Rant: why does it feel like we are not contenders? 23-15 since xmas

[celticinorlando]

boston is going to have their hands full for every series.

[wahz]

I said many times we weren't remotely as good as our pre-Christmas record. Now I have a feeling we're slightly better than our present W/L record.

  Before the injuries struck we were as good as any team in the league. LA was best for a while, then Cleveland, then us. The biggest question right now is if we'll have enough time to get back into synch before the 2nd round of the playoffs.

Don't assume that the first round will be a cake walk.  Depending on how things shake out, Detroit, Philly, or Miami could all be tough first-round opponents if we have a lot of rust going into the playoffs. 

Detroit has a lot of talent on that team, and could beat anybody in a series (although I'm not overly scared, due to their chemistry being a mess).  Philly is playing well in the second half (22-11 in their last 33), and Miami has Wade.  Any of those teams is capable of beating the Celts if they're not sharp.

TP.

And frankly, what do you see in the current situation that gives you any hope that the Celtics will be sharp before the playoffs? Are 13 games enough to get Garnett back to mid-season form? Will Marbury contribute anything? What about Rondo's ankle? Allen's elbow? Powe's leg?

Doesn't much matter to me who's on the floor: The focus and intensity that the Celtics brought to the floor last season is gone. And that worries me. A lot.

Looking more and more likely that we'll need the first round to fine-tune our game - and that's a very dangerous place to be. Plenty of excuses why our game has deteriorated to this level - and none of them matter a whit in the playoffs. Play well, or a year of the Garnett-Pierce-Allen window is gone. For good.

That pretty much sums it up for me, coach. Of course its injuries. But we are suppose to be confident that we can overcome the loss of hca and the injuries and the lack of sharpness going into the playoffs? What I suggested at the top was the Orlando and Cle games will tell the tale if we have a good shot or not.

The injuries feed on themselves because of the effort that is required of the remaining players. And this domino effect happened while we we were supposed to be integrating two new players and getting them use to a winning atmosphere.

With all that has happened, I'll say again those orl and cle games will be the test. We need to gel by then. Orlando is soon, but Cle is right before the playoffs. Id like to see us play well and I agree with someone else who said being underestimated may well end up playing to our advantage. I am worried about the refs though. I don't expect it to be fair without hca.

[Tai]

I said many times we weren't remotely as good as our pre-Christmas record. Now I have a feeling we're slightly better than our present W/L record.

  Before the injuries struck we were as good as any team in the league. LA was best for a while, then Cleveland, then us. The biggest question right now is if we'll have enough time to get back into synch before the 2nd round of the playoffs.

Don't assume that the first round will be a cake walk.  Depending on how things shake out, Detroit, Philly, or Miami could all be tough first-round opponents if we have a lot of rust going into the playoffs. 

Detroit has a lot of talent on that team, and could beat anybody in a series (although I'm not overly scared, due to their chemistry being a mess).  Philly is playing well in the second half (22-11 in their last 33), and Miami has Wade.  Any of those teams is capable of beating the Celts if they're not sharp.

TP.

And frankly, what do you see in the current situation that gives you any hope that the Celtics will be sharp before the playoffs? Are 13 games enough to get Garnett back to mid-season form? Will Marbury contribute anything? What about Rondo's ankle? Allen's elbow? Powe's leg?

Doesn't much matter to me who's on the floor: The focus and intensity that the Celtics brought to the floor last season is gone. And that worries me. A lot.

Looking more and more likely that we'll need the first round to fine-tune our game - and that's a very dangerous place to be. Plenty of excuses why our game has deteriorated to this level - and none of them matter a whit in the playoffs. Play well, or a year of the Garnett-Pierce-Allen window is gone. For good.

In your first paragraph, you forgot Tony Allen's thumb.

Anyways, I understand you don't want something as bad once you got it. That said, if all that's summed up to is 3rd best regular season record in the league thus far with only the Cavs and Lakers being better, then I think anyone who's not happy with that right now is just plain spoiled. Even if the Magic pass us (which is still debatable), being in the top 4 out of 30 teams is pretty good for a team that's just lost that intensity. 

 But back to what I was saying about anyone being spoiled. Yes, we have been spoiled. 27-2 spoiled us. At the same time, you forget that was our record when we were healthy and other teams were down a good guy or two. When our bench could blow 20 point leads just to have our starters pick that lead back up again. When it was easier with a wee bit more depth.

 It's hard to have as much intensity for something you already have, but it's also hard to have as much intensity has you've known yourself to when your energy is severely compromised. A defending champion with players who've never won it before will have more or less of a let down the next year, but so will a team down four or five players.

27-2 proved we can win against any team and on average convincingly when healthy. Only the next few weeks can tell if we'll be healthy when mid April comes around.