticky tacky stuff on the heat but letting the celtics get bludgeoned in the paint all game. I dont get how we are at home and never get a favorable whistle. The called a ridiculous tech on tatum but 5 minutes later Tucker and Dedmond were screaming in the refs face and received nothing.

And im sorry but Grant Williams cant call himself Batman and then put up mediocre performances every night especially when he gets the start. And still waiting on D White to actually show something out there hes been very mediocre lately too

The refs absolutely killed the game. Some bad calls against Al and Grant and Tatum got nothing. Tatum was getting mugged. On one play Strus fouled Tatum and didn't get the call and Strus had the balls to argue the ball was off Tatum. Many, many really bad calls. Bad out of bounds calls. Strus got away with murder over and over again.

[hpantazo]

At least nobody can say we tanked to avoid the Nets. We've been clearly playing hard these last few games.

[liam]

At least nobody can say we tanked to avoid the Nets. We've been clearly playing hard these last few games.

Play smarter...

[pokeKingCurtis]

Aight, JB/JT confirmed AVAILABLE.

https://twitter.com/celtics/status/1509296164922920960

This is it folks.

This is the litmus test.

Do we have what it takes to be competitive without Rob.

Man, this is the most excited I've been about a game in a while.

_{Disclaimer: there's no such thing as a definitive test to see if you can compete, obviously. results may vary. but it's a great indicator. and it's not going to depend on getting a W or an L. That's just one statistic. terms and conditions apply. now read this disclaimer again, and say it out loud.}

I'm sure we will have measured and even keeled responses to this game. 

But adjusting to life without TimeLord within 5 games is gonna be a tall order.

I kinda like that what we saw was exactly the issues we've fixed before.

Might be as simple as a couple sessions on extra passes with Theis in the mix in a different spot, as well as defensive rotations tightening up a bit more.

We're not just replacing Rob the athletic big - we're also replacing a person that has built a tonne of good habits.

Hope we can get Theis/Grant up to speed soon. There's hope!

I was only able to watch the 2nd quarter, but "issues" and "before" - definitely saw issues from before (sloppy D, sloppy offense).

I'm not a good enough analyst to identify that Grant/Theis was the issue anyway (in the sense that they don't have the good habits Rob does, despite both playing well today I think) - TP for that. But makes sense, the 4/5 is still the back line and so important on both ends.

To elaborate a bit;

They don't even necessarily have to be the issue. The issue can just as easily be "chemistry".

That's kinda the point I was making with "not just missing Rob, we're missing a piece we've had before". Chemistry can be as simple as *looking* for someone, somewhere. That can be Theis/Grant's fault, or literally anyone that wants to pass to them. Or does/doesn't expect them to be in the right place. Overcommitting to compensate for someone not being in the lineup.

It really isn't as simple as replacing X with Y and making them do the same things Trust is a factor too. You don't just instantly get that

I'm cool with what I saw and am looking forward to seeing if we can get things right before we head into the playoffs.

That's true.

A few games for our playmakers...Smart, White, Brown, Tatum and Horford (so many lol)...to adjust. And also for our defense to adjust to Theis + Grant.

[Billz401]

Just finished the game on the DVR and those refs tonight were TERRIBLE. Every bad call went against the celts and they were calling ticky tacky stuff on the heat but letting the celtics get bludgeoned in the paint all game. I dont get how we are at home and never get a favorable whistle. The called a ridiculous tech on tatum but 5 minutes later Tucker and Dedmond were screaming in the refs face and received nothing.

And im sorry but Grant Williams cant call himself Batman and then put up mediocre performances every night especially when he gets the start. And still waiting on D White to actually show something out there hes been very mediocre lately too

The refs absolutely killed the game. Some bad calls against Al and Grant and Tatum got nothing. Tatum was getting mugged. On one play Strus fouled Tatum and didn't get the call and Strus had the balls to argue the ball was off Tatum. Many, many really bad calls. Bad out of bounds calls. Strus got away with murder over and over again.

