Doc hasn't got anymore up his sleeve.

[RGN07]

What we see is what we got. No aces up nobody's sleeve, no secret weapons, this is it. Brace ourselves and hope.

[Celticjay]

Look when they get shaq back Kg is going to get more aggressive again. Has anyone noticed how calm and gentle he's been since he's being playing with Krisitic or BAby.  He needs a big body to dish out punishment like shaq did earlier in the year.  Shaq's d was shoddy, but one thing he did was HAMMER anyone driving in the lane, he used up his fouls and made people think twice about driving again.  That is what we need some beef to clog things up and allow KG to be himself again.  He even said "playing with shaq is a like a dream".

Big diesel on Sunday and a big win..

[Celtics/Run]

What we see is what we got. No aces up nobody's sleeve, no secret weapons, this is it. Brace ourselves and hope.

Doc just needs to right up a prescription for success...

1.Rebound
2.Protect the paint
3.No hero ball
4.Don't pass the ball to Baby unless it's in the post
5.Rondo must attack for 4 quarters
6.Pierce should take the most shots
7.Garnet should take the second most shots
8.Allen should take the third most shots
9.Baby should take the least amount of shots
10.Get Shaq back

[PseudoElite]

I don't get it, what was Doc supposed to do tonight?

Jermaine O Neal JUST got back from surgery, and all the Celtics other 7 footers are injured.

Big Baby Davis is our only defense against opposing teams centers, and we all see how that works out.

And it was a back to back with one of the oldest teams in the league.

Save your judgement of Doc until the playoffs, saying stuff like that is foolish considering all the circumstances against him.  

[xmuscularghandix]

Fire Danny Ainge

Fire Doc Rivers

Trade Rondo

[RGN07]

I don't get it, what was Doc supposed to do tonight?

Jermaine O Neal JUST got back from surgery, and all the Celtics other 7 footers are injured.

Big Baby Davis is our only defense against opposing teams centers, and we all see how that works out.

And it was a back to back with one of the oldest teams in the league.

Here's what Doc can do:

1) When players like Ray and Big baby are missing their open looks for like, a 5-6 minute stretch, a substitution could be in order until they can recover.
2) If Rondo appears to be slacking off, get him outta there.
3) If Delonte West seems tentative, order him to take over, or get Arroyo in the act and be aggressive on offense.
4) Get Green on the low post for a change, not Baby always.

Look, Doc has a habit of over extending men even if they're not up to speed. I know what he's trying to do, he wants to give then time to compose themselves. But it hasn't been working for the past 20 games now.

Atlanta gets JJ and Crawford out every time they start slacking off but when they return they're regrouped.

[aporel#18]

We're fooling ourselves when we believe what Doc and Danny are talking about slumps, injuries, and the rotation.

If you look at the graphic from Jeff's post on  wednesday, you'll notice a very interesting fact:



On february 19th of 2009, KG injured his knee in Utah. The Celtics were winning at .600 for a month, in the stretch where KG was out. Then they won the first three after KG returned, and  finally they lost to Orlando on march 25th and that was KG's last game that season. The last 9 games, without KG, the Celtics won 8, they put their 'A' effort to make a run, and when the playoffs started they struggled to beat the Bulls in the first round. After that, the Orlando Magic outlasted them in the EC Semis. We all remember how banged and tired were Rondo, Ray, Pierce and Perk in that series.

Last season, Doc and Danny didn't want them to be tired in the postseason, and they coasted by design, no matter what Doc says.

This season is the same, they are hiding their cards, and althought they've been extremely unlucky with injuries, you can tell the Celtics are not playing at full strenght, they are not forcing it.

We're fooling ourselves, blaming anyone or anything for the Celtics slump, but tonight I saw Doc playing Green and Davis at the 4 and 5 for more minutes than he should. JO might have played a bit more, you could see Baby struggling to run up and down the court and Doc didn't use Green in the Posey role. I hope Krstic can play because Shaq/KG/JO/Krstic/BBD is the best frontcourt in the whole league.

They learned their lesson in 2009, and they are saving energy for the playoffs. I hope it works out and we get #18, but by now, I won't blame anyone for the Celtics shortcomings, it's Doc and Danny's plan.

Doc may not have anymore up his sleeve, but it's just because Shaq is too big to fit into anyone's sleeve.

Go Celtics!!

[RGN07]

We're fooling ourselves when we believe what Doc and Danny are talking about slumps, injuries, and the rotation.

If you look at the graphic from Jeff's post on  wednesday, you'll notice a very interesting fact:



On february 19th of 2009, KG injured his knee in Utah. The Celtics were winning at .600 for a month, in the stretch where KG was out. Then they won the first three after KG returned, and  finally they lost to Orlando on march 25th and that was KG's last game that season. The last 9 games, without KG, the Celtics won 8, they put their 'A' effort to make a run, and when the playoffs started they struggled to beat the Bulls in the first round. After that, the Orlando Magic outlasted them in the EC Semis. We all remember how banged and tired were Rondo, Ray, Pierce and Perk in that series.

Last season, Doc and Danny didn't want them to be tired in the postseason, and they coasted by design, no matter what Doc says.

This season is the same, they are hiding their cards, and althought they've been extremely unlucky with injuries, you can tell the Celtics are not playing at full strenght, they are not forcing it.

We're fooling ourselves, blaming anyone or anything for the Celtics slump, but tonight I saw Doc playing Green and Davis at the 4 and 5 for more minutes than he should. JO might have played a bit more, you could see Baby struggling to run up and down the court and Doc didn't use Green in the Posey role. I hope Krstic can play because Shaq/KG/JO/Krstic/BBD is the best frontcourt in the whole league.

