And with that, the 1 seed quest is officially over.
I’m sorry to say, but the Bucks aren’t losing their final 3 games of the season.
Do that, and rest everyone until the playoffs, that is now the path.
I’m annoyed, but not really concerned.
If those things pop up in a playoff series, things will not work out.
So big picture, that night was whatever.
Small, more current picture, we saw some bad habits creep in at the worst possible times.
Let’s talk about it.
Tyrese Maxey only had 5 points on 34 possessions while shooting 2-5.
He’s been rock solid on both ends all season.
That’s pretty big time.
- The same can be said about Malcolm Brogdon.
For Brogdon, 12 of his 16 FGA came in the paint.
For White, it was nearly half of his 18 FGA.
For Smart, 8 of his 15 FGA came in the paint.
There was no real perimeter resistance, and this was the fully healthy Sixers roster.
Being this close to the playoffs, I have no problem with keeping his minutes under 30.
I saw enough in his minutes to know he can be effective in this matchup.
- I talk all the time about how important it is for the Celts to get good guard play.
This game was the perfect example of why.
Early in the game, I would say the guard play was mostly bad, especially offensively.
Nobody could make a shot.
In the second half, all three guards woke up and the momentum shifted.
His energy and effort on the glass are what helped the Celts get that lead in the fourth quarter.
He’s a guy that knows his role, embraces it, and then thrives in it.
- Offensively, I’d say the approach was what we want.
To me, last night was more about shot making than their approach or style.
More often than not, when the Celts hit 28 assists, they win.
On the season, they are 28-8 when they do.
Outside of the Wizards blowout, those two other losses were by a combined 3 points.
I know, that makes no sense to your brain.
Logic tells you that it should be the other way around right?
Well that is not the story with this team.
See for yourself
Just 9-8 on the season when the Celts get 2 or more days rest.
Compare that to the B2B record and how does that make any sense?
Having not played since Thursday night, I did not see the Celts coming out and shooting 41/33%.
Just 40/26% in the first half, the shotmaking never really came around.
Sometimes shit just doesn’t go down for you.
Take PJ Tucker for example.
Last night was the 2nd game of his season that he made 3 3PM.
He found himself open, and he made his shots, credit to him.
Maybe he should have left earlier, with White helping down to check Harris.
I would also argue that this was not exactly a hard closeout by Tatum, which was costly.
Maybe that’s the play given his percentages, but the situation certainly called for some actual defense.
He had made his previous two, he was feeling good, and momentum was in the balance.
If the Celts are going to send extra bodies at Embiid, their rotations have to be much better.
They have to close out harder on shooters and make those guys put the ball on the floor.
We didn’t exactly see that in the biggest moments of the game.
- What we did see was another bonehead decision by Grant.
Overall I thought Grant played fine.
He was 4-7 (2-4) from the floor, made some big threes and whatnot.
But to get that tech late in the 4th quarter is just stupid basketball.
I don’t care if this is what he says happened
Guess what Grant?
You’re not going to get the benefit of the doubt with the officials.
Because you won’t stop barking at them.
If that’s what happened, is that a double standard?
Because you have to understand the situation.
What did he think was going to happen?
The ref would say “you’re right Grant, we’ll change the call!”
Just get your ass back on defense and try and get a stop.
The complaining has never worked, and it certainly didn’t last night.
That’s what we saw last night from Embiid.
The Celts didn’t really have an effective approach at any point of the game.
The first, is their star didn’t exactly pull his weight.
Coming off the huge games against MIL/UTA, that was not the Jayson Tatum we saw last night.
There was no off ball movement from anyone.
- FTs, they’re important.
Always have been and always will be.
As a team, the Celts were 6-7 entering the 4th quarter.
The Basketball Gods always make you pay when you fuck around late at the FT line.
We saw it against NYK, we saw it against CLE, and we saw it again last night.
I’ll remind you, this is the 2nd best FT shooting team in the NBA this season.
- Through the first 6 minutes of the fourth quarter, the Sixers had 9 points.
They took a timeout at the 6:18 mark with the Celts up 86-81.
If you want to know why the Celts lost this game, look right there.
This is what I mean when I say the late game execution was piss poor on both ends.
you could’t force more than 1 miss in half a quarter?
What the shit is that?
That’s losing basketball if I’ve ever seen it.
The Celts run will come down to how they play, not who they play.