Yeah pretty bogus that the refs can be dead wrong on that out of bounds call when it clearly went off Adebayo but cant review it and we had already used our challenge. Last 2 minutes out of bounds calls, charge/blocks, and block/goaltends should be auto review. Dont give me that bs about it making the game longer, i dont care when those calls in the last 2 minutes are literally game changing calls. Get it right

[hpantazo]

Just finished the game on the DVR and those refs tonight were TERRIBLE. Every bad call went against the celts and they were calling ticky tacky stuff on the heat but letting the celtics get bludgeoned in the paint all game. I dont get how we are at home and never get a favorable whistle. The called a ridiculous tech on tatum but 5 minutes later Tucker and Dedmond were screaming in the refs face and received nothing.

And im sorry but Grant Williams cant call himself Batman and then put up mediocre performances every night especially when he gets the start. And still waiting on D White to actually show something out there hes been very mediocre lately too

The refs absolutely killed the game. Some bad calls against Al and Grant and Tatum got nothing. Tatum was getting mugged. On one play Strus fouled Tatum and didn't get the call and Strus had the balls to argue the ball was off Tatum. Many, many really bad calls. Bad out of bounds calls. Strus got away with murder over and over again.

Yeah pretty bogus that the refs can be dead wrong on that out of bounds call when it clearly went off Adebayo but cant review it and we had already used our challenge. Last 2 minutes out of bounds calls, charge/blocks, and block/goaltends should be auto review. Dont give me that bs about it making the game longer, i dont care when those calls in the last 2 minutes are literally game changing calls. Get it right

I’m still upset about the charge on Tatum that they reviewed and still called a charge. Strus was moving his feet all the way.

[86MaxwellSmart]

C's clearly cannot finish end of quarters---1st, 2nd and 4th we blew leads, should have won this game by 10

[Roy H.]

C's clearly cannot finish end of quarters---1st, 2nd and 4th we blew leads, should have won this game by 10

How should we have executed our defense better at the end of the 1st?  Herro’s three was a big play, but he hit in over two guys defending him closely.

[Phantom255x]

This isn't me downplaying their winning streak or calling it a fluke. I still think the team can make a deep run.

But last night's game kind of highlights the areas where the C's could be screwed, particularly with the depth and secondary scoring now that Timelord's out. Guys like G-Will and Pritchard can't combine for only 7 points off the bench. And with Tatum, teams will definitely double or in some cases even triple team him and force another guy to win the game. This will happen against good teams in the playoffs and they'll need to figure out a way. Because last night, only 6 points in the final 5 minutes and 15 points total in the quarter. Not ideal. I believe that's also how they lost to the Mavs, Tatum was pressured and the rest of the team couldn't cover.

Tatum can still put up good numbers when the focus is on him, but he won't always be able to put up 40+

Another thing that could be a bit troubling is, yes they have the impressive win over BKN late, but otherwise it feels like when the C's are in a tight game late, more often than not they can't close or can't come up in the clutch. The problem is, a lot of playoff games tend to be close games.

[slamtheking]

This isn't me downplaying their winning streak or calling it a fluke. I still think the team can make a deep run.

But last night's game kind of highlights the areas where the C's could be screwed, particularly with the depth and secondary scoring now that Timelord's out. Guys like G-Will and Pritchard can't combine for only 7 points off the bench. And with Tatum, teams will definitely double or in some cases even triple team him and force another guy to win the game. This will happen against good teams in the playoffs and they'll need to figure out a way. Because last night, only 6 points in the final 5 minutes and 15 points total in the quarter. Not ideal. I believe that's also how they lost to the Mavs, Tatum was pressured and the rest of the team couldn't cover.

