"Defense is more important than breathing!" I love that quote from the movie "The Air Up There" where Kevin Bacon goes over to Afica to recruit a player and ends up teaching the natives to play basketball. It is a great line and maybe not one that would work in the NBA, but certainly defense is one of the more important concepts in building a championship team. The old saying goes that offense sells tickets and defense wins games.
For 3 years now, Doc and Danny have both talked about the need for a better defense but we didn't see them do much to improve it. At one point, Doc made the statement that he worked on offense in practice and that the team would pick up the defense while working on offense since half the team has to play defense while they worked on the offensive sets. Needless to say, they didn't get the defense very well. We had a few good defenders such as Tony Allen and Rajon Rondo and Perk. But then, we also had our share of poor defenders and the team defense was pretty much non existent. The Celtics were one of the worst teams defensively last season and it showed in our record.
Fast forward to this season and defense has become a priority. Tom Thibodeau was hired as assistant coach. Kevin Garnett traded for our young players. And Doc is saying how important defense is. The whole team is committed to playing defense. The Celtics are the best team defensively and it shows in our record.
The Celtics are holding opponents to a league best 87 points per game on 41% shooting. They hold the best record in the league when scoring under 100 points. The Celtics are 8-0 when scoring under 100 points. The next closest is the Spurs who are 6-5, Magic who are 4-4, hornets who are 7-8 and Raptors who are 6-7. That is a pretty incredible stat.
In many games, the Celtics allow teams to hang around in the first half. Then, in the 3rd quarter, they turn it up defensively and smother the other team. It starts at the top with KG but every player has bought into it. Defense may not be more important than breathing, but it certainly is essential to winning a championship. Championship #17 will be won on the defensive end of the court and for the first time in a very long time, the Celtics have that commitment to defense and the ability to carry it out.
With tonight's 104-82 win over the Bucks, the Celtics matched last year's home win total of 12. This year's Celtics are 12-0, which matches the 1985 team's start and their 19-2 record matches that of the 1983-84 championship team. Also, this team is only 5 wins away from matching last year's total wins of 24. What a difference a KG makes.
The Bucks stayed with the Celtics for the first two quarters, and at the half were just down 46-44. The Celtics then outscored the Bucks 32-15 in the third quarter to take a 78-59 lead into the fourth quarter. That makes 16 straight games in which the Celtics outscored their opponents in the 3rd quarter.
Ray Allen didn't play in this game. He rolled his ankle slightly in the Charlotte game and tweaked it a little in the Kings game. Doc said that sitting him was mostly precautionary and that it isn't a serious injury. It could, however, explain the poor shooting as with a sore ankle, he wouldn't have the lift on his jumper. It was nice to see that even with one part of the trilogy out, the Celtics can still execute the game plan. Tony Allen started in place of Ray and is starting to get some of his explosiveness back again and played some very good defense, coming up with 4 steals and holding Michael Redd to 7 points, 17 below his average. He finished with 11 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals in 33 minutes of play.
Perk returned to the starting lineup after missing the last game with his infamous toe injury. He played a solid 27 minutes and finished with 4 points, 5 rebounds (3 on the offensive end), 1 steal and 1 block. He also played some very good defense in the paint. KG came out from the start playing hard and setting the tone for the game. He finished with 15 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals. His intensity continues to be off the charts. At one point, he missed a layup while getting fouled and he hit himself in the head with the ball around 10 times to vent his frustration over not making the shot.
Pierce was the player of the game and Tommy Award winner. He picked up the scoring slack with Ray out and finished with 32 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 assist. Rondo also played an excellent game, playing great defense on Mo Williams and ratcheting up his offensive game as well, hitting from the outside as well as taking it to the hoop. He finished with 17 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, and 1 steal.
Off the bench, House his some big shots and finished with 9 points and 3 rebounds. Posey didn't score but had 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals and played solid defense. Big Baby again played some solid minutes off the bench. He finished with 2 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block in 19 minutes. Powe continues to play well when he gets the minutes. He made the most of his time with 7 points, 4 rebounds and a big block in only 8 minutes. Scal also played 8 minutes and had only 1 assist to show for his effort. Gabe Pruitt played 5 minutes in his return to the parent club from the Utah Flash and had 7 points, 1 rebound, 1 assists, and 1 steal and looked very good running the point.
It has been 15 years since the Celtics last had an 8 game win streak and the Celtics have already had 2. And the most exciting thing about it is that they are doing it with defense. The Celtics came out in the second quarter playing such hustle defense that at times it looked like the Bucks were playing 5 on 8. It was incredible. The Celtics are winning in historic proportions and it sure is fun!!!
Ray Allen will miss tonight's game against the Bucks due to a bruise on his ankle. He originally injured it against Charlotte and tweaked it again in the game against Toronto. He also sat out yesterday's practice and the Celtics are calling it precautionary and have said it isn't serious. Let's hope they are more accurate with that diagnosis than they were with Al's ankle injury. Tony will probably get more minutes at the 2 guard spot. Also, Pruitt has been called up from the D-League.
Also, Perk is going to give it a try to play tonight. This is good news with Bogut in the pivot for the Bucks and they are a team that likes to score in the paint so we will need his defense. Hopefully he will be able to go 100% and not be hampered by his injury.
First, I had to admit I was wrong about the Garnett trade and now I am willing to say I was wrong about Doc as well. I was one of Doc's biggest critics last season and didn't feel that he could successfully coach a team.
