Jeff Green’s Dunk of the Week Proves Boston Celtics Should Take KG’s Advice

 Boston  No Responses »
Nov 152012
 

Though the Boston Celtics are currently on a three-game winning streak and have a 5-3 record, forward Kevin Garnett still isn’t satisfied. In a report by Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald, the 14-time All Star was quick to mention teammate Jeff Green, whom he said needed to play like an…well, you know.

The gist of it is that the entire Celtics second unit needs to play harder, as no team can rely solely on its starters to carry the team the entire way. From Green to Courtney Lee to rookie Jared Sullinger, the Celtics need to play far more aggressively if they want to seriously contend in the long run.

Fortunately for Boston, Green took Garnett’s advice in Wednesday night’s game against the Utah Jazz. The former Georgetown Hoya scored 16 points in 27 minutes off the bench as the Celtics won 98-93.

However, the highlight of the night was Green’s absolutely merciless dunk over Jazz center Al Jefferson.

Not only did he execute a great slam over one of the league’s top big men, but he got a technical foul after doing so. If that isn’t taking Garnett’s advice, I don’t know what is.

More importantly, Green’s dunk is a testament to the toughness and physicality normally associated with the Celtics franchise. Once the rest of the bench players adopt this philosophy, the possibilities will be endless as the regular season carries on and the postseason arrives.

Simply put, the second unit cannot be carried by Green alone. Courtney Lee has been terrible since signing a four-year, $21.5 million deal over the summer, so bad to the point where he has been replaced in the starting lineup by Jason Terry and has only scored 18 points over his last five games. In terms of playing time, he has logged under 20 minutes in four of his past five games.

This is just plain sad, considering how Lee proved with the Rockets last season that he can be a solid shooter and also do some fine work above the rim. He’s only averaging five field goal attempts per game, so he has to demand the ball more and be careful with his shot selection. Once he starts making those shots consistently, he’ll finally start to look like the man GM Danny Ainge thought he was getting.

In the frontcourt, Jared Sullinger needs to do more with his 16.9 minutes per game. He has a great NBA body at 6’9″, 260 pounds, and his 3.4 points and 3.8 rebounds per game just aren’t cutting it.

Rather, Sullinger needs to play like he’s the second coming of Glen “Big Baby” Davis, who is of a similar build.

Davis played a key role coming off the bench for Boston ever since debuting in 2007, and his large frame proved to be a godsend in the low post. His tough defense, albeit in limited minutes, was one of the main reasons Boston won the NBA Finals in 2008 and returned in 2010, only to lose to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Everyone else on the Celtics bench can contribute accordingly, but there is only one point that head coach Doc Rivers needs to drive home: toughness, defense, and some more toughness for good measure. Yes, Boston has been playing well as of late, but they still look too passive as a whole. They need to become the team that will fight and claw throughout a game, not just at certain moments.

By playing consistently aggressive defense, the Celtics will no longer look like an old squad that just barely misses in the playoffs and instead like the storied franchise all basketball fans love to watch.

With Green continuing to play hard as he did against Utah, it’s only a matter of time before the rest of the bench follows.

Read more Boston Celtics news on BleacherReport.com

Go to Source

7 Things We Learned About the Boston Celtics After Week 2

 Boston  No Responses »
Nov 132012
 

In Week 2, the Boston Celtics finally showed a glimpse of what they’re capable of.

Whereas the Celtics barely rose above the Washington Wizards during the first week, the team captured its best win of the season so far against the Chicago Bulls on Monday night. Rajon Rondo was brilliant in his role as floor general, and all five starters scored in double digits.

The big win was a culmination of the C’s steady progress throughout the second week. In a Nov. 9 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, Boston’s poor defense was ultimately their downfall. However, the silver lining was Jason Terry’s emergence as the sixth man that everyone was waiting for.