Tatum can still put up good numbers when the focus is on him, but he won't always be able to put up 40+

Another thing that could be a bit troubling is, yes they have the impressive win over BKN late, but otherwise it feels like when the C's are in a tight game late, more often than not they can't close or can't come up in the clutch. The problem is, a lot of playoff games tend to be close games.

this.

this team hasn't shown it knows how to close out close games successfully on a repeated basis.  they win these types of games once in a while but not as often as a contending team should.  It's been a very different story with a lot of their wins coming from games where they build a huge lead and hang on but even watching those there's a collective holding of breaths when the other team makes a run and wondering if the C's fold like they did earlier this season.

the talent is there to make a run to the finals.  question is whether they have the smarts and BBIQ to handle how other teams will take away what the C's want to do to win.

[gouki88]

This isn't me downplaying their winning streak or calling it a fluke. I still think the team can make a deep run.

But last night's game kind of highlights the areas where the C's could be screwed, particularly with the depth and secondary scoring now that Timelord's out. Guys like G-Will and Pritchard can't combine for only 7 points off the bench. And with Tatum, teams will definitely double or in some cases even triple team him and force another guy to win the game. This will happen against good teams in the playoffs and they'll need to figure out a way. Because last night, only 6 points in the final 5 minutes and 15 points total in the quarter. Not ideal. I believe that's also how they lost to the Mavs, Tatum was pressured and the rest of the team couldn't cover.

Tatum can still put up good numbers when the focus is on him, but he won't always be able to put up 40+

Another thing that could be a bit troubling is, yes they have the impressive win over BKN late, but otherwise it feels like when the C's are in a tight game late, more often than not they can't close or can't come up in the clutch. The problem is, a lot of playoff games tend to be close games.

this.

this team hasn't shown it knows how to close out close games successfully on a repeated basis.  they win these types of games once in a while but not as often as a contending team should.  It's been a very different story with a lot of their wins coming from games where they build a huge lead and hang on but even watching those there's a collective holding of breaths when the other team makes a run and wondering if the C's fold like they did earlier this season.

the talent is there to make a run to the finals.  question is whether they have the smarts and BBIQ to handle how other teams will take away what the C's want to do to win.

This isn't a one way street though. Our defence has been amazing and our offence has matched it over the last few weeks - give us a whole series to continuously adjust and I like our chances to beat any team over 7

[jambr380]

This isn't me downplaying their winning streak or calling it a fluke. I still think the team can make a deep run.

But last night's game kind of highlights the areas where the C's could be screwed, particularly with the depth and secondary scoring now that Timelord's out. Guys like G-Will and Pritchard can't combine for only 7 points off the bench. And with Tatum, teams will definitely double or in some cases even triple team him and force another guy to win the game. This will happen against good teams in the playoffs and they'll need to figure out a way. Because last night, only 6 points in the final 5 minutes and 15 points total in the quarter. Not ideal. I believe that's also how they lost to the Mavs, Tatum was pressured and the rest of the team couldn't cover.

Tatum can still put up good numbers when the focus is on him, but he won't always be able to put up 40+

Another thing that could be a bit troubling is, yes they have the impressive win over BKN late, but otherwise it feels like when the C's are in a tight game late, more often than not they can't close or can't come up in the clutch. The problem is, a lot of playoff games tend to be close games.

this.

this team hasn't shown it knows how to close out close games successfully on a repeated basis.  they win these types of games once in a while but not as often as a contending team should.  It's been a very different story with a lot of their wins coming from games where they build a huge lead and hang on but even watching those there's a collective holding of breaths when the other team makes a run and wondering if the C's fold like they did earlier this season.

the talent is there to make a run to the finals.  question is whether they have the smarts and BBIQ to handle how other teams will take away what the C's want to do to win.

This isn't a one way street though. Our defence has been amazing and our offence has matched it over the last few weeks - give us a whole series to continuously adjust and I like our chances to beat any team over 7

He can probably adjust game to game, but I don't know that I trust Ime's ability to adjust through a series of close games. Don't get me wrong, he has a very good game plan and sets guys up to succeed, but I trusted Brad's ability to adjust in-game a lot more than Ime. For as successful as this season has been, our close game execution has been an utter disaster this season. I mean, last night doesn't even count as a 'close game' with it being an 8 point loss - that's how poorly it went down the stretch.

