Game Recap: Celtics 104, Bulls 92
Posted by Mike Salvucci on Dec 3, 2010
ESPN Box Score – By The Horns
Just another day at the office for the Celtics. Seriously, not much to complain about here at all. The Celtics shot 53% from the field. They had 29 team assists (19 from Rajon Rondo). They held Chicago to 42% shooting. And most importantly, not one Celtic played more than 36 minutes tonight. And all this coming only one hour after starring in “The Assoication” on ESPN before the game. That’s versatility.
In all honesty though, at halftime I thought this one was going to come down to the wire. It had hard-fought battle written all over it. Rondo and Derrick Rose were going at each other. Kevin Garnett and Joakim Noah already had received a double technical. The Bulls seem to get fired up to play the Celtics, and they took advantage of the Celtics’ poor bench play in the second quarter to make it a 5-point game at the break.
But then the referee blew the whistle at the start of the third quarter and the Celtics ran away with it.
Some thoughts on tonight’s game:
*I know we’re beating a dead horse here, but how good is KG playing this year? He’s been incredible all season, and tonight he only added to that reputation. Look at his stat-line for tonight: 20 points on 7-11 shooting, a season-high 17 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and a block. And that’s going up against a Bulls front court of Joakim Noah, Carlos Boozer and Taj Gibson. Not exactly defensive slouches, at least on most nights. By the way, am I the only one that had the words “KG” and “MVP” creep into my mind for a quick millisecond tonight?
*Another 19 assists for Rondo tonight, no big deal. Although, in all fairness, I think I could have dished out at least double digits against that Bulls defense tonight. Seriously, how many times did Rondo find an open man just standing under the rim without a defender in the area? Van Gundy summed it up perfectly when he said, “This defense for the Bulls is ridiculous right now. Just layup, layup, layup.” Not something you expect from a Tom Thibodeau defense.
*More thoughts on Rondo: It still bothers me when he throws up these alley-hoop passes that force KG to make a Willie Mays-catch and slam it down all in the same motion. The Celtics’ offense is too talented and too well balanced to be throwing away a couple possessions a game. That being said, in the second half, Rondo really took advantage of what the Bulls were giving him. The Celtics ran virtually the same play multiple times where Rondo would isolate on one side and hit a cutter through the lane or someone backdoor. His ability to recognize that and take advantage was what really impressed me tonight.
*How does the phrase go? “When you have three shooting guards, you really have no shooting guards?” I think that’s it. And that’s exactly what the Bulls have; basically operating a shooting guard by committee with Keith Bogans, Ronnie Brewer and Kyle Korver. I really like this Bulls’ team, but this is a huge hole for them. Probably their fatal flaw, so to speak. Not having a reliable shooter can be a major limitation for your offense, and it’s not like Rose and Luol Deng are exactly lighting it up from the floor either. Makes you really appreciate the consistency the Celtics get from Ray Allen on a nightly basis.
*The Celtics’ bench. Usually you get nothing of substance out of those in-between-quarter interviews with the head coach. But what Doc Rivers said right before the 4th quarter was pretty revealing. Doc said, “I need to do a better job with the bench,” which is essentially a polite way of saying the bench players need to play better because I don’t exactly trust them. Well, after a rough 2nd quarter, the second unit responded well in the second half and allowed Doc to keep the starters’ minutes down. That’s pretty much all you want from the bench on a nightly basis, keeping the starters’ minutes down.
*Semih Erden? Doc gave him 20 (mostly) important minutes tonight, so that tells me he’s starting to trust the big man. Semih got lost on a few defensive rotations, and it’s definitely going to be a learning process with him all season on the defensive end. But on offense, he was 3-3 and that’s really all you can ask of him. As long as his teammates know he’s going to make those shots around the rim, they’re going to start feeding it to him more and more. Also had a surprisingly great dunk.
*If you missed Peter May’s article today on the evolution of Paul Pierce, be sure to give it a go. It’s dead on. Mr. Efficiency added 18 points on 50% shooting tonight.
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