Coach Nick & Celtics defensive woes

[tarheelsxxiii]

I'm not sure this type of analysis holds up.

For instance, if you look at the 3-man lineup of Horford, Crowder and Amir, the defense gets better if you add IT as the 4th guy as opposed to Bradley.  Does that mean IT is a better defender than Bradley?

Just because somebody uses advanced stats doesn't mean they're using them correctly.  Plus, DRtg is a flawed statistic to begin with. For instance, it tells us that Marcus Smart is a worse defender than Tyler Zeller.

Exactly.  And we continue to win by outscoring opponents lead by Thomas' wizardry. So is this really an issue to be concerned about?

Yes, because the game slows down and switches entirely in the playoffs. Boston trying to simply outscore opponents won't work then, especially when the opposing defenses start clamping down.

I read the OP as another slight to Thomas, a tired argument as this point.  But in a more general discussion:

Our identity has changed this year -- we're having more success with an offensive focus, which is fine by me.  I agree it'll be an issue in the playoffs, but I don't think either our offensive or defensive ability will be good enough to get us past the 2nd round.

So, my expectations are tempered to that.  I think we need the #3 seed to make it to the 2nd round, which I'd consider a success.  A defensive presence in the paint could maybe get us to the ECF, but I wouldn't bank on it... depending on who, how quickly they adjust, etc. 

[PhoSita]

@Pho

You are right that the line up with Smart instead of Amir has a DefRtg of 129.6

but my understanding is that 'coach Nick' is talking about the IT, AB, Jae, Amir, Al lineup which has a DefRtg of 107.1

Here is a link of the vid at the moment where he shows the ratings

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJdtTfbtzLI#t=1m4s

Oh, ok.  Well that's not some special lineup, it's just the main unit.  107 is not that much worse than the 111 they're posting this year, and the difference in the offensive rating is a lot greater.

[greece66]

@Pho

Yep, the difference in the rating is not significant and it could easily change with time anyway.

 I found the points he makes in the vid more interesting than the ratings themselves.