This team doesn't have it

[ItStaysYang]

First and foremost, this isn't a knee-jerk thread. I've been considering the scenario for the past several weeks, and it's time to call it as it is.

It's no one's fault in particular. The diminishing returns on the Big 3 glory days have brought not only a ring, but a second finals appearance, and playoff appearances every year since. Last year was rough, but with the "Big 4" (RIP) still intact, albeit loosely with Allen's bone spurs, you could never count us out - and I was in full agreement.

This year? No Ray, no Rondo. No "veterans" aside from Pierce, KG, and Terry (who isn't going to be miraculous in the playoffs, despite what anyone thinks). Chemistry changes on the reg - with the newest pieces all being added within recent weeks.

The glory days are over folks. Would have been a different story sans the Rondo injury, as I still believe Green, Lee, and whoever else would have began playing better sooner or later. But without the best point guard in the league (ha) and with all of these new guys who seem to have trouble closing out games on the road, it's hard to be realistic about this team getting out of the second round alive, or maybe even the first depending on the match up.

Miami has won 27 straight games. Anyone who thinks this squad can beat the heat in 7 games in whatever round needs to start thinking less like a homer and more like an analyst, or you will be thoroughly disappointed.

Let's hope Pierce and KG hang it up at the end of this year so we can get serious about the future. And let's hope this club doesn't return to mediocrity while the heat win 6 straight rings

[Celtics18]

"Think like an analyst"?  O.K.  The Heat are the clear favorites to win the East and the NBA championship.  No dispute there.

Can we beat them?  There's a sliver of possibility there in my mind.  I'm hanging on to that until this team is eliminated. 

[Atzar]

I've mentioned this in another thread.

I'd almost prefer to see this team drop to the 8 seed so they get Miami right off the bat.  That's the only matchup this team cares about, and I honestly don't know if they'd make it through a series with another tough team to get to them.

Let them throw everything they've got at Miami.  I don't think they'll win, and as depleted as they are I'm not sure they can even really test them.  But that won't stop them from trying. 

[ItStaysYang]

"Think like an analyst"?  O.K.  The Heat are the clear favorites to win the East and the NBA championship.  No dispute there.

Can we beat them?  There's a sliver of possibility there in my mind.  I'm hanging on to that until this team is eliminated.

An independent analyst... not an ESPN analyst (haha)

... and nowhere along the line did I say they should quit trying or anything like that

[NocturnalRebel]

I laughed at "think like an analyst" then read further to see you say "while the heat win 6 straight rings." That's an ESPN way of thinking. And tha word should have been "realist". But In my opinion, it's not that this team "doesn't have it", it's just gonna be hard tha rest of tha way and they're gonna have to fight and claw for everything they want. This team still lacks consistency and that has to improve.

I just think back to games where tha Celtics have built big leads and have blew them because they don't follow through. If this team can play well enough to build 10-15+ point leads, they can play well enough to sustain it throughout tha game. All it comes down to is effort and I think that's where tha frustration kicks in. They go up by so much, coast until tha team is back into tha game, and put themselves into a position to fight more than they have to to escape with a win.

I want to see this team fight every game for 48 minutes. If you lose, you lose. I just want to see and know that at least tha effort was there. Doc needs to get more from these players. And if they have to get on each other for when they mess up, they should do so. Tha leadership has to come from somehwere. I look at how George Karl gets tha most from a team that has no superstars and how Pop gets tha most from a team that has old players and both are sitting at tha top of their conference. I still believe in this team and believe they can be better. They just need to exert a better effort on a more consistent basis. Go Celtics.

[lightspeed5]

ive seen this thread every year since 2008. it was pretty funny when it was posted in 2010 for sure.

[Celtics4ever]

Let's hope it works again eh? (grin)

[Boston Garden Leprechaun]

First and foremost, this isn't a knee-jerk thread. I've been considering the scenario for the past several weeks, and it's time to call it as it is.

It's no one's fault in particular. The diminishing returns on the Big 3 glory days have brought not only a ring, but a second finals appearance, and playoff appearances every year since. Last year was rough, but with the "Big 4" (RIP) still intact, albeit loosely with Allen's bone spurs, you could never count us out - and I was in full agreement.

This year? No Ray, no Rondo. No "veterans" aside from Pierce, KG, and Terry (who isn't going to be miraculous in the playoffs, despite what anyone thinks). Chemistry changes on the reg - with the newest pieces all being added within recent weeks.

The glory days are over folks. Would have been a different story sans the Rondo injury, as I still believe Green, Lee, and whoever else would have began playing better sooner or later. But without the best point guard in the league (ha) and with all of these new guys who seem to have trouble closing out games on the road, it's hard to be realistic about this team getting out of the second round alive, or maybe even the first depending on the match up.

Miami has won 27 straight games. Anyone who thinks this squad can beat the heat in 7 games in whatever round needs to start thinking less like a homer and more like an analyst, or you will be thoroughly disappointed.

Let's hope Pierce and KG hang it up at the end of this year so we can get serious about the future. And let's hope this club doesn't return to mediocrity while the heat win 6 straight rings

6 straight rings? you just lost any credibility you may have had with that statement. The heat are not winning 6 straight.

[clover]

I've mentioned this in another thread.

I'd almost prefer to see this team drop to the 8 seed so they get Miami right off the bat.  That's the only matchup this team cares about, and I honestly don't know if they'd make it through a series with another tough team to get to them.

Let them throw everything they've got at Miami.  I don't think they'll win, and as depleted as they are I'm not sure they can even really test them.  But that won't stop them from trying.

I agree with you.  Also, from a future-looking perspective, without KG they C's could well drop to the worst record making the playoffs--and, if I understand correctly, climb up to the 12th pick in the draft.

Also, from a fan perspective, I don't expect more than one playoff series from this team, so we might as well have Miami as the match up.

[scaryjerry]

ive seen this thread every year since 2008. it was pretty funny when it was posted in 2010 for sure.

What did we win in 2010?

[JSD]

In 2010, we won the East and [dang] near won the championship... it was a decent year.

[slamtheking]

I've mentioned this in another thread.

I'd almost prefer to see this team drop to the 8 seed so they get Miami right off the bat.  That's the only matchup this team cares about, and I honestly don't know if they'd make it through a series with another tough team to get to them.

Let them throw everything they've got at Miami.  I don't think they'll win, and as depleted as they are I'm not sure they can even really test them.  But that won't stop them from trying.

I agree with you.  Also, from a future-looking perspective, without KG they C's could well drop to the worst record making the playoffs--and, if I understand correctly, climb up to the 12th pick in the draft.

Also, from a fan perspective, I don't expect more than one playoff series from this team, so we might as well have Miami as the match up.

I'm pretty sure that by making the playoffs they're the 15th pick at best.  the 14 teams that miss the playoffs all go in the lottery and don't wind up with a pick worse than 14.

[Lightskinsmurf]

In 2010, we won the East and [dang] near won the championship... it was a decent year.

So in other words, we failed to complete the goal for that season..... I see nothing decent about failure. We should have won the title that year, we didn't.