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Celtics are overrated.
Magics or Pistons will win the East. Book it.
December 11, 2007
On Basketball
Winning When They Shouldn't
By STEPHEN DANLEY
The Boston Celtics already have the look. They have championship talent, in the franchise players Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, and a cornucopia of effective role players. They flexed their muscles at the start of the season and showed the N.B.A. they were a team to be reckoned with.
Now the Celtics are doing something much quieter, but just as impressive. They’re winning basketball games they should be losing.
Any player will tell you that there are nights when the basketball gods simply don’t want you to win. They normally come on the back end of a road trip, or the second night of a back-to-back. On those nights career 19 percent 3-point shooters go 5 for 5 from behind the line and players like Shaquille O’Neal don’t miss a free throw. It seems as if everything the other team throws up fall through the hoop and you’re playing in quicksand.
Wednesday was one of those nights, and the Celtics won anyway.
On a snowy night in Philadelphia, the basketball gods blitzed the Celtics from the get go. The 76ers’ Andre Iguodala, who is known more for his athletic prowess in the open court than his one-on-one ability, made five tough buckets to open the game, including two 20- footers with a defender in his face. He finished the game 10 for 17 from the field.
Andre Miller, whose jump shot is an affront to the aesthetics of the game, came out and made six of his first seven shots. Many of those were tough fadeaways from 17 feet and were so ugly that parents should have shielded their children’s eyes from the replays.
As a team the Sixers shot 60 percent in the first half. With 43 seconds left they were up, 57-48.
It was at that moment that the Celtics got back into the game.
With the amount of time left on the clock everyone in the building knew the Celtics would try to get two more scoring opportunities. The problem with trying to squeeze two possessions out of the last 40 seconds, is that it’s easily anticipated. An evenly matched opponent will tighten up their defense and instead of having even one good possession you end up with two bad ones.
The Celtics had no such difficulties. They pushed the ball down the floor and Pierce sliced to the basket quicker than pie disappears on Thanksgiving. His layup fell through with 33.9 secondss left. That virtually assured Boston of another possession.
On the other end, the Sixers showed their inexperience and turned the ball over, leaving the Celtics with 23.1 seconds.
Tony Allen held for the last shot and executed perfectly. He drove into the lane with about 7 seconds left. His layup attempt rolled off the rim but because he made his move with enough time, Garnett had a chance to grab the rebound. Garnett ended the half with a vicious dunk punctuated by a primal scream.
The Celtics went into the locker room down by 5 points, having almost completely negated the outstanding play of the Sixers.
The second half started with more of the same: Garnett dunk, Ray Allen 3-pointer, Pierce jump shot, Sixers timeout.
Just like that the Celtics were back in the lead, and although Iguodala hit a wild scoop shot to momentarily stop the momentum, the Celtics were like sharks circling their prey. Their passes were crisper, their ball movement was better and they had an energy that was absent in the first half.
When James Posey came in for Garnett with 3 minutes 40 seconds left in the third quarter, Garnett went to each of his teammates on the court and pointed at them. Then, coming off the court, he gave a fist pump and let out a yell.
Garnett’s message was simple: They had put the Sixers back on the ropes. Now they had to finish them off.
There was one problem; the Sixers kept throwing punches of their own.
Every time the Celtics looked poised to pull away the Sixers would answer with a tough basket. They simply didn’t miss shots.
The game seesawed back and forth until Garnett took things into his hands once again. With the Celtics up by 89-88, Garnett made a steal.
The Celtics pushed the ball and Eddie House launched a 3-pointer from the right corner. Garnett, trailing the play, swooped in to corral the rebound. He held the ball for a second, letting the offense reset, then waved for both Pierce and House. He sent House into the corner and tossed the ball to Pierce for a pick and roll.
As Pierce drove into the lane he drew both his and Garnett’s defenders. House’s defender slid down to pin Garnett and prevent an easy dunk. There, standing all alone in the corner where Garnett had placed him, was House.
Bang. 3-pointer. 11-2 Celtics run. Game over.
In the end it didn’t matter that the Sixers never really cooled off.
The Celtics won the decisive fourth quarter, even though the Sixers more than 50 percent from the floor.
The Celtics winning formula was simple enough. They did the things any championship team does on a nightly basis. They finished the first half strong, they won the first five minutes of the second half and they executed down the stretch.
On a snowy night in Philly, that simple formula was enough to defy the basketball gods.
Stephen Danley played forward at Penn before graduating last spring. He received a Marshall Scholarship to study at Oxford.
Celtics are overrated.
Magics or Pistons will win the East. Book it.
Wow, must be hard to pull out wins against that vaunted 6'ers defense.
I like the Celtics, but if they think the East is tough to pull games out in, the West will just bury you if you let a team get up with a few easy buckets.
Hmm ... I seem to remember the Mavs winning games they shouldn't last season. What happened once the intensity was turned up in the playoffs?
at an enitre article trying to make out the 76'ers to be an elite team.
Wow. I'm afraid the entire celtics team might get Wade Treatment in the finals.
Am I the only one that's finding the Celtics schedule so far to be entirely TOO easy for it to have been merely coincidental??
I mean, COME ON!! I am almost completely convinced the Celtics are being groomed into success by desperate NBA execs. I can't remember the last time I saw a schedule that easy.
Of course, it will even out eventually but such an easy start serves to build one of a momentum, and for a team with Celtics' talent, that's enough.
No BSPN, class won't be in session until Feb 10
Celtics really have had a cake schedule so far. But all they can do is win those games scheduled. I'll reserve judgment either way until they have a western conference road trip of significance, a few more back-to-back sets, and a couple of losses to show how they react to some adversity. They're not as good as their record, but I can't say for sure they are that overrated until I see go through a tougher stretch of their schedule.
