Time To Panic? I Think So

[Phantom255x]

Smart's been the biggest problem on this team for a while and even the media is seeing it.

It's not even just the box score stats, but at times we praise Smart for doing the "little things". But since he came back all the "little things" he's done have actually impacted us negatively and cost us games late too. Making "losing plays"

Also, why is it that every game now there's at least 1 guy from another team just casually putting up 40+ against us (or 2 guys putting up 25+ in a game). Wasn't defense supposed to be our calling card? Didn't we pride ourselves for playing tough defense against everyone? What happened... (don't answer that lol)

Yesterday Smart shot 4-17 with 3 terrible TOs. He has regressed to his hero-ball ways and agree with others that it is infuriating.  His focus should on being a distributor and playmaker.  I'd much rather see Derrick White in the closing lineup.

Even last year's ECF Game 7, we had a 10-point lead with 3 minutes to go, and Smart literally shot and let MIA back into it. Could you imagine what the narrative would be if Butler hit that 3 and the C's ended up choking that game and a Finals appearance. Ugh

[Kuberski33]

Far too much negativity over the last 2 losses.

They lost in OT and a 2OT. Both games could easily have gone the other way.

I think it's been the past five games.  After a high against Philly, we've seen:

1.  Any ugly loss against the Knicks;
2.  A should-have-been-a-blowout game against the Cavs that closed to four points;
3. A 28-point lead blown against the Nets (in less than two quarters);
4.  A 13-point lead blown against the Knicks;
5.  An 11-point lead with 4:15 left blown against the Cavs.

I just think they're a tired team and it's up to everyone from the star players to the coach to recalibrate and focus on the task at end. When you're blowing leads like that you're mentally checking out and/or missing more shots late in games because you're fatigued, the opponents are defending you harder or both. It doesn't help that the coach has been seemingly in playoff mode since probably the end of January.  No titles have ever been won in February and March, so there's still time to regroup.

But I'd say Joe has some real pressure on him for the first time.  I think you can see it from his sideline demeanor.

[slamtheking]

Far too much negativity over the last 2 losses.

They lost in OT and a 2OT. Both games could easily have gone the other way.

I think it's been the past five games.  After a high against Philly, we've seen:

1.  Any ugly loss against the Knicks;
2.  A should-have-been-a-blowout game against the Cavs that closed to four points;
3. A 28-point lead blown against the Nets (in less than two quarters);
4.  A 13-point lead blown against the Knicks;
5.  An 11-point lead with 4:15 left blown against the Cavs.

I just think they're a tired team and it's up to everyone from the star players to the coach to recalibrate and focus on the task at end. When you're blowing leads like that you're mentally checking out and/or missing more shots late in games because you're fatigued, the opponents are defending you harder or both. It doesn't help that the coach has been seemingly in playoff mode since probably the end of January.  No titles have ever been won in February and March, so there's still time to regroup.

But I'd say Joe has some real pressure on him for the first time.  I think you can see it from his sideline demeanor.

I think there's some truth to this.  he's seeing the wheels come off as we approach the playoffs instead of seeing this team come together and play better.  His hands-off approach/"letting them play through it" hasn't worked and it's being laid bare right now.  The team continues to make mistakes down the stretch of games and/or gets complacent with leads and as a result they're either losing the games or having to fight and claw to pull out a win that shouldn't have been in doubt. 

Joe won't be going anywhere this season but this team's performance the rest of the regular season and the playoffs should weigh heavily on whether he's brought back or canned in favor of a more experienced coach who'll hold this roster accountable for poor play.

[Vermont Green]

I am not going to panic or overreact, it is not my style, but I think two things are true:

• Each of the loses in of itself is not a concern.  For example, losing to CLE in OT when you are down 3 starters, doesn't really mean the team has a problem.
• The trend since January has not been good.  It is a cliché but we finding ways to lose games, not finding ways to win games.

You could go on and on, the starters have hardly played together.  The rookie coach seems to be a bit out of his league.  We have tremendous depth.  Some of our top players have durability issues.  For everything I could list to worry about, I could list something positive.

To be honest, I am bracing myself for a shorter than expected playoff run.  We are running out of real estate to figure this out, and I am not even sure that the coach is capable of figuring it out.  But I am also not going to complain about not signing Nerlens Noel or Derrick Favors.  Just not going to help with the fundamental problems.

