For The Third Time This Season The Celtics Blew A Game Against The Raptors...And They Deserved It
Emotions are running high and with good reason. After waiting so long for the Celts to get back in action, last night’s performance down the stretch is what I would call, not ideal. Before we get to it, I want to start this blog with some undebatable facts.
1. The C’s are 2-6 vs CLE, WSH, TOR and 6-2 vs ATL, IND, CHI, DET
2. We woke up this morning with the exact same cushion as the 2 seed as we were before yesterday happened, and remain 3 games up on TOR
3. The Celtics have the second easiest strength of schedule the rest of the season, and are basically 50/50 in terms of home and away. I should also mention the Celtics have the most road wins in the Eastern Conference (17-13)
And look, despite these facts that does not excuse the collapse we saw in this game. What’s funny is every game these two teams have played this year, whichever team goes on to build an early double digit lead, has lost the game. I’m not kidding. In their first meeting, the Cs blew like a 12 point lead at home. Then in Game 2 in TOR the Celts blew a 16 point lead. Game 3 it was TOR’s turn, blowing an 18 point lead at the Garden. Finally there was last night and the Cs blowing their 17 point lead. This is just what happens when these two teams meet, and there’s no beating around the bush, over the last two plus years, TOR has come out on top more often than not.
But I want to be clear on something. Even if the Celtics had pulled this game out, it doesn’t mean they still don’t have the same problems we already know about. So while I think it’s valid to criticize their play in this game which we’ll get to, I don’t think this is a “SEE DANNY SHOULD HAVE DONE SOMETHING” game, because he should do something regardless of this one outcome.
In my opinion, the Celtics did not lose this game because they didn’t trade for Serge Ibaka or Nerlens Noel. They lost this game because they got away from makes them successful, and for that everyone is to blame, from Isaiah to Horford, to Crowder to Brad etc.
With that said, let’s get started.
The Good
– Just because the Celtics lost, doesn’t mean there wasn’t some good stuff to talk about. For example, making his leadoff debut, allow me to introduce Jaylen Brown.
This is what development looks like folks. His 13 points on 5-8 shooting might seem like a weird place to start this section, but this game was a glimpse into perhaps why Danny is so hesitant to part with Jaylen. The first thing that stood out to me right away was for a rookie, how well he was able to stay with DeRozan to start this game (DeRozan shot 4-10). You know the rules with Brad and young players. You earn your minutes by being able to defend, and if you can defend multiple positions even better. I thought Jaylen did a solid job at contesting almost every DeRozan jumper, had a block, and at the end of the day was one of two starters that ended the game with a positive +/-.
On the offensive end is where things start to get exciting. First, that little in between the legs crossover you saw in that video is something new. Jaylen looked much more comfortable finishing around the rim in this game, which is a sight I think we all welcome. Not to mention his jumper continues to look more fluid and the results are starting to show. He still has MILES to go, but there is no denying that this performance was a trend in the right direction.
– While in the end it meant nothing, the way the Celtics started this game made the AS break wait worth it. They defended, they moved the ball, and they took good shots which translated into a fast start and 29 points on 55% shooting. More importantly, the Celtics were assertive on the glass which helped them score in transition. Essentially those first 12 minutes were ideal Celtics basketball if you ask me.
Quarters like this are what for me, make this loss so frustrating, because down the stretch they went away from this style of basketball.
– You don’t bust out a shammgod and expect me not to talk about it
This move has to be one of my all time favorite basketball plays. I dedicated a whole blog to Westbrook when he did it earlier this year, and it doesn’t matter who does it I will watch the replay’s a billion times. Delon Wright had NO SHOT and as anyone who gets shammgod’d he had no idea what hit him. Rozier’s overall night was meh, but that move, that move will always turn heads.
– Have I gone on long enough? Can we talk about the giant elephant in the room? JAMES YOUNG IS AN NBA PLAYER KINDA JUST LIKE I SAID HE WAS
Brad has had to turn to Young consistently over the last few weeks, and he continues to not completely shit his pants when given the opportunity. That’s the first step. The biggest surprise for me isn’t the offense, it’s the work Young is doing on the defensive end. When I started the #FREEJAMESYOUNG movement, many called me crazy. People couldn’t understand why after all this time I remained loyal to that stance. Well, this is why. I’ve always said we have no idea what type of player Young can be, good or bad, until we actually see what happens when he gets consistent minutes. Now that he sort of is, the results so far have been positive and validating as fuck.
– It probably won’t be talked about given everything that happened, but I thought Amir Johnson showed great energy and an actual pulse in this game. This two blocks early were great, and while his 6 rebounds may seem low, JV only had 6 as well. I’m sure part of his energy level had to do with returning to TOR, but this wasn’t the worst I’ve seen him play so I figured he deserved some credit.
– After all the talk about PG13 and Jimmy Butler, it didn’t shock me to see Jae come out and throw up 19/4 with 50/44% splits including four threes. A healthy Crowder makes all the difference, and his shot isn’t the only thing that leads me to believe he’s feeling good.
We’ve seen it time and time again, when Jae is feeling good, he attacks the basket hard with an aggressive first step. Sort of like this
To me, this is when Jae is at his best, when there is a true inside/outside approach to his offense. We see times where Crowder won’t make drives like this, and instead settle for long twos which is the worst thing you can do in basketball in my opinion.
– Before we get to the meat of this blog, I do want to call out the effort from Marcus. His night was the very definition of up and down. While he struggled from deep (1-7), he was all over the place and his 19/5/4 reflect that. I thought this was one of his better passing performances, and I think a lot of that has to do with his development as a PG as opposed to playing off the ball. Say what you want about his shot selection at times, but he finds ways to make plays. Also, his two gigantic shots to end the third quarter shouldn’t be ignored as well.