In a Nov. 10 win against the Milwaukee Bucks, head coach Doc Rivers tweaked the starting lineup by inserting Terry and Brandon Bass in place of Courtney Lee and Jared Sullinger. Paul Pierce was still the most consistent source of offense, but nobody is complaining about that.

Until the Celtics reach their desirable level of cohesion, the team will have to take the ugly wins for now. Nonetheless, Boston fans can take away a few key points from Week 2.

Begin Slideshow

Go to Source

NBA: Boston Celtics’ 101-95 Win over Chicago Bulls a Step in the Right Direction

 Boston  No Responses »
Nov 132012
 

Before the start of the game when the announcers continued to belabor the point that Chicago’s defense was so good it never allowed over 100 points a game, you could just sense the Celtics were going to score 101 points.

Against an offensively challenged Bulls team starting Nate Robinson at point guard, that should have been more than enough to win. To the Bulls’ credit, though, they were still able to make the game interesting.

In many ways, it reminded me of the Patriots’ game yesterday. The moment the Celtics had a comfortable lead in the fourth was the moment you knew they were going to blow it, but for some reason, it didn’t seem to matter, because, in the end, everyone knew the Celtics were going to pull it out—much like the Patriots yesterday.

Sure, it took a Devin McCourty interception for the Patriots and consecutive dunks from Kevin Garnett and Brandon Bass for the Celtics. But at the end of the day, wins are wins.

And although this Celtics game was unnecessarily close, it was a genuine step in the right direction for the C’s. It was a glimpse at how effective the Celtics can be offensively when they have complete balance. 

Offensively, they outperformed the Bulls in every major statistical category besides three-point percentage—where they finished with a head-scratching 18.8 percent. It was not for a lack of good looks, though, they just weren’t really falling for anyone on the Celtics—besides Jared Sullinger. 

Looking past the three-point shooting, the Celtics were just over 50 percent shooting from the floor and an impressive 16-16 from the free-throw line. This offensive efficiency was a direct result of the great ball movement and scoring dispersion. 

As always, Rondo led the way with his passing, finishing with ten assists (just keeping his streak alive) and helping the Celtics amass 28 total assists for the game. With the exception of one stretch in the fourth quarter, the Celtics were passing off good shots for better ones and truly playing unselfish basketball.

This brand of selfless basketball led to a great balance of scoring that is just great to see in a box score. Every starter scored in double digits and the bench still managed to score 27 points.

While the bench did score decently, they also all have minuses in the plus/minus category while all of the starters have overwhelming positives. 

So the bench isn’t free of blame just yet. Nor are the Celtics an elite team just yet. But, seven games into the season, they are both heading in the right direction. 

And really, that is all we can ask for at this point. This team is a work in progress as we saw in the first few games. The offense had trouble functioning in sync, the bench was surprisingly ineffective and they couldn’t finish games.

Tonight, the offense was one unit, working together to score over 100 points, the bench did their part offensively and the Celtics were able to close out the Bulls in what turned out to be a close game. 

Nothing about the win was perfect. But we don’t need to see perfection quite yet. All we need is progress and that is exactly what we saw tonight and hopefully what we will continue to see for the next 75 games.

(Celtics Mailbag is back! To submit a question, just write it on my Bulletin Board here)

Read more Boston Celtics news on BleacherReport.com

Go to Source

NBA News: Celtics’ Slow Start Leads to Lineup Changes in Boston

 Boston  No Responses »
Nov 112012
 

Doc Rivers’ job is safe, but after a slow start, a few of the starting spots in the Boston Celtics‘ starting lineup are not. 

While the Celtics haven’t looked nearly as bad as the Los Angeles Lakers, a 2-3 start, an opening night lost to the rival Miami Heat didn’t sit well with Rivers. 

Following Friday night’s 106-100 home loss against the Philadelphia 76ers, Doc had a new prescription for his team’s ailing offense (via The Boston Globe). 

After giving rookie Jared Sullinger a chance to grasp the starting power forward spot, Rivers had seen enough. 

