First and foremost, happy Thanksgiving everybody.
I hope everyone has a tremendous day.
Since the second the NBA schedule came out, Celtics and Bucks fans all circled November 22nd.
Just like with the Sixers and the Heat, every time these teams play it’s a big deal.
It could be November, January, or the Spring, these are big games for everyone involved.
To suggest otherwise would be a form of coping all because you don’t like the result.
Last night was our first look at the two teams most say are the best in the East.
#1 vs #2.
Two supposed title contenders who both underwent massive changes this offseason in some sort of quasi-arms race.
Not only that, but once again we saw the Celts build a 20 point lead.
That has happened in the majority of those 11 games and it’s very simple to explain why.
The Bucks do not have the personnel to guard the Boston Celtics.
Think of when it comes to stopping each team’s best player.
If you’re able to’t stop either guy from getting to the rim, it’s over.
What did we all say before the season?
The Bucks roster does not have a single person who can do that.
What did we see in the first game?
Zero Bucks being able to slow down Tatum and Brown.
Shit, Tatum outproduced Giannis and that guy is practically on his deathbed with mono or something.
Our first look between these two teams was pretty much what we expected.
Is that not exactly what happened?
The Bucks are now stuck with a problem so many other teams have.
This is a matchup problem for you.
It’s a bad matchup on both ends.
Defensively, the Bucks wings are not quick or strong enough.
Dame and Cam Payne are a negative against the size of the Celts backcourt.
That is what the first meeting of the year told me.
It just confirmed what we already knew heading into the season.
Things played out basically to a T, including the classic Celtics 4th quarter collapse.
The Celts can play better too!
More importantly, this team remained perfect at home.
Let’s talk about it.
Things have gotten to a point where it’s almost laughable.
Is it your $300M?
I didn’t think so.
Seriously, what are we doing?
Do you know how fortunate the Celtics are to have both wing players?
Tatum feeling sick, Jaylen coming off a dogshit game against the Hornets, what do we see?
Arguably one of the best performances of Jaylen’s entire career
Spectacular.
That is how I would describe Jaylen’s night.
To say Jaylen Brown delivered doesn’t even do it justice.
He set the entire tone right from the opening tip, literally.
Suddenly with the ball in his hands, he was making the right decision every single possession.
Quite frankly, we saw the version of Jaylen Brown that makes the Celtics unstoppable.
Similar to how Tatum played last night as well.
And the lob to Hauser?
It really is incredible what Brad Stevens has done for Jaylen by giving him KP.
It’s changed everything about how Jaylen plays really.
I cannot EVER remember him consistently looking to make passes to someone the way Jaylen works with KP.
The connection these two have after 15 games looks like they’ve been playing together for 15 years.
When Brad made this trade we all immediately went to what it meant for Tatum.
The proof isn’t just in the clips, it’s also in the numbers.
Jaylen Brown has made 101 passes to KP this season, accounting for 21 assists.
That doesn’t even include all the times a Jaylen pass led to FTs either.
The next closest Celtic is Tatum with 6 AST from Jaylen.
What’s the matchup there?
I also have to give KP credit, he’s way tougher than I ever though.
I feel like his rebounding is aggressive.
His toughness has just been much more noticeable than I ever thought he played with.
This is Mazzulla Ball.
The Bucks entire defensive philosophy is to let you shoot.
They won’t shoot like that again!
Certainly NBA players won’t keep making open 3s!
No man, your defense just stinks and the Celts are built with 40% three point shooters.
That’s the whole point of Brad’s plan.
How would the new look Celts handle the two best players of the new look Bucks.
I’d say the results were pretty good, even with Dame catching fire late.
The most notable thing for me was Jrue’s performance against Giannis.
Look, Holiday’s offense has been a disaster to start the season.
But let me make this very clear.
Just don’t turn it over.
I am willing to make that deal with him.
What Holiday has been doing defensively this season against bigs has truly been special.
That wasn’t even supposed to be his strength.
An overall defensive masterclass from him last night.
It’s like a father always being able to dominate his kids.
They can try all they want, but the father is older and wiser and knows all their tricks.
He’s two steps ahead of you before you’ve even decided what move you want to make.
Oh and his three point shot is also back which rules.
This is what I mean when I talk about a matchup problem.
What’s the solution for MIL here?
That’s supposed to make someone feel good?
I continue to be impressed with how Tatum rebounds, especially in games where he’s taking things seriously.
I will say enough with the late game FT misses though.
Time to cut the shit.
- Very quietly, the Celtics bench has been sneaky good.
That my friends, is exactly what I’m sure Brad envisioned when he built this roster.
Now that Pritchard’s shot looks back, it’s really changed the perception of his season.
Over his last 5 games, we’re seeing 9.6/3.3/2.2 on 47/45% in 22 minutes from Pritchard.
That’s all he has to do.
Make his open looks, get into the paint and then either shoot it or create for others.
His defense has been fine and really it was just about his shot not dropping.
Now that it is, he’s maknig a real impact.
A completely normal thing to expect for someone in that situation.
It had to be weird as well.
I will say though, the larger concern is on Holiday’s offensive season as a whole.
He currently has the 4th lowest TS% of his career to start the season at 51.2%.
It hasn’t been this low in over a decade.
That’s not great.
It’s also very early still so we shouldn’t lose patience just because KP has fit seamlessly.
The way you make games harder on yourself and ultimately find ways to collapse is giving up extra possessions.
That shit leads to points.
- Very rare 6 TO game by Derrick White.
It doesn’t happen often, but he got hit with come CTE at times in this game.
But I can’t lie.
I expect to see a 6 TO game from guys like Tatum or Brown or Holiday.
I feel like Derrick usually has 6 TOs in a month let alone a single game.
Gotta clean that up.
- The War on Theis has now morphed into the War On Porzingis.
These techs are getting flat out insane.
NBA needs to grow up already with that shit.
The War isn’t easy, but you’ve got the option to get through it.
The Ugly
- Everything about the 4th quarter.
They can’t help themselves.
Yeah those things are still never safe.
If I can’t trust that then what can I trust?
Part of what made it so annoying was the fact that it wasn’t all just settling for 3s.
Dame Time is real, and it is to be respected.
That’s my other takeaway from this game.
If you don’t play the full 48 against MIL, Dame has the ability to catch you.
Exactly what the doctor ordered heading into the best day of the year.
Have a great day everyone.