[jpotter33]

https://twitter.com/johnschuhmann/status/1632938165865463810?s=46&t=lGU0TGXtwjkuVuoin6WTNw

The Celtics are 11-10 against the other 6 East teams with winning records...

11-3 in regulation.
0-7 in overtime.

Crazy stat. And it does seem consistent with the perception that both Joe and the guys freeze up down the stretch and don’t continue to play the right way.

All that said, I do think injuries and B2Bs play at least some role in this, e.g.:

- all three Cavs losses had variable levels of injuries/absences to starters and role players (last night - Tatum, Al, Timelord; 11/28 - Timelord; 10/28 - Timelord, Grant). Obviously B2B a factor, too.

- two Knicks OT losses were missing Smart for one and Timelord/Brogdon the other (of course Brunson didn’t play the last one either)

- Bucks OT loss we literally did not have our starting five play

- Heat OT loss no Timelord

So all the OT losses we were missing at least one starter, with two missing three or more starters and two missing one starter and a 6th or 7th man.

And you have to think that in OT those absences are magnified even more.

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

https://twitter.com/johnschuhmann/status/1632938165865463810?s=46&t=lGU0TGXtwjkuVuoin6WTNw

The Celtics are 11-10 against the other 6 East teams with winning records...

11-3 in regulation.
0-7 in overtime.

Crazy stat. And it does seem consistent with the perception that both Joe and the guys freeze up down the stretch and don’t continue to play the right way.

All that said, I do think injuries and B2Bs play at least some role in this, e.g.:

- all three Cavs losses had variable levels of injuries/absences to starters and role players (last night - Tatum, Al, Timelord; 11/28 - Timelord; 10/28 - Timelord, Grant). Obviously B2B a factor, too.

- two Knicks OT losses were missing Smart for one and Timelord/Brogdon the other (of course Brunson didn’t play the last one either)

- Bucks OT loss we literally did not have our starting five play

- Heat OT loss no Timelord

So all the OT losses we were missing at least one starter, with two missing three or more starters and two missing one starter and a 6th or 7th man.

And you have to think that in OT those absences are magnified even more.

Makes sense, but here's the big question: Will the injury situation be significantly better come playoff time? Or will this be yet another Celtics season derailed by injuries?

My guess is the latter.

[Celtics2021]

https://twitter.com/johnschuhmann/status/1632938165865463810?s=46&t=lGU0TGXtwjkuVuoin6WTNw

The Celtics are 11-10 against the other 6 East teams with winning records...

11-3 in regulation.
0-7 in overtime.

Crazy stat. And it does seem consistent with the perception that both Joe and the guys freeze up down the stretch and don’t continue to play the right way.

All that said, I do think injuries and B2Bs play at least some role in this, e.g.:

- all three Cavs losses had variable levels of injuries/absences to starters and role players (last night - Tatum, Al, Timelord; 11/28 - Timelord; 10/28 - Timelord, Grant). Obviously B2B a factor, too.

- two Knicks OT losses were missing Smart for one and Timelord/Brogdon the other (of course Brunson didn’t play the last one either)

- Bucks OT loss we literally did not have our starting five play

- Heat OT loss no Timelord

So all the OT losses we were missing at least one starter, with two missing three or more starters and two missing one starter and a 6th or 7th man.

And you have to think that in OT those absences are magnified even more.

It is a crazy stat.  We’re 4-0 in other OT games, so we can win in OT.  And the late game execution to get to OT hasn’t always been terrible, or not rising to the moment.  To get to OT vs. the Heat, for example, we used a Jaylen buzzer-beater.  I was there.  It was an electric moment.  That Knicks game the other day was crazy too — coughed up a big lead in the third, but came back twice in the fourth to force OT, with some huge shots at the end of both regulation and the first overtime. 

11 overtime games leads the league.  Most of this feels random.  Vs. the Knicks, for example, Horford hit a corner three to get us to double OT, and then missed a wide-open corner three to win it at the end.  Same player, same shot, same situation, same game, two different results.  That’s basketball.

[jpotter33]

https://twitter.com/johnschuhmann/status/1632938165865463810?s=46&t=lGU0TGXtwjkuVuoin6WTNw

The Celtics are 11-10 against the other 6 East teams with winning records...

11-3 in regulation.
0-7 in overtime.

Crazy stat. And it does seem consistent with the perception that both Joe and the guys freeze up down the stretch and don’t continue to play the right way.