The rookie out of Ohio State was averaging just four points and 4.6 rebounds per game as a starter, leaving Rivers no choice but to put veteran Brandon Bass back at the No. 4 spot Saturday night against the Milwaukee Bucks. 

Bass—who like Sullinger is considered an undersized power forward—responded with eight points and seven boards in the Celtics’ 96-92 victory to even the team’s record at 3-3. 

Sullinger wasn’t the only starter who found a new home off the bench Saturday as Doc pulled the plug on Courtney Lee in favor of veteran scorer Jason Terry. 

Lee was expected to be a dynamic offensive threat, but the usually efficient shooter flopped miserably in Boston’s first five games. 

In replacing Lee with Terry, the Celtics got a big boost offensively as the wily 13-year veteran dropped 15 points, including two three-pointers in the win. Going forward, this lineup is probably the best the Celtics can roll out until Avery Bradley gets healthy. 

Lee could form a nice scoring duo with Jeff Green off the bench, but he’s probably stretched out as a starter at this point.

Terry’s ability to play point guard in a pinch and score would make him an ideal player off the bench, however, with Bradley still rehabbing from shoulder surgeries, the Celtics probably need him to simply provide points early on.

Once Bradley returns, Boston can throw out one of the better defending back courts in the game with Rajon Rondo and the defensive-minded Bradley. 

Until that happens, the Celtics need to try and put more offensive firepower on the floor, making Terry and Bass invaluable. 

Although some people aren’t fans of Bass’ shot selection, the big man actually improved a lot on both ends of the floor in his first season in Boston and was one of the more underrated players in Boston’s playoff run this summer.

With a team that already struggles to score at times, it’s best to let Bass knock down jumpers and bang on the glass and let Sullinger grow with the second unit.

Before the season it appeared Boston had acquired some enviable depth, and it appears Rivers will find out just how deep his team is just six games into the season. 

Read more Boston Celtics news on BleacherReport.com

Go to Source

Boston Celtics Limiting Kevin Garnett’s Minutes Crucial to Sustained Success

 Boston  No Responses »
Nov 072012
 

Kevin Garnett is averaging just 28.7 minutes per game this season. If you’re a Celtics fan that is hoping to see that number go up, you’re going to be disappointed—although you shouldn’t be. 

According to Frank Dell’Apa of the Boston Globe, Celtics coach Doc Rivers said, 

But if we can’t win with [Garnett] off the floor, we just won’t win. And I told our bench that. We’re going to play the minutes that I’m giving them, and the bench is going to play the minutes they should get. And they’ve got to do something or we won’t win — it will be that simple.

That’s not the tone of someone who is open to discussion, and in this matter, he shouldn’t be. If we’ve learned anything about the Celtics in the last few years, it’s that it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. Last year, they started awful and finished in the Eastern Conference Finals, coming just a game away from the NBA Finals. 

Over the last five years, the Celtics have won more games than any team in the East. Only the Spurs and Lakers have more wins in the NBA. So you’ll have to forgive Rivers if he’s not rushing to beat on the proverbial panic button after a mediocre start. 

The team has thrown in a lot of new cogs into the machinery, and it’s handing the on-court reigns to Rajon Rondo to continue his gradual ascent from role player, to star, to being a part of the “Big Four” and a leader of the team, to being the leader of the team. 

The Celtics added Courtney Lee, Jason Terry and Leandro Barbosa through free agency. They’ve added Jared Sullinger and Kris Joseph (as well as Fab Melo, who is playing in the D-League right now) through the draft. It takes a bit of time for a team to work all of that out. 

It also takes some sense to figure out why they made all those moves, namely to get younger. They were getting so old, the Knicks were making jokes about them. 

That youth is going to take time to develop and coalesce and not just time in terms of days and weeks passing; they need time in terms of actual minutes playing on the court. 

