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 [...]
The C’s beat the Bucks shorthanded just a week ago, but this is pretty obviously the more important game. A three-game losing streak would put the Celtics in a position to have to fight pretty hard for the number one seed, and the fight itself (and the extra minutes and inevitable injuries it would entail) could potentially cost them a playoff series. So this game is important because, if they lose, it might set the C’s off on a path where they’d deprioritize seeding in order to send out a healthier squad for the second season.
It’s honestly not obvious which of those scenarios you should be hoping for. Who would you rather face in the first round? The Pacers, sure, but after that? The 76ers or the Hawks? Or the Knicks? If the Celtics lose tonight, would you be that upset to watch them lose interest in finishing the regular season strong, thus falling to the 3rd seed and facing potentially a less dangerous team for them than Philadelphia? Is it wrong to write a paragraph with only questions and no declarative statements? Would you like to start the preview now?
PLAYERS WHO MAKE ME WORRY
Andrew Bogut. One unfortunate development is that the Bucks have Andrew Bogut back after he was out for last week’s game, and Bogut is the player best equipped to capitalize on the Celtics’ lack of frontcourt depth. He’s easily enough to make up the seven-point differential in last week’s game, albeit mostly on the defensive end, although with Krstic out there who knows. Big Baby, if we see him tonight, has never been a great matchup for Bogut, but he’ll help. (EDIT: Davis will not help. He’s out). (EDIT EDIT: Davis might help. He’s in).
PLAYERS WHO DO NOT MAKE ME WORRY
John Salmons. My theory is that John Hammond had an agenda to devalue the Executive of the Year Award by winning it and then proving himself to be as capable of incompetence as pretty much all other NBA GMs. Sort of a political statement to prove the meaninglessness of awards in general. So he went ahead and signed a 31-year-old volume shooter who depends on speed and athleticism and who’s always played with an eye on his next contract to a 5-year-deal.
This terrible contract got lost because it happened on the same day as Joe Johnson’s, which made the Salmons deal look like the Louisiana Purchase by comparison. But Salmons is playing horribly, so Hammond’s plan is playing out exactly as he intended.
WHAT THE BUCKS DO WELL
Defensive rebound. They do defensive everything pretty well, but they’re number four in the league in this category. The C’s, however, come with perhaps the most effective strategy against the Bucks rebounding attack, which is not to care about offensive boards in the first place.
WHAT THE BUCKS DO POORLY
Score at the rim. Score everywhere, really, because they’re still the league’s worst offense by a comfortable margin, but they’re confusingly awful around the basket, where they convert 57% of their attempts. The scrawny gentleman in the back with the sloping high-top cut can put his hand up here: Brandon Jennings takes four shots at the rim per game but only converts 50 percent of them. His penetration is somehow going the way of his shooting, instead of the other way around. And yet I guarantee you he still considers himself an elite offensive player. Ever wonder if his 55-point game might have been the worst possible thing for his career?
John Salmons is also having a terrible season at the rim, by the way.
WHAT WE WANT TO SEE TONIGHT
The most important person to keep an eye on in this game is Rajon Rondo. He’s going to be challenged by the Bucks defense, and if he quits and gives into his fatigue, he’s going to alter the trajectory of the 2010-2011 Celtics. The seeding, the development of the new players, the continued success of the Big Three in their waning years: it all depends on him. The greatest cost of the Perkins’s trade, in an absolute worst case scenario, might end up being Rajon Rondo’s love of basketball, and therefore his career. Is there anything in the world sadder than that? Watch Rondo tonight with interest.
The Ticker