Logo
The Ticker
9 days ago

Paul Pierce’s Contract: Dispelling The Myths and Stating The Facts

The first domino to fall this offseason is Paul Pierce’s contract. Until Danny Ainge figures out what he’s doing there, little else matters. As we wait for this decision, we also must face the rest of the offseason, which means it is also rumor season. With that time of year, comes plenty of information floating [...]

42
10 days ago

Final Grade: Avery Bradley (C+)

In his third year in the league, in which promising players often make brash leaps from benchwarmer to starter, from starter to star, Avery Bradley took a big step back. But his regression might be deceptive. When he returned to the Celtics’ lineup on January the 2nd after two in-season months recovering from offseason shoulder [...]

9
10 days ago

Danny Ainge Expects Doc Rivers & Kevin Garnett To Return, Unsure About Paul Pierce

A long, challenging offseason awaits Danny Ainge this summer. Before he dives in head first, he joined Salk and Holley on WEEI-FM 93.7 to discuss the multitude of decisions facing him this offseason, as well as the progress of Rajon Rondo in his rehab from ACL surgery. A few of the notable highlights from the interview. Ainge [...]

11
10 days ago

Suns Hire Away Celtics’ Assistant GM Ryan McDonough

In one way or another, there will be change this offseason in Boston. That process started in the past couple days, with the first piece moving out coming as a name most C’s fans might not be familiar with. Yet, it was Celtics’ assistant general manager Ryan McDonough, one of Danny Ainge’s top lieutenants, who [...]

0
11 days ago

Doc Rivers Finishes 13th in Coach of the Year Voting

It was a tough season for the Boston Celtics, and that includes for head coach Doc Rivers. The long-time coach battled to find the right fit for a lot of new pieces that were both underperforming and/or failed to pick up his schemes on both ends of the floor. Naturally, an unfortunate plethora of injuries [...]

23
13 days ago

Overconfident Answers To Offseason Questions (Part 1)

It seems like every offseason since 2010 we’ve been through this: a myriad of questions and concerns about the Celtics’ roster that usually involve the possibility of the core of the team being dismantled. As we head into the summer of 2013, we’ve got a whole batch of questions, many of which will be familiar.  [...]

29
Browse Archives by:

Game 45/82: Celtics (34-10) @ Trailblazers (25-21) Open Thread

Boston at Portland
10:30 P.M. ET
Rose Garden
CSNNE/TNT

Offensive Efficiency:

Boston: 106.7 points/100 possessions (9th)
Portland: 104.0 points/100 possessions (15th)

Defensive Efficiency:

Boston: 98.3 points allowed/100 possessions (2nd)
Portland: 103.6 points allowed/100 possessions (16th)

Probable Portland starters:

  • Andre Miller (PG)
  • Wesley Matthews (SG)
  • LaMarcus Aldridge (PF)
  • Nicolas Batum (SF)
  • Joel Pryzbilla (C)

View From The Opposing Bench: Portland Roundball Society

Thumbnail: The Celtics kick off a four-game road-trip against the typically injury-decimated Trailblazers tonight at the Rose Garden. The Blazers dropped one Monday to Sacramento but had won five straight previously, led by the surging Aldridge, who has been tasked with carrying the Blazers in the absence of Brandon Roy, Greg Oden and Marcus Camby. Aldridge is less than 100% himself, having injured his hip Monday but has been filling up the stat sheet lately, including a career-high 37 points against the Timberwolves last week.

On the Boston side, with Kendrick Perkins back, and a series of tough road games and elite opponents coming into the TD Garden right afterwards, the C’s have the opportunity to put their 2009-10 second-half staggering behind them for good with a strong performance.

It starts here, with a very winnable game against a broke-down opponent.

Last Time On Celtics Vs. Trailblazers:

WHAT THE TRAILBLAZERS DO WELL:

Slow It Down. The Blazers are again one of the slowest teams in the league, and with Boston also amongst the league’s most deliberate, we can safely expect a half-court struggle tonight.

Take Care Of The Ball. When you play as slowly as the Blazers, the importance of every possession is magnified. Nate McMillan’s crew honors that, by turning the ball over only 12.86% of the time, good for fifth best in the league.

Crash The Offensive Glass. And of course, second chances are crucial with slow paced teams. Portland is tops in the league with a 30.91 ORR. Injury Caveat – With Aldridge potentially hobbled and Camby out, this ain’t the same front line that’s been generating these numbers.

WHAT THE TRAILBLAZERS DO POORLY:

The Blazers are a mediocre offensive team and a mediocre defensive team. They’re particularly vulnerable to the Celtics because they allow the eighth highest eFG% in the league. If Boston comes out ready to move the ball, they’re going to be able to get good shots against this team.

Additionally, of the Blazers starting five, only Miller holds his opponents to something around average production (15.2 opponent’s PER). So, even if we assume Aldridge plays brilliantly, and holds Kevin Garnett to a draw, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen should be primed for good nights.

PLAYERS WHO MAKE ME WORRY:

Aldridge. In his last five games, he’s averaging 24.4 points and 9.6 rebounds.

Garnett. Averaging only 5.2 rebounds in his five games since returning from injury. Perhaps it’s a function of his conditioning but it’d be nice to see him rack up a double-double tonight.

PLAYERS WHO DO NOT MAKE ME WORRY:

The Blazers’ wings. Without Roy, a mediocre group.

WHAT WE WANT TO SEE FROM BOSTON TONIGHT:

Move the ball, make the shot. Repeat until victory.

PREDICTION: Boston 95 Portland 90

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>