They learned their lesson in 2009, and they are saving energy for the playoffs. I hope it works out and we get #18, but by now, I won't blame anyone for the Celtics shortcomings, it's Doc and Danny's plan.

Doc may not have anymore up his sleeve, but it's just because Shaq is too big to fit into anyone's sleeve.

Go Celtics!!

What? You honestly believe they're saving energy? Did you see Rondo requesting to be replaced? He was gasping for air. Do you know how KG breathes through his mouth? If they're saving energy why does Doc end up with the starters at the end of every game? Don't you think it would be wise just allow a loss and use the top guns sparingly? And what about Krstic busting his knee in the 2nd quarter, was he holding back his energy?
No, i don't think so. The only one saving any energy is Shaq.
And one more thing. When you go out on the court, your instincts are to play well and hard. From how all NBA teams perform, seldom do they pull their punches, remember every game is an audition. They know this.

[aporel#18]

We're fooling ourselves when we believe what Doc and Danny are talking about slumps, injuries, and the rotation.

If you look at the graphic from Jeff's post on  wednesday, you'll notice a very interesting fact:



On february 19th of 2009, KG injured his knee in Utah. The Celtics were winning at .600 for a month, in the stretch where KG was out. Then they won the first three after KG returned, and  finally they lost to Orlando on march 25th and that was KG's last game that season. The last 9 games, without KG, the Celtics won 8, they put their 'A' effort to make a run, and when the playoffs started they struggled to beat the Bulls in the first round. After that, the Orlando Magic outlasted them in the EC Semis. We all remember how banged and tired were Rondo, Ray, Pierce and Perk in that series.

Last season, Doc and Danny didn't want them to be tired in the postseason, and they coasted by design, no matter what Doc says.

This season is the same, they are hiding their cards, and althought they've been extremely unlucky with injuries, you can tell the Celtics are not playing at full strenght, they are not forcing it.

We're fooling ourselves, blaming anyone or anything for the Celtics slump, but tonight I saw Doc playing Green and Davis at the 4 and 5 for more minutes than he should. JO might have played a bit more, you could see Baby struggling to run up and down the court and Doc didn't use Green in the Posey role. I hope Krstic can play because Shaq/KG/JO/Krstic/BBD is the best frontcourt in the whole league.

They learned their lesson in 2009, and they are saving energy for the playoffs. I hope it works out and we get #18, but by now, I won't blame anyone for the Celtics shortcomings, it's Doc and Danny's plan.

Doc may not have anymore up his sleeve, but it's just because Shaq is too big to fit into anyone's sleeve.

Go Celtics!!

What? You honestly believe they're saving energy? Did you see Rondo requesting to be replaced? He was gasping for air. Do you know how KG breathes through his mouth? If they're saving energy why does Doc end up with the starters at the end of every game? Don't you think it would be wise just allow a loss and use the top guns sparingly? And what about Krstic busting his knee in the 2nd quarter, was he holding back his energy?
No, i don't think so. The only one saving any energy is Shaq.
And one more thing. When you go out on the court, your instincts are to play well and hard. From how all NBA teams perform, seldom do they pull their punches, remember every game is an audition. They know this.

No, they are saving just Shaq but Doc is not forcing his starters. Ray may play a lot, but he's an ironman. The players are not saving energy on purpose, and Krstic, like others, just got injured. But Doc is not adjusting the minutes to win games, right now he's making the team look like they are in preseason. And that means he's trying to win in the playoffs. If they win now, ok, if they don't, it's no big deal.

The most tired player in last night's game was Davis, and Doc kept him in the game. He even played with Green and Davis as the 4 and the 5. To me, they don't underperform on purpose, but they play like they don't care for 48 minutes. That's a mental thing, and I don't believe Doc is really trying to make them play with a sense of urgency.

What you say about every game being an audition is generally true. For the Celtics, it's been like you say for the first 3/4 of the season, but after that they just focus on the playoff run. And I think is a good idea.

Injuries are not part of the plan, and right now missing Krstic is a big problem for the Celtics. Other than that, I'm fine with their performance.

[jambr380]

It just seems like he is afraid to hurt his player's feelings right now. Obviously Baby is taking too many shots. I don't get why he can't be more direct about this. Also, Green needs to be more aggressive (but I think he has been relatively effective). I know he likes to let his players work things out, as they are a veteran team, but this is no way to go into the playoffs.

Yes, we should get Shaq back and will probably have a strong playoff run, but on a game by game basis, it can be frustrating.

[Mazingerz]

I think I saw many posts here regarding our impending loss to Atlanta because of it being a back to back game and it being very tiring to our guys.

Now that the loss came true, y'all complain.

Man, don't all be like this. Lets wait when the playoffs start.

[PseudoElite]

I think I saw many posts here regarding our impending loss to Atlanta because of it being a back to back game and it being very tiring to our guys.

Now that the loss came true, y'all complain.

Man, don't all be like this. Lets wait when the playoffs start.

TP for that the post.

[BballTim]

What we see is what we got. No aces up nobody's sleeve, no secret weapons, this is it. Brace ourselves and hope.

  Did Doc need to have anything up his sleeve in SA the other night?

[Marcus13]

All I keep hearing is saving themselves and reducing minutes....but the fact is our 35 year old shooting guard is playing 35 mpg and it's running him straight into the ground

[LB3533]

To me, Ray Allen's game requires he play a lot of minutes so he can get into a good flow.

If Ray plays less minutes, he still won't have a good shooting game, slump or no slump.