How do things stack up?
In the playoffs, of those 74, the Celtics have won 43 of them (58.1%).
Then all of a sudden they count.
Anyway, as you might see when it comes to Celtics/Lakers, this battle is pretty one sided.
But last night wasn’t just about beating the Lakers (again).
They are the only team in the top 10 seeds out West with a negative point differential.
The reason last night was a big deal was what it meant for the overall West Coast trip.
All that crying about the 3pt shooting against GS, and what did the Celts do?
They didn’t change a goddamn thing because why would they?
This is what a true Tier 1 title contender looks like.
It’s why when fans say it’s a title or bust season, it actually is.
That should be worn with a badge of honor as far as I’m concerned.
So why are things different this time around?
Those teams did not have Kristaps Porzingis
Say hello to the needle mover/missing piece/savior/gift from the Basketball Gods/etc.
You know how he talked about those Porzingis post up numbers?
Let’s be very clear about something.
Anthony Davis is a tremendous defender.
He should be on the shortlist for DPOY, and that’s not even a hot take.
Against smaller defenders in a switch?
KP was 3-4 against Taurean Prince and 3-3 against Cam Reddish.
It didn’t matter who the Lakers threw at him, Porzingis gave them all buckets.
That’s a wide open FT jumper, aka buckets.
It’s because he changes EVERYTHING.
That was Derrick White’s extension price continuing to go up.
At this point whatever that max extension number looks like, it might not even be close to enough.
As a point guard, Derrick White is tied for 21st in the entire NBA in blocks per game.
Everyone else is either a center or a big as you would imagine.
That is fucking nuts.
Offensively, what more could we ask for?
Can we just take a minute, catch our breath, and understand how ridiculous this is to witness?
Call him whatever you want, I think I’ll just go with winning player.
It’s just too much for 99.9% of the opposing teams in the league.
Would you all like to see what that looks like?
Just like it was for Jaylen, the 11/22 MIL game was the turning point for Holiday.
I don’t even remember that guy in the first 10 games.
The ball security, I mean I could cry looking at that number.
Under 2 a game this month?
Even that feels high.
We saw what that improved comfort level did for White, and now we’re seeing it with Holiday.
Will he always shoot 50/50%?
But it does feel like we’re just scratching the surface with him.
When all that hits at the same time, the Celtics become unstoppable.
I personally couldn’t disagree more.
We want to see Tatum be aggressive and attack the rim, hopefully getting to the FT line.
He went 12-13 from the line in this game.
We want to see him be committed to the glass and make an impact with his rebounding.
He was second on the team with 8 rebounds.
You’re just looking at his 6-15 (1-6).
- I would say the same with Jaylen.
That’s called winning the margins folks, and when the Celts do that they cannot be beaten.
You want to know why the Celts shoot so many 3s?
Get to 120, and chances are things are ending up in a win.
Then Steph woke up and the tides turned.
Then AD/Prince woke up and that lead evaporated, turning into only a 1 point lead at the break.
It was actually pretty gross.
- It would drive me insane having to play the Lakers more than twice a year.
Their whistle/non-whistle is crazy to live through.
Every time you blow on AD he yells and it’s a foul.
LeBron can travel 7 times in a game and only be called for it once.
That has to be exhausting to see 4 times a year.
Even if you think there’s variance there, they did allow another opponent to shoot 40%.
I’d like to see that come down to league average if possible.
- We’re most definitely stuck in a Sam Hauser funk.
If your shot isn’t going to fall, it’s crucial that you defend.
If you aren’t going to defend, I need the open 3s to drop.
You get one or the other, we can’t have both.
What did they do?
It didn’t work.
The most predictable end of clock approach didn’t trick a soul, imagine that.
It’s because the defender knows he’s not actually going to drive.
It’s dribbling to set up his jumper, that’s it.
Here’s the thing with this play.
I have no problem with Tatum creating for himself, he’s elite at it.
I want Tatum taking the shot in these moments.
I am just BEGGING them to take a stab at generate it a different way.
Just see what it looks like.
The reason I want this is because now is the time to get those types or reps in.
We all know Tatum can iso into a pullup 3.
They need to fail at it and learn from their mistakes.
They need to succeed with it so they can see there are other options out there.
THAT is why I want to see something different.
Play like we just saw on the West Coast, and things should go rather swimmingly.
And finally, as always, fuck the Lakers.
