http://www.espn.com/blog/boston/celtics/post/_/id/4724349/whats-wrong-with-the-boston-celtics-defenseBOSTON -- On the eve of the Boston Celtics' season opener last month, after a training camp in which players routinely were peppered with questions about the potential of the team's defense, coach Brad Stevens was asked if he thought his team could climb higher in defensive rating.
"I think defense is one of those things that you’ve got to go out there and do it," Stevens said. "It’s not about talking about it. It’s not about the anticipation of how good we can be. That’s an everyday commitment."
After Sunday night's embarrassing 123-107 loss to the Denver Nuggets -- a game in which Boston's defense gave up 77 first-half points while sleepwalking against a team coming off a 17-point defeat the night before in Detroit -- the Celtics find themselves ranked 29th in defensive rating while allowing an unfathomable 110.2 points per 100 possessions. Only the New York Knicks are worse -- and not by much (110.9).
For context, the Celtics finished tied for fourth in defensive rating last season while allowing 100.9 points per 100 possessions. The Los Angeles Lakers were far and away the worst defensive team last year at 109.3.
Sure, the Celtics have yet to play a game this season at full strength. On Sunday night, they played without three of their top seven players in Al Horford (concussion), Jae Crowder (ankle) and Kelly Olynyk (shoulder). Marcus Smart, Boston's best defender off the bench, missed the team's first three games with an ankle injury. Avery Bradley has played despite a sore shoulder that required a cortisone shot last week.
But none of those injuries explains just how atrocious Boston's defense has been. The Celtics consistently have looked out of place and out of sync. And that doesn't make sense when you consider the same core is in place for a team that made defense its calling card much of last season. What's more, Boston's defense was excellent in the preseason (defensive rating of 95) and has shown flashes of its potential this season.
So what in the world is going on?
"We’re not as good as we thought we were," said Celtics All-Star point guard Isaiah Thomas, a black hoodie drawn tight over his head as he tried to explain the latest defensive dud. "When we don’t come out with a sense of urgency, we’re not a good team, and that’s what happened tonight."
But what about those aspirations of being a top defense?
"At this point, we’re all talk," Thomas said. "That’s all we’re doing. So until we put it together in a full 48-minute game and show what we can do at that end, we’re not gonna be a top defensive team."
Stevens spent the night throwing darts with hopes of finding some sort of spark for his team. Nothing worked. Nuggets second-year guard Emmanuel Mudiay scored 24 of his game-high 30 points in a first-quarter blitz that saw Denver hang 42 points on Boston. Fans at TD Garden showered the Celtics with boos as they walked off the court down 25 at halftime.
Given that the Celtics haven't been able to pull out of their defensive funk, Stevens tried to absorb much of the blame for his team's struggles. But he also not-so-subtly insinuated that his team has been soft so far this season.
“I thought, looking at [Denver] film, this could be bad for us," Stevens said. “And the reason I thought that is because -- the nicest way I can say this is, I think we play like a finesse team and [the Nuggets] play physical.
“I thought the [Danilo] Gallinari dunk was a great example of that. I thought Kenneth Faried diving on the floor with 3:57 left in the fourth quarter was a great example of that. That’s who we’ve been the last week."
Stevens was asked if Boston can still be a top defense.
"I don’t even know if it’s statistically possible, based on our week. You know?" Stevens said. "I don’t even know if you can make it up in 76 games. But we can get a lot better. But it starts with holding your ground physically.
"Mudiay goes nuts, that’s fine. But Mudiay also gets two putbacks -- or at least one putback early -- that gets you going, makes you feel good about yourself, see the ball go through the net, it’s an easy basket. Now you hit a couple of the tougher ones.
"We brought a little bit of aggressiveness at the start of the third quarter, but that wasn’t sustainable. I don’t know. I don’t have the answer. Obviously we’ve got some guys that aren’t playing that will play, but this is about physically holding your ground.
"I've got to look at everything we’re doing, and go from there. I told the players it’s my fault because I played -- I watched us play this way. And you can’t do that. Bottom line is, when you have a spot, you have to hold it. When you have a spot, you have to take it. And we’re not. So whether it’s changing who plays, whether it’s creating a new scheme, whether it’s subbing differently, whatever the case may be, we just have to figure that out."
Bradley, an all-defense first-teamer last season, wouldn't use the absence of Boston's injured players as an excuse for the struggles. He's hopeful that Stevens can help right this ship.
"It is disappointing, but I’m going to leave that up to Brad," Bradley said. "He’s a great coach, he’ll be able to call the guys out. He can use me as an example, whatever it takes for us to be where we need to be. I want us to get there because we have a great group of guys, guys that want to play hard and want to play the right way, to put it together so we can go out there and win games."
Stevens can't help but reflect on what he said on the eve of the season when he implored his team to bring the necessary defensive energy each day.
"I thought this was possible," Stevens said. "I think anytime that you have a year where you achieve relative success on one end of the floor, there’s slippage that’s bound to occur because shortcuts are bound to be taken. What’s most disappointing to me is the lack of physicality. But that’s on me, like I told you. I’ve got to play the guys that play more physical. That’s just the way it goes."
Topic: What's Wrong With the Defense? (Read 2805 times)