Certainly, the team would be better now if Kevin Garnett were on the court more. The Celtics outscore their opponents by 7.7 points per 100 possessions while he’s on the court as opposed to being outscored by 26 while he’s on the bench. 

But now is not the goal for the Celtics. Their top concern is later, in the postseason.

The Celtics’ success then isn’t going to be determined just by how Garnett and Paul Pierce do, but also by how all of the new players do.  

There’s also the fact that Garnett still isn’t getting younger. In fact, he’s even older, 36, than he was last year, when he was only 35. A career-low in minutes is a good thing for a player who is a career-high in age. Sorry for the repetition, but some points need to be belabored. 

No matter how big of a Celtics fan you are, you can’t ignore that Old Man Time is undefeated. Even Bill Russell got too old to play. 

Garnett’s not there yet, but you’d rather get the best of his minutes in the postseason than right now.

The C’s might not be rolling yet, but history shows they will eventually, and they’ll be better off for it. 

Read more Boston Celtics news on BleacherReport.com

Go to Source

3 Reasons Jared Sullinger Will Play His Way into Boston Celtics’ Starting Lineup

 Boston  No Responses »
Nov 072012
 

When the Boston Celtics drafted Jared Sullinger 21st in June’s NBA draft, they knew they had a special player on their hands. Come midseason and they’ll also most likely have their new starting power forward.

The former Ohio State Buckeye has already been making waves inside the locker room.

Most noticeably, he’s earned the respect and admiration of veteran team leader Kevin Garnett.

“Jared understands what we’ve doing,” Garnett told reporters. “He’s a no-nonsense guy—not that I’m shooting anything at the other guys—but the young fella comes in, does his job and does what you tell him. He’s a great rebounder, his IQ is unbelievable, he can pass the ball and he reminds me a lot of [Kendrick Perkins]. Obviously, he’s not the defensive player that Perk was, but as far as IQ, moving the ball and being unselfish, he’s a great teammate.”

Being compared to Perkins—who contributed majorly to the team’s 2008 title run—is no small honor inside the Celtics’ locker room.

The team has been unsuccessful at finding someone to fill that role ever since Perkins was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2011. 

That is, until now.

Here are three reasons why Sullinger will play his way into the Celtics’ starting lineup.

Begin Slideshow

Go to Source

Initial Report Card Grades for Every Boston Celtics Player

 Boston  No Responses »
Nov 042012
 

It has been a rather muddy start for the Boston Celtics as they have trudged to a 1-2 record in their first three games. Of course, Celtics fans know better than to be concerned with the team this early on in the year, but that doesn’t mean we can’t evaluate the players and grade their performances thus far.

This article will cover the Boston players who have gotten significant playing time, as it is hard to judge Darko Milicic when he has only played five total minutes.

So, how has Jeff Green’s start been? Is Jason Terry living up to expectations early on? How has Jared Sullinger been doing in his first real NBA action?

It’s all in here. Let’s grade those Celtics.

Begin Slideshow

Go to Source

Larry Bird Isn’t Walking Through the Door: Learning to Love THESE Celtics

 Boston  No Responses »
Oct 312012
 

It’s basketball time again, Celtics fans.

The leaves of autumn have fallen, and so have the Red Sox of summer. The sometimes mighty, sometimes mighty-frustrating Patriots are doing their thing in Foxborough.

The Bruins are literally and figuratively hibernating.

And then there are the Celtics, the new-old Celtics. You remember the Celtics, with future Hall of Famers Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce getting a bit long in the tooth, but who are still exciting and productive players.

Add Rajon Rondo, now in his seventh year, who has ascended into the vacated spot in “the Big Three.” If you want a pass-first point guard, there’s hardly anyone his equal in the NBA (take that, Steve Nash).

Then there’s household names like Courtney Lee, Darko Milicic, Leandro Barbosa, Jared Sullinger, Jason Collins, Kris Joseph, Chris Wilcox and Fab Melo. These stalwart fellows are known as “depth,” which boils down to a nice mixture of “has been’s” or never was’s” or “will they ever be’s.”