I'm not hating on them.
Of course, I'm not proclaiming them lords of the NBA as this article is trying to do, either.
Wow, they beat the Sixers. Great job there.
I absolutely agree. Sure, they have talent on their team, but they're in the Eastern Conference, and they've had an easy schedule so far.
I'm with you...I'll wait until their schedule gets tougher to make my final decision about this team.
http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/...d-Call-it.htmlBoston's Defense: You Could Call it "Solid"
December 10, 2007 11:40 AM
The season is young, and the statistical analyses of what has happened so far are still a little wacky.
However, when it comes to defensive efficiency, no one is even remotely close to the Boston Celtics.
The way most people judge defense, points against, is dreadfully misleading. Fast-paced teams are often great at defense, but they are so quick with the ball that they give the other team more opportunities to score -- so the other team scores more. Slow teams like Detroit and San Antonio usually win those statistical compe ions.
But a more meaningful measure of a defense's strength is how many points a team scores against a team every 100 possessions.
By that measure, as Matthew Yglesias points out (a political blogger slumming in sports, as he does from time to time) the second best team in the league is the Denver Nuggets (a piece of news in and of itself).
The Celtics are nearly six points better than Denver.
Which means the entire NBA is more or less grouped together, with the Celtics out there all by themselves in this category.
In addition to new players this season, the Celtics also have a new assistant coach dedicated to defense, who talked to us a few weeks ago.
"HEY! Sixers are no joke, buddy."
-Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming
Not sound too Spurdynastic, but there is something to be said for beating the teams you are supposed to beat. This is a team that had more hype than any team for a while (which can also create an equally large group of people rooting for them to fail) and they've lived up to it as best as they can at this point. I don't think they've faced a single team yet that they "should" lose to, but their record at least says that they've come to play damn near every night, which is more than a lot of teams can say at this point in the season.
Granted there's plenty to be said for pacing yourself, but the amount of hype they had going into this season doesn't afford them that opportunity. With expectations so high (and a fan based that's been through recent struggles and their tank fest last spring) they had to win now or all of these fellating articles would be busting their balls. Not to outrightly Mav bash, but look at what's been happening to them lately in the press, and they are in a small market with less hype and tradition surrounding them.
EDIT: And just to make sure, I agree that this article is bull .
i'm not convinced they can get passed the pistons...besides the matchups problems in it for them, boston is full of a bunch of soft players who either have no valuable nba playoff experience or haven't been winners. i think they fail agaisnt the pistons thanks to lack of mental toughness.
pistons couldn't get past lebron yet they will beat a team with KG, Pierce and allen? LMAO
mental toughness? so you think the pistons had mental toughness when they choked against the cavs? lol
all in all your post made zero sense.
fact is the celtics will likely win the east with ease while the spurs will be beaten up most likely after going through a bunch of tough teams. doesn't bode well for the finals if thats the case. should be fun
New season.
Were the Spurs not supposed to get out of the West last year because the previous year they choked against Dallas?
Your logic makes little sense.
Boston might still beat the Pistons, but it's no guarantee. Cliche cliche, that's why they play the games.
The Celtics are very good. I think they will win the East easily. The Pistons aren't as good as they used to be and there really isn't any other team there that can play with them.
Thank you. People keep disrespecting our team. The only way the Pistons or Magic get into the finals is if Boston has team chemistry issues (which isnt going to happen) or have injuries. This team is better than anyone in that conference when healthy. Pistons will pass the Celtics the torch this season in the ECF.
It's been the same the past two seasons. Pistons had the best so called roster and choked both years. Why will they suddenly change the pattern now? they have brought in no real impact players. they can't score to save their lifes in the latter stages of the playoffs. Their D has also taken a step back.....pistons arent winning the east unless they add something at the trade deadline.
You are wrong.
Because every season is different and no one knows for sure what's going to happen. Were the Spurs never going to win another championship after 1999 after not winning three straight years?
I'm not saying the Pistons will end up beating the Celtics in the playoffs. I don't know they will. But, to simply dismiss them because they have had two straight seasons where they could have won but didn't in the Eastern Conference Finals is naive to say the least.
They choked against Cleveland last year. Miami actually was the better team in 2006. Wade was playing out of his mind and wasn't even bailed out by the refs in that series.
As for this year being different, the Pistons have improved while not making dramatic moves. First of all, their defense is still actually one of the best in the league. Last time I checked, they were second in opponent's points per game and I think top 5 in opponent's FG%. I'll have to double check that. They might be even higher in opponent's FG%. And, while they didn't make huge changes, they feel their cast of role players are better equipped to help the starters. And, their offense has been the most efficient in the league per possession. Jarvis Hayes was a low-key pick-up that has turned out to be a very good addition. McDyess in a starter's role has excelled, especially with his scoring. Maxiell has been brought around to play more minutes and has been very impressive. Change does not always involve a lottery pick or a $10 million+ per year free agent signing or a blockbuster trade.
Nothing is guaranteed. Your flippant dismissal of the Pistons as a threat to Boston in the East is your opinion. You're more than en led to it. I disagree, not to the extent to guarantee the Pistons will definitely be the team to beat Boston in the playoffs, but to say Boston is not the clear-cut favorite to come out of the East.
btw maybe my post made zero sense because u failed to see that i mentioned a lot of ur guys don't have experience in pressure situations in the playoffs...thaat and u guys just don't match up well against the pistons. o, and ur not deep
If that's true, at least the rest of the league has done the same.
http://www.nba.com/statistics/sortab...able1.html#top
Detroit second in the league in opponent's points per game at 91.85 ppg, only behind Boston.
Detroit fourth in the league in opponent's FG% at .438, behind Boston, Orlando, and Indiana.
Detroit fifth in the league in opponent's 3-pt% at .333.
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