All that said, I do think injuries and B2Bs play at least some role in this, e.g.:

- all three Cavs losses had variable levels of injuries/absences to starters and role players (last night - Tatum, Al, Timelord; 11/28 - Timelord; 10/28 - Timelord, Grant). Obviously B2B a factor, too.

- two Knicks OT losses were missing Smart for one and Timelord/Brogdon the other (of course Brunson didn’t play the last one either)

- Bucks OT loss we literally did not have our starting five play

- Heat OT loss no Timelord

So all the OT losses we were missing at least one starter, with two missing three or more starters and two missing one starter and a 6th or 7th man.

And you have to think that in OT those absences are magnified even more.

It is a crazy stat.  We’re 4-0 in other OT games, so we can win in OT.  And the late game execution to get to OT hasn’t always been terrible, or not rising to the moment.  To get to OT vs. the Heat, for example, we used a Jaylen buzzer-beater.  I was there.  It was an electric moment.  That Knicks game the other day was crazy too — coughed up a big lead in the third, but came back twice in the fourth to force OT, with some huge shots at the end of both regulation and the first overtime. 

11 overtime games leads the league.  Most of this feels random.  Vs. the Knicks, for example, Horford hit a corner three to get us to double OT, and then missed a wide-open corner three to win it at the end.  Same player, same shot, same situation, same game, two different results.  That’s basketball.

Yeah, I’ve read several of the Celtics reporters lately talking about “luck” and how it’s turned against us multiple times recently.

The moral of the story is - play the right way and don’t let up and let teams back in games, as teams can always get a lucky bounce or missed shots (or free throws, ugh) to turn a game in their favor.

[Kuberski33]

Far too much negativity over the last 2 losses.

They lost in OT and a 2OT. Both games could easily have gone the other way.

I think it's been the past five games.  After a high against Philly, we've seen:

1.  Any ugly loss against the Knicks;
2.  A should-have-been-a-blowout game against the Cavs that closed to four points;
3. A 28-point lead blown against the Nets (in less than two quarters);
4.  A 13-point lead blown against the Knicks;
5.  An 11-point lead with 4:15 left blown against the Cavs.

I just think they're a tired team and it's up to everyone from the star players to the coach to recalibrate and focus on the task at end. When you're blowing leads like that you're mentally checking out and/or missing more shots late in games because you're fatigued, the opponents are defending you harder or both. It doesn't help that the coach has been seemingly in playoff mode since probably the end of January.  No titles have ever been won in February and March, so there's still time to regroup.

But I'd say Joe has some real pressure on him for the first time.  I think you can see it from his sideline demeanor.

I think there's some truth to this.  he's seeing the wheels come off as we approach the playoffs instead of seeing this team come together and play better.  His hands-off approach/"letting them play through it" hasn't worked and it's being laid bare right now.  The team continues to make mistakes down the stretch of games and/or gets complacent with leads and as a result they're either losing the games or having to fight and claw to pull out a win that shouldn't have been in doubt. 

Joe won't be going anywhere this season but this team's performance the rest of the regular season and the playoffs should weigh heavily on whether he's brought back or canned in favor of a more experienced coach who'll hold this roster accountable for poor play.

One area where I think Joe really differs from his GM is that when necessary, Brad would actively manage the last couple of minutes of games. He'd call out specific plays, call them in the huddle during TO's and really get involved. Maybe Joe grows into that?  Maybe not.

Hopefully he'll adjust.

[JSD]

The Celtics will go into that Bucks game on 3/30, on a 10 game winning streak.


Book it.

[Phantom255x]

The Celtics will go into that Bucks game on 3/30, on a 10 game winning streak.


Book it.

[ozgod]

Sky still in place? Hasn't fallen completely yet? 

[Phantom255x]

[scaryjerry]

Not really panicking anymore… just accepting they are 2nd round playoff fodder with little to no chance at winning the title, so if they prove me wrong I’ll now be pleasantly surprised

[celticinorlando]

Celtics look below average at this point in the season. First round games could be vs the Knicks (who they can't seem to figure out), the Heat (who will give them all they want) or the Nets (the team Boston would have the best chance to beat).

Then you get the Sixers and then the Bucks. Boston has shown very little since the start of 2023 that tells me they can survive that. They are so soft mentally and play absolute dog crap defense.

I do not want to hear about turning it on when the playoffs start because they do not look like a team capable of doing that. 13 games left and they still are turning it over a ton and get killed on the boards.

I do not like the effort this team puts forth. They are the reverse of last year.