So the Celtics are trying to keep with the old ways—Doc Rivers is a great coach who provides continuity and marvelous guidance—while infusing new talent into the system.

Brandon Bass, Jason Terry and Jeff Green round out the roster and actually have some game. They could make this version of the Celtics somewhere between competitive and very good.

So I watched last night’s game, or at least parts of it, and I learned a few things about the Celts:

- They are good enough to compete with the best teams like the Heat.

- They are not likely to beat the Heat when it comes to crunch time.

- They probably will learn to play better defense once everyone gets on the same page later in the season.

- And Paul Pierce better stay healthy!!

I also learned why it’s easy to love KG and why it’s easy to begin not loving Ray Allen.

Ray gets on the floor and starts hugging everyone in green in sight. If the Stanford mascot had been in town, my guess is that Ray would have given him (her? it?) a gigantic smack on the lips.

So why did Kevin let his body language say, “No thanks.”

I may not be a certified mind reader, but if I were, I bet this is what I would have heard him saying:

“Man, what are you doing? It’s not just that you left the team, but how and why you did it. It’s not as if you haven’t been saying annoying and insulting stuff in the media. It’s not as if you talked to me before or after you left to make things square.”

“And now you walk on the court and pull this public relations stunt by hugging people. Are you kidding? This is a basketball game, Ray. This ain’t no love fest. I don’t kiss and hug in the middle of basketball games, and I certainly don’t do it with members of the other team.”

“So, let’s forget about public shows of affection when there’s basketball to be played. Game on, man, and stay out of my way if I’m coming down the lane.”

Well, maybe there are a lot of new faces on the new-old Celtics. And maybe they’ll turn out to be winners. Well, maybe, maybe not.

But as long as they are the Celtics of KG, I still think I can get excited about these guys.

Read more Boston Celtics news on BleacherReport.com

Go to Source

Celtics vs. Heat: New Additions Will Play Big Role in High-Profile Season Opener

 Boston  No Responses »
Oct 302012
 

The Boston Celtics and Miami Heat will renew their Eastern Conference rivalry Tuesday night, but the 2012 version will look distinctly different than other editions. Both teams have added key pieces that will change the complexion of the series.

It’s technically only one game of 82, but it feels a whole lot more important. Early-season momentum is on the line, and both teams will be looking for a statement win. There’s also a good chance we see these two teams battling it out in the summer.

The Heat are the heavy favorite to repeat as champions this season. The Celtics are considered as one of the few teams that have the firepower to stop them.

These two teams went a hard seven games in June and were pretty evenly matched. However, both teams went out and brought in new players this season.

Here are the biggest additions that should impact the game Tuesday night.

 

Ray Allen, Miami Heat

It’s just odd to even see Allen in a Heat jersey. The thought of him playing his first game with the Heat against the Celtics is just mind-boggling.

Allen will have a huge impact on this game. He knows head coach Doc Rivers’ game plan and strategies extremely well and should be able to utilize that insight to help his new team.

Allen is basically coming in to take over the role of three-point sniper. With LeBron James penetrating opposing defenses, Allen will get tons of wide-open looks from the outside. Considering this is the roster that made Shane Battier look like a long-range assassin, that’s a scary thought.

 

Courtney Lee, Boston Celtics

When Allen decided to leave Boston, the Celtics wasted no time in finding his replacement.

Courtney Lee is by no means a superstar, but he is much younger than Allen (27 to 37) and could develop into a solid starter for the Celtics.

In the season opener, it’ll be important that he settles into his role with the Celtics on offense. He doesn’t quite have the same skill set as Allen, but he can knock down the three when he has to. If they can get quality shooting from him, he’ll give the Celtics a good chance against the Heat.

