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7 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
7 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
8 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 [...]

93
9 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
12 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
12 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 42: Knicks (25-14) @ Celtics (20-21) Open Thread

http://a.espncdn.com/media/motion/2013/0123/dm_130123_Carmelo_Garnett/dm_130123_Carmelo_Garnett.jpgNew York at Boston
8:00 P.M. ET
TD Garden

TNT

Offensive Efficiency:
Boston: 100.0 points/100 possessions (21st)
New York:
108.7 points/100 possessions (3rd)

Defensive Efficiency:
Boston: 100.4 points allowed/100 possessions (8th)
New York:
 102.8 points allowed/100 possessions (16th)

Probable Knicks Starters:
Jason Kidd (PG), Iman Shumpert (SG), Carmelo Anthony (SF), Kurt Thomas (PF), and Tyson Chandler (C)

View From The Opposing Bench: KnickerBlogger

Thumbnail: I guess we can call this current four-game losing skid another rock-bottom moment for the 2012-13 version of the Celtics. It is possible to blame some of their recent defensive struggles on Avery Bradley’s rib injury, but Boston’s issues go further than just that. Statistically, the Celtics are staring at possibly their worst season in a while. After having just two losing streaks of at least four games in 2011-12, Boston has already suffered two losing streaks of that length this season. In the first four years of the Kevin Garnett era, the Celtics had just one losing streak of at least four games.

As of late, the Celtics have not be able to compete against bad NBA teams, so maybe they can play up to their opponents in this upcoming tough stretch. In addition, maybe some home cooking could help Boston. The Celtics play eight of their eleven games before the All-Star break at TD Garden. While most are against projected playoff teams, the Celtics have been good at home this season, sporting a 13-8 record.

The first opponent of this important stretch: the Knickerbockers. Get ready for all the Honey Nut Cheerios you can eat at the TD Garden on Thursday for the nationally televised game. History is on the Celtics’ side in this matchup. Including the playoffs, Boston has yet to lose a game in their 12 meetings against New York at TD Garden since 2007-08.

Raymond Felton’s absence from this game will also help the Celtics. The Knicks have posted a 20-8 record in his 28 games started this season, but a pinkie injury has forced him to miss the last 11 contests. The Knicks have lost six of those games, including January 7th at Madison Square Garden against the Celtics, and are shooting worse from the field and three-point without Felton playing. Let’s also remember that Rondo did not play in that game in New York a few weeks ago.

Prediction: The Celtics again take advantage of Felton not playing. They stop the losing streak and make it a perfect 13-for-13 against the Knicks at TD Garden since 2007-08.

Celtics 99, Knicks 96

For more Celtics coverage and pertinent statistics, follow Celtics Hub and Stats Adam Lowenstein on Twitter: @CelticsHub and @StatsAdam

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