The Bad
– Where to begin. I think I’ll start with Horford only taking 5 shots. Now there are several ways you can look at this, and to me there are a couple people to blame here. First, it’s on Horford to be more aggressive in general. Taking one shot in an entire half of basketball isn’t going to cut it. The problem here is when the Celtics get away from what makes them successful offensively, it’s Horford that feels it the most. By no means does this team play inside out, but it didn’t feel like Horford was even touching the ball for long stretches in this game, that’s not really his fault. It’s there that I put blame on guys like Isaiah, and more importantly Brad. I don’t care about how much Horford makes and I wish people would stop pointing to that. Brad & Co failed at making a conscious effort to get him involved, and when that happens the Celts usually struggle.
– I also have a problem with the narrative that the Celtics didn’t have Avery Bradley so that’s a main reason DeRozan did what he did. Mostly because that’s not entirely true nor should it really matter. Last time I checked the Celtics still had good defenders available in Smart/Jae, not to mention the work Jaylen did early in the game. Yes, it’s true that in the two games without Avery that DeRozan has played he scored 41 and 43 points, but I think it’s a cop out to say he doesn’t play well if Avery is active.
The problem here was that the Celts did not learn from the last time they faced DeRozan. There should be one thing everybody on the planet knows about him, and that’s he lives in the midrange. Right off the bat I thought the Celtics did a poor job of taking away his space and it only got worse as the game went on. You have to give him credit, for a guy who is shooting 25% from three on the season and 39% from 16ft<3pt, he made those shots last night, and when you combine that with how the celts weren’t able to keep him from getting wherever wanted, that’s difference.< p>
– It would be silly to come away from that game and think that Ibaka and PJ Tucker didn’t make an impact. You could argue both were main contributors and big reasons why the Raptors pulled it out. There’s no point in really denying that. But I also think it’s silly to look at this one game and be mad that Ainge for not bringing them in. Toronto and Boston are in different places, and the same people that have this stance I’m sure are the same people that complain about Horford’s max deal. Well guess what, Ibaka is going to be close to a max deal this summer, and remember, we have no idea what ORL was asking from the Celtics. If it comes out that they could have gotten him for trash, OK I get it, but I cannot say this enough. All trades are not equal. Just because Team A got a player for price X, does not mean that was the price was the same for every team in the league.
I will admit, it is some cosmic bullshit that those were the two guys that probably turned this game. But let me again ask you this. Had the Celtics won this game and those two still did what they did, is everyone all bent out of shape? Probably not. That’s my point. The outcome of one game should not drastically change anything. Trading for Ibaka doesn’t get this team past CLE, and this loss doesn’t change that.
– Passive Olynyk, someone we haven’t seen in nearly two months, showed up last night and I can’t say that helped things.
– It’s official. The Theory is back. Brutal third quarters are nothing new for the Celtics when they play in TOR, and last night was no different. I think at one point it got up to a 20-4 run or something crazy. That same energy and intensity the Celtics started with, did not make it out of the locker room after halftime. Coming out and throwing up a 35% shooting effort with 4 TOs while playing bad defense is the exact way you blow a 17 point lead.
– Which brings me to my most troubling takeaway from last night, and something that is pretty consistent in games the Celtics lose. They need to be better about keeping their composure. It started with the Isaiah foul, and spread like wildfire. When runs like what TOR had in the third quarter happen, the Celtics press and try and fix everything on one possession. Then they don’t get a foul call and complain, and don’t get back.This type of shit happens almost every time the Cs play in TOR, so it was a bit shocking they weren’t prepared for it. Here’s a prime example. Jae had gotten a call on this drive all game, and in the middle of a TOR run, he didn’t get it and look what he did
When the Celtics struggle and give up runs, especially on the road, we see this type of shit happen from time to time. Here’s what we know, the playoffs are going to have moments like this, and the Celtics are going to have to show the mental toughness to get through it. I’m not saying they can’t or won’t, but this is what it looks like when it doesn’t happen.
The real issue with this though, is what happened in the fourth quarter.
The Ugly
– Isaiah has played in 50+ fourth quarters, and you could probably count his bad ones on one hand. As we’ve learned, every time one of them happens, that suddenly means he is “exposed”. If you look at those handful of times he’s struggled there is a common theme. Both he and the team struggle when he plays hero ball. It’s as simple as that. Part of losing your composure is at times it takes you out of what makes you successful. This was one of those games for Isaiah and really the entire roster down the stretch.
Isaiah’s at his best when his fourth quarter scoring comes as a result of you know, actually running an offense. Well look at this one play
This is where Isaiah can get into trouble. This is hero ball, and it almost never works. There is essentially nothing to like about this shot, but don’t just focus on Isaiah. Look at everyone else, they are standing and watching. If teams are going to key in on Isaiah, it’s on him to realize that and get his teammates involved, but it’s also on his teammates to you know, actually move and do something. Remember the ball movement we saw to start this game? Guys were moving, the ball wasn’t sticking, and the offense clicked. Well at the end of this game, with the pressure rising, they went away from that. It’s easy (and true) to say that Isaiah forced things, but I wouldn’t say his teammates were eager to shoot either. Now I think it’s illogical to say just because it happened here means this is what happens in the playoffs, because the opposite has happened before as well, but it would not be truthful to call this anything other than a choke job by the entire roster on the offensive end down the stretch of this game.
– You do not miss fourth quarter FTs in a close game and not expect it to come back and bite you. That is basketball law.
The reaction after this game is somewhat warranted, if only for the fact this was a game they threw away. This tends to happen after a Cs loss, there is a sky is falling mentality, and while I think it’s fair to criticize them for a poor performance, it’s important to keep the bigger picture in mind.
