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9 days ago

Painful Reminders (Part I): The Celtics Drafted JaJuan Johnson Instead of Jimmy Butler

On June 23rd, 2011, Brian Robb and I stood around a high top bar table in Tommy Doyle’s in Kendall Square.  Before us lay one of the biggest mounds of buffalo chicken wings I had ever endeavor to make disappear.  These 25 cent flappers- one of the few indulgences afforded to the participants of our [...]

19
9 days ago

Chris Wilcox: 2012-13 Final Grade

There are a number of contextually-appropriate ways to craft this post. One would be to forgo words entirely, and represent Chris Wilcox’s entire season with a series of videos. That would involve one part of this: For every eight parts of this: Note the headline on that second clip. Someone was so amused/enraged by Wilcox’s [...]

12
10 days ago

Rajon Rondo’s 2012-13 Final Grade

Here’s a sweeping general statement involving super specific statistics that may or may not mean anything: In the 1423 minutes Rajon Rondo played this season, the Boston Celtics were outscored by 1.3 points per 100 possessions. When he sat (including all contests after he tore his ACL), Boston was better than their opponents by 1.8 [...]

94
11 days ago

Avery Bradley Elected to NBA All-Defense Second Team

Avery Bradley has been a standout defender for the past couple seasons…in the regular season anyway. Now he has a trophy to prove it. The NBA announced this afternoon that the third-year guard has been elected by coaches around the league to the second-team all-NBA defensive team for the first time in his career. Bradley [...]

13
14 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
14 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 [...]

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Game 30: Celtics (14-15) @ Kings (10-19) Open Thread

Boston at Sacramento
9:00 P.M. ET
Arco Arena/Power Balance Pavilion/Sleep Train Arena/Wherever The Hell the Kings Are Playing These Days
CSNNE

Offensive Efficiency:
Boston: 100.1 points/100 possessions (21st)
Sacramento: 100.1 points/100 possessions (21st)

Defensive Efficiency:
Boston: 101.4 points allowed/100 possessions (12th)
Sacramento:107.0 points allowed/100 possessions (29th)

Probable Kings Starters: 
Isaiah Thomas (PG), Marcus Thornton (SG), John Salmons (SF), Jason Thompson (PF), and DeMarcus Cousins (C)

View From The Opposing Bench: Cowbell Kingdom

Injury Report: Tyreke Evans (out), Avery Bradley (out)

Thumbnail:  Extra! Extra! Rajon Rondo will play!

This is great news because the Celtics are desperate for a win.  The Kings are pretty bad but they’re playing at home and catching the Celtics at an extremely vulnerable time.  The C’s are finishing up their California road trip and two games where they’ve endured two blowout losses.  The Kings are a plenty-capable offensive team but an absolutely miserable defensive team.  If the Celtics don’t shoot well, they could easily find themselves in a dog fight.

Celtics also get to catch a glimpse of what life may look like if they are able/decide to trade for DeMarcus Cousins.  Cousins is capable of being an absolutely dominant big man but he’s often shown an inability to control his emotions.  It’s a gamble and luckily the C’s get a free audition.

Things I Want to See:

  • Offensive Execution.  Rondo’s return means that the execution should be there.  I just want them to make shots.
  • Defensive Intensity.  The Celtics are the 12th best defensive team in the league as of today.  It’s time they either maintain or raise that ranking.
  • Playing Up to the Billing:  So many Celtics have underwhelmed lately.  It’s time they play like they’re capable of playing and beat a team they should beat.

 

 

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