That’s really all I felt immediately after the clock hit 0.0 last night.
When you’re in a rut, you need a slump buster.
The Blazers have a top 7 offense, but they’re a lottery team.
This isn’t about them.
It was almost like they needed to remind themselves that you know what?
We’re actually pretty good when we don’t play like complete assholes!
I don’t really care who is on the other side, the Celts need to start stacking wins.
It’s important to remember that one win doesn’t mean everything is back to normal.
That’s not how it works.
One win stops the bleeding, that’s really it.
You then have to build on this win if you want to consider things back to normal.
Luckily, at 20-12 they are tied for the best road record in the NBA.
If anyone can win on the road, it’s them.
The Blazers aren’t a 10/10 smokeshow, and that’s OK. Every win won’t be.
It’s the small victories in life that matter sometimes, so let’s talk about it.
For starters, the actual basketball he played was pretty perfect.
Remember when Sixers fans tried to pretend like he had a chance?
Don’t be silly, put some respect on Tatum’s name.
For example, Reddish/Grant matched up with Tatum for a total of 33 possessions in this game.
Tatum finished with 19 points on 8-8 shooting against both of those players.
I’m not a huge math guy, but that seems pretty good.
What I liked about Tatum’s approach is nothing really seemed forced.
Everything came within the flow of the offense, even his pullup 3PA.
That’s Part 1 of his night.
The part I may actually like more?
He sat the entire 4th.
That tells me two things.
Second, this is the jot down of “rest” I think we all want Tatum to have.
Kick the shit out of teams and then hold onto the lead.
In-game rest in March/April should be the goal for all the starters, but especially Tatum.
Last night was the fewest minutes Tatum has played since that BKN blowout win.
I’d love to see that number go up this month (due to wins).
Sometimes guys who are really good around the rim just can’t seem to get one to drop.
When it comes to Derrick, just compare this to the CLE game.
He had so many little floaters rim out from point blank range, it was just really weird.
Then you add in his mindset
and it’s impossible to not love this man.
I will say it for the thousandth time.
Derrick White is a tremendous Celtic.
It’s that simple.
To do that, it requires all 5 guys on the floor to be locked in.
Guys are going to feel comfortable and you’re in for a long night.
This is the formula.
It’s always been the formula and it will always be the formula.
Defend first, rain threes second.
That’s the path.
- Being able to watch Al Horford play basketball for your favorite team is such a blessing.
That’s all that needs to be said.
The load management plan is working, and he looks fantastic right now.
I don’t really care about the 3-4 (2-2) numbers which were great.
So many people care about volume, and that’s misguided in my opinion.
What matters is the approach.
He was playing way too sped up and out of control, which led to poor decisions and turnovers.
He passed up a good look for himself for a great look for someone else.
To no surprise, he was a +16 in his 21 minutes.
The Jays are the best players on this team and everything starts and stops with them.
But last night was a great example of what happens when Good Smart shows up.
- A quick update on Mazzull Ball since everyone seems to think it doesn’t work suddenly.
115 in regulation
18 3PM
49 3PA
26 AST
10 TOs
Yup, looked pretty good to me.
When the Celts actually play Mazzulla ball, they tend to win.
When they turn the ball over or don’t share the rock, they tend to struggle.
So much about this offense isn’t so much the end result, but how things are generated.
The Blazers never threatened, even in the 4th when everyone sat.
I knew they could do it, I just think they needed to see it themselves.
- I had no idea what to expect from Blake Griffin this season.
I sort of figured he was there for the vibes and maybe some blowouts.
Game after game he shows that he is willing to die for this team and I respect that immensely.
The guy didn’t make a shot last night in his 18 minutes and was a +15.
That tells you everything it’s crucial that you know.
The rest of those 12 minutes were pretty gross offensively.
In the two he didn’t, the Celts scored 25 and 21.
- We’re still seeing too many fouls for my liking.
The Celts on the season are at the top of the league in opponent FTA rate on the year.
You have to be able to guard effectively without giving up so many FTA.
Every game can’t be 25+ for the opponent, that’s not a winning formula.
- A shitty 4-10 (0-3) shooting night from Jaylen, but that’s whatever to me.
Given what he’s done lately, he deserves a pass.
The guy’s legs are probably shot after playing a billion minutes in back to back games.
The Ugly
- Big picture, Malcolm Brogdon is having a fantastic season.
While the defense is maybe worse than I was expecting, offensively he’s been a billion times better.
Why can’t Malcolm Brogdon make layups?
Make that make sense to me.
Again, make that make sense.
I’m just going to have to ask this man to like convert these goddamn layups.
My mental health can only take so much.
As I said at the top of the blog, one win doesn’t change much.
It stops the bleeding.
The pressure is on after their losing streak, and only they can dig themselves out of it.