It’ll be important for Lee to play good defense as well; it’s likely he’ll spend at least some time guarding Dwyane Wade. Between Rajon Rondo and Lee, the Celtics should have the athleticism to slow Wade and put the load squarely on LeBron James’ shoulders.

 

Jared Sullinger, Boston Celtics

The Celtics went big with their two first-round draft picks in the 2012 NBA draft. With back-to-back picks in the first round, the Celtics took power forward Jared Sullinger and center Fab Melo.

Against the Heat, it’ll be important that Sullinger shows he can handle meaningful minutes from the start. If Miami has a weakness, it’s a lack of depth on the inside.

The Heat love to go small and play LeBron at the power forward position with Chris Bosh playing at center. The Celtics already have a good answer at center with Kevin Garnett, but Brandon Bass will need some support off the bench. That means Sullinger needs to offer the team depth at the position.

At Ohio State, Sullinger’s greatest strength was his rebounding. At 6’9″, 280, Sullinger has the frame to succeed right away and should give the Celtics a dimension of toughness that will help them against the finesse Heat frontcourt.

Read more Boston Celtics news on BleacherReport.com

Go to Source

Doc Rivers to Use Multiple Starting Lineups This Season

 Boston  No Responses »
Oct 292012
 

Over the last few seasons the Boston Celtics have sacrificed personal statistics and taken smaller roles in order to put the team in the best situation to win.

The Celtics took this idea yet another step further in the preseason by experimenting with a series of starting lineups that were anchored by Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. Marc D’Amico of Celtics.com reported that these lineup changes may even find there way into the regular season with a focus on matchup based rotations for the shooting guard and power forward positions. 

In an interview with Mike Felger and Tony Massarotti of Boston’s 98.5 The Sport’s Hub, Doc Rivers revealed that he will indeed utilize the team’s new-found depth with different optimal starting lineups based on the game’s matchups. He indicated that a transitioning starting lineup on a very strong team is something that he has not really done in the past, but that he believes the talent he has will allow him to use three separate lineups to take advantage of mismatches.

The starting lineup changes will likely be limited to the power forward position by rotating Brandon Bass, Jeff Green and Jared Sullinger depending on the game and how the team is playing. In addition, the C’s have made a decision about who will start at the shooting guard position at the beginning of the season, as Doc indicated there is “no doubt” that Courtney Lee will start next to Rondo. 

The fact that Doc Rivers is confident in the strategy of having multiple starting lineups shows the amount of confidence he has in the depth of the Boston Celtics. Furthermore, the Celtics will be able to utilize the varying skills of Bass, Green and Sullinger depending on the matchups they face on any given night, allowing Boston the opportunity to find the proper mismatches and keep opposing teams guessing on which lineup they will see. 

 

The interview also reveals that Jared Sullinger has clearly gained the respect and trust of Doc Rivers in his first few months on the team, which is a rare feat as Rivers often is hesitant to give too much responsibility to his rookies. Sullinger did prove in the preseason that he is likely ready for a large role on this team, and he will certainly get a good share of minutes if he continues to perform with the same intensity he has brought in the last few weeks. 

Hopefully the transitional starting lineup will provide only positive results for the Celtics and the players rotating in and out don’t get carried away with the need to be designated a “starter,” as most NBA players seem to obsess over the title.

If the Celtics can keep all of the players focused on playing as a team and ignoring individual needs, then these multiple lineups could be the key to getting Boston a strong playoff seed while keeping the team healthier over the long season. 

Boston has been lucky to be able to put together one of the deepest rosters in the league this year by bringing in a group of talented and selfless players that will likely push the C’s to an even higher level of performance.

If Doc Rivers can keep the team healthy and the players can work as a single unit, Banner 18 may not be as far out of reach as many analysts believe. It is a very long season and anything can happen along the way, but the Boston Celtics appear to be as well positioned as any other team to shatter Miami‘s hopes of repeating as NBA Champions. 

Read more Boston Celtics news on BleacherReport.com

Go to Source

 Older Entries