For example, last night in Indy.
The schedule says that was just a normal regular season game in early January.
The perfect cherry on top of an extremely annoying result.
It wasn’t just a call here or there.
Did they get boned?
Did they also play a whole bunch of losing basketball prior to the final shot?
I think this is a situation where both things can be true.
Big picture, it’s whatever.
I want Adam Silver arrested.
Let’s dive in.
With no Tatum in the lineup we all knew the deal.
That doesn’t just mean scoring, it means everything.
Think of what Tatum does on a nightly basis.
Of those 9, only Giannis and KD shoot better from the field than Jaylen’s 55.6%.
Last time I checked those guys were pretty good.
His 3P came mostly when he was already cooking, and almost everything was aggressive and to the basket.
That was the #1 jot down of performance that we expected, and Jaylen delivered.
It’s also why I don’t really have a problem with his final shot.
Probably because he knows he’s right.
It’s getting repetitive at this point, but Porzingis truly is a basketball cheat code.
That makes everyone’s life so much easier and why he’s so crucial to their playoff run.
I thought Jrue was pretty damn good in this game, on both ends of the floor.
Given that Derrick had an off night, I’d say this was pretty important.
- I’m just going to say this now.
I don’t know what round and I don’t know what opponent, but it’s coming.
Al Horford is perfect.
He finished 5-6 (4-5), everyone else….2-8 (1-4).
The Bad
- Alright, where to start.
I suppose we can begin with the bench points difference, because man did that impact this result.
I mean that’s a staggered number.
This game was yet another example of why Joe’s offensive approach continues to be right.
This is especially true if your opponent is going to be that hot from three.
You’re not going to beat something like that trading 3s for 2s in 2024.
That also did not lead to points.
Timeouts aren’t some sort of magic tool that always leads to a positive result.
Maybe this will be what finally allows fans to understand that.
- Let’s tell it like it is.
The best defensive backcourt in the league got cooked by TJ McConnell.
You don’t have to like it, but it’s true.
- I’m THIS close to banning Derrick White from going on JJ Redick’s podcast.
He’s shooting 32/29%.
His 4-16 (2-8) was pretty brutal.
How do I know that?
Last night the Celtics missed 9 FTs, turned it over 15 times and allowed 20 points off TOs.
They lost by 4.
THAT is a much more common result when you see a team fuck around like that.
The FT shooting is the bigger concern, becasue what the hell.
There’s your game right there.
The final play isn’t even an issue if this team doesn’t completely choke from the FT line.
So while it was a bad call, last time I checked the Celts put themselves in that position.
- Then of course there was where the game was truly lost, which was the 3rd quarter.
Allowing 44 points on 68/57% splits while committing 6 TOs is indefensible.
The Pacers went 9 minutes of the 3rd quarter where they scored on every offensive trip.
Who are you beating when you do that shit?
At least to me anyway.
- But that doesn’t excuse what we saw to end this game.
By now, everyone has seen the play
A few things here.
It does not matter that the ball was touched, Jaylen never lost control of it.
The contact to the head is clear, and happens before contact with the ball
3.
The refs told Jaylen he did not get hit in the head, which is a lie
4.
Why were the Pacers given the ball, when everyone stopped playing after the whistle blew?
Porzingis doesn’t go for the rebound because the play is dead.
Numbers 3 & 4 are the big ones for me.
In terms of them even getting the ball, why wasn’t it a jump ball?
That felt weird too.
At the end of the day, it’s one loss in early January.
But what’s still concerning is how the Celts lost.
Bad third quarter, TOs, missed FTs etc.
Last night they didn’t, and it ultimately bit them in the ass.
