On the back of a horrific game six performance, Gary Washburn of the Globe piled on with more bad news: Avery Bradley is almost certainly done for the season. Washburn: A source close to Bradley told the Globe that it’s in the “high 90s” percentile that Bradley will be shut down and will perhaps need [...]
After the Thunder finished up their series by routinely dismantling the Lakers last night to send them packing in five games, a time has been announced for the C’s-Sixers Game 6 on Wednesday night. It will tipoff shortly after 8pm on ESPN. Looking ahead in the postseason, if the C’s do win Game 6, and [...]
I love this decision-making from Rajon Rondo. While leading the break, you can see him eyeballing Ray Allen, who runs the wing and spots up on the arc. The Sixers have a 1-2 disadvantage but are mostly concerned about Allen’s three balls, which allows Mickael Pietrus to make an unmolested baseline cut behind the defense. [...]
A note to all you local C’s fans out there that may be attending the game tonight at TD Garden. The game will start just after 7pm and will be broadcast nationally on TNT. However, unlike most TNT regular season games during the season, the tip will not come 15-20 minutes after the scheduled start [...]
Rajon Rondo is a tremendous player, but he tends to have a little bit of an issue scoring the ball late in games. I won’t go as far as saying he is scared, but he does pass up shots and defer to teammates in crunch-time….well a lot. Last night though may have been his coming [...]
Garnett followed up his season-best effort against Atlanta in Game 6 with a new season-high in points and another sensational double-double, as well 60 percent shooting (12-of-20) from the field. Over his past two contests, Garnett is averaging 28.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, two steals and four blocks a game. After the game, KG was candid [...]
Thumbnail: After beating the best of the Western Conference on Sunday, the C’s wrap up their Pacific Division road trip with a visit to Arco Arena tonight. Don’t be fooled by Sacramento’s lackluster record however. This is a squad that is finally showing some kind of cohesion, winning three of their past four games, with all three wins coming over playoff teams including those floundering Lakers. With that said, the Celtics are fully capable of blowing this squad out and have enjoyed plenty of success out there in the New Big Three era, as Arco is the only place out on the west coast they’ve won all three years. Put it all together and a win certainly would be a nice exclamation point on the road trip before a tough stretch of opponents visit the Garden.
WHAT THE KINGS DO WELL
Offensive rebound. The C’s asserted themselves on the boards in LA and tonight will be another test, especially with the knowledge that Paul Westphal will be going with the twin towers lineup in Dalembert and Cousins. Those two, along with Carl Landry rank among the elite when it comes to offensive rebounding rate, so Boston will have to have all hands on deck in the frontcourt to keep the Kings from countless second chance opportunities. The good news is Kendrick Perkins will be a big help in this department, as we count down the days before his return to the starting five.
Finish At The Rim. They are number eight in the league in this department, which goes to show you just how bad the rest of their offense must be. Still, the majority of this roster, excluding Dalembert has a soft touch at the rim as they finish overall at a 65 percent clip. Evans can get there at will, so Rondo will need to give a top notch defensive effort to keep him at bay, though he does have trouble finishing when challenged. Also be wary of Udrih and Landry who both clock in at 70+ percent from close in.
WHAT THE KINGS DO POORLY
Shooting. If the C’s keep them away from the bucket, they should be okay as the Kings rank in the bottom five for both FG and three-point FG percentage. Packing it in, and giving them the mid-range jumper, which is a staple of the C’s defense when it is firing on all cylinders, is the sure fire route for a win tonight.
Getting to the line: Not only do the Kings struggle shooting, getting to the free throw line is another huge issue for the cellar dwellers as they rank next-to-last in this department in the NBA. With Evans as the only guy on this team truly capable of creating his own shot on a regular basis, combined with a squad with no real point guard to begin with, you can see how this problem could arise.
PLAYERS THAT MAKE ME WORRY
I’ll say DeMarcus Cousins. The youngster is beginning to put it all together, averaging 19 points and 8 rebounds in his past five games on 50 percent shooting, including back-to-back double-doubles in the team’s past two wins. Having Perk back again helps in containing the big guy, but it likely will be KG spending some time on him as well with Dalembert penciled in to start. Should be a fun matchup of experience vs. youth, in which the former usually wins out.
PLAYERS THAT DO NOT MAKE ME WORRY
Rest of Kings bench besides Landry: With Garcia and Thompson out, the Kings bench is fairly unintimidating to say the least. Pooh Jeter? Donte Greene? Luther Head? Despite some terrific names, that’s one of the weakest rotations in the league. Look for the C’s second unit, who finally showed something in LA, to take advantage.
WHAT WE WANT TO SEE TONIGHT
Pretty simple gameplan here. Be strong on the defensive glass, keep the Kings out of the paint, and get out in transition. Sacramento’s offense is lackluster at best, so sufficient D should be enough for the win as long as Boston stays away from the jump shot road trap they’ve fallen victim to during their last few road losses.
In addition, after a pretty chippy road trip, I’d like to keep it clean tonight. No more of stuff like this. I’m not sure Shaq could get through the tunnel fast enough this time to break things up.
PREDICTION
C’s 91, Kings 84. Plus some guy in sac should be in attendance so they need to win it for him.
The Ticker