[Phantom255x]

This isn't me downplaying their winning streak or calling it a fluke. I still think the team can make a deep run.

But last night's game kind of highlights the areas where the C's could be screwed, particularly with the depth and secondary scoring now that Timelord's out. Guys like G-Will and Pritchard can't combine for only 7 points off the bench. And with Tatum, teams will definitely double or in some cases even triple team him and force another guy to win the game. This will happen against good teams in the playoffs and they'll need to figure out a way. Because last night, only 6 points in the final 5 minutes and 15 points total in the quarter. Not ideal. I believe that's also how they lost to the Mavs, Tatum was pressured and the rest of the team couldn't cover.

Tatum can still put up good numbers when the focus is on him, but he won't always be able to put up 40+

Another thing that could be a bit troubling is, yes they have the impressive win over BKN late, but otherwise it feels like when the C's are in a tight game late, more often than not they can't close or can't come up in the clutch. The problem is, a lot of playoff games tend to be close games.

this.

this team hasn't shown it knows how to close out close games successfully on a repeated basis.  they win these types of games once in a while but not as often as a contending team should.  It's been a very different story with a lot of their wins coming from games where they build a huge lead and hang on but even watching those there's a collective holding of breaths when the other team makes a run and wondering if the C's fold like they did earlier this season.

the talent is there to make a run to the finals.  question is whether they have the smarts and BBIQ to handle how other teams will take away what the C's want to do to win.

This isn't a one way street though. Our defence has been amazing and our offence has matched it over the last few weeks - give us a whole series to continuously adjust and I like our chances to beat any team over 7

I don't dispute that, but in the playoffs you'll have to find a way to win or steal a close game in a series especially after the first round of the playoffs. It does seem to me that this team will either win in blowouts or lose close games lol, rarely in-between

[Donoghus]

This isn't me downplaying their winning streak or calling it a fluke. I still think the team can make a deep run.

But last night's game kind of highlights the areas where the C's could be screwed, particularly with the depth and secondary scoring now that Timelord's out. Guys like G-Will and Pritchard can't combine for only 7 points off the bench. And with Tatum, teams will definitely double or in some cases even triple team him and force another guy to win the game. This will happen against good teams in the playoffs and they'll need to figure out a way. Because last night, only 6 points in the final 5 minutes and 15 points total in the quarter. Not ideal. I believe that's also how they lost to the Mavs, Tatum was pressured and the rest of the team couldn't cover.

Tatum can still put up good numbers when the focus is on him, but he won't always be able to put up 40+

Another thing that could be a bit troubling is, yes they have the impressive win over BKN late, but otherwise it feels like when the C's are in a tight game late, more often than not they can't close or can't come up in the clutch. The problem is, a lot of playoff games tend to be close games.

this.

this team hasn't shown it knows how to close out close games successfully on a repeated basis.  they win these types of games once in a while but not as often as a contending team should.  It's been a very different story with a lot of their wins coming from games where they build a huge lead and hang on but even watching those there's a collective holding of breaths when the other team makes a run and wondering if the C's fold like they did earlier this season.

the talent is there to make a run to the finals.  question is whether they have the smarts and BBIQ to handle how other teams will take away what the C's want to do to win.

This isn't a one way street though. Our defence has been amazing and our offence has matched it over the last few weeks - give us a whole series to continuously adjust and I like our chances to beat any team over 7

I don't dispute that, but in the playoffs you'll have to find a way to win or steal a close game in a series especially after the first round of the playoffs. It does seem to me that this team will either win in blowouts or lose close games lol, rarely in-between

This team has a boatload of playoff experience. Combine that with the way they've been playing much of the time since early January, I feel pretty good that they'll be fine come playoff time.

[LilRip]

Horrible refs. Tatum and Brown constantly got hit, all game.

The team also looked different without Rob out there. The  team needs to gel quickly to stand a chance of making it to the ECF