But, it seems that I was wrong about Doc as well. First of all, the Celtics' record speaks for itself. I have seen some people say that coaching doesn't have much to do with this team winning because of the players he has on the team. But, if Doc was to blame for the losses last season with the young players he had, he has to get some credit for winning this season with the veterans he has this season. It has to go both ways. If he is blamed for the losses, then he should also get credit for the wins.
Doc has been able to motivate this team. He introduced the concept of Ubuntu that has been instrumental in building the concept of we, not me on this team. He does little things like posts articles that would motivate the players in games. He had been instrumental in building team chemistry. KG has said that Doc is one of the best coaches he has had on any level. KG also had this to say about him:
"That's what I love about Doc. He's not afraid to get in your [tail]. He's not afraid to tell you that you're messing up. He's not afraid of challenging guys and letting us know that this is what needs to be done. And we respond. I love it. I love the fact that he's not nonchalant. He doesn't care who you are, what the facts are in this league. He respects everybody, but he knows when we are not playing to our capabilities and he came in and got us going a little bit. It was good."
With a team of veteran stars, one of the key things to be successful is to earn their respect. It seems that Doc has done that with not only the younger players, but the All Star veterans as well.
Doc's lack of a decent rotation bothered me last season, but it seems that with consistent players, Doc has been able to set a consistent rotation. This season, Doc has had a set rotation and has done a good job of using matchups to our benefit. The one knock was that he was playing the 3 stars too many minutes, but he has done a good job recently of keeping their minutes down to a reasonable level.
Doc has been doing a good job of in game adjustments this season as well. The Celtics have outscored opponents in 15 straight third quarters. It can be said that veteran players will make adjustments on their own and come out with more intensity when they need to, but the coach also has a big part in motivating them to do so and in making adjustments in the game plan.
Last season we lost a lot of close games and many, including myself felt that it was because of Doc's inability to come up with a game plan for the end of games. This season it is just the opposite with the Celtics being able to pull out close games. Same game plans, but a different team makes all the difference.
Doc's apparent lack of respect for defense was my biggest gripe with Doc last season. But, with the addition of Tom Thibodeau and Kevin Garnett this season, the Celtics have taken defense to a whole new level. Same coach, different team. A whole new outlook on the defensive end.
I still read statements that Doc has little to do with this team winning and that when it comes the playoffs, where coaching really is important, he will blow it. That may be true, but for now, I am letting the results speak for themselves and giving Doc the benefit of the doubt.
Kendrick Perkins did not practice today after bruising his toe in the now-famous bed-crashing incident. Coach Doc Rivers said Perkins tried to run today, but couldn’t. He did not rule him out for tomorrow night’s game against the Bucks, but as of now it appears doubtful. Perkins was out on the court after practice watching Rajon Rondo take foul shots. He did not appear to have any protective boot on the foot.
He also reports that Scott Pollard is definitely out for tomorrow's game and has progressed to the point where he can now sit in a chair.
The Herald reports that Ray also watched practice from the sidelines as a precaution resulting from the ankle roll in the Charlotte game. Hopefully he didn't tweak it again and it really is just precautionary.
Also reported is that in the first returns, Kevin Garnett leads all players in NBA All-Star balloting with 735,664 votes. LeBron is second in the Eastern Converence voting. Paul Pierce is ranked 4th among forwards behind KG, LeBron and Chris Bosh. Ray Allen is ranked 4th among guards behind Dwayne Wade, Jason Kidd, and Vince Carter. The Globe reports that because of the injuries, Gabe Pruitt is being recalled from the D-League.
21 years ago, the 1986 Celtics were 17-2 and lost their only home game of the season to the Portland Trailblazers in their 20th game. Tonight the Celtics came into the game 17-2 and faced the Sacramento Kings in their 20th game. But, that's as far as the comparisons go because the Celtics moved to 11-0 at home by defeating the Kings 90-78.
For the first time this season, the Celtics trailed at the half at home. They lacked defensive energy in the first half but picked up that defensive intensity in the second half. The Celtics shots weren't falling and they shot 39% for the game while allowing the Kings to shoot 44%. At the half, the Kings were shooting 55% and then the Celtics clamped down on defense in the third and pulled away. The Celtics were out rebounded 35-33. The difference in the game was 20 turnovers for the Kings as compared with only 8 for the Celtics along with a big free throw disparity. The Celtics had 30 free throws while the Kings only had 11.
With Perk out, Doc had to alter his starting lineup for the first time this season. Big Baby got the start and responded with 16 points and 9 rebounds and garnered the Tommy Award for his efforts. Powe got the call early and played well, scoring 2 points along with 3 rebounds and 1 steal in 5 minutes, but Doc didn't play him the rest of the game. Scal finished with 2 points and 1 steal in 10 minutes.
Pierce had one of his best all around games with 26 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 1 block along with playing very good defense on Ron Artest, holding him to 7-19 shooting and 16 points. Ray Allen is still struggling with his shot but hit a couple of big 3's to help the Celtics pull ahead. He finished with 15 points on 5-13 shooting, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 steal.
KG played only 12 minutes in the first half as he picked up 3 quick fouls and had to sit. He finished the game with 11 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals in 35 minutes. It was KG's defense that picked up the intensity in the second half. He got a laugh in the post game interview when he discussed taking his defense home with him.
“We do so many defensive drills in practice, we do them in our sleep,” said Garnett, who said he practices denying the ball with his wife. When the room roared with laughter, Garnett said he wasn’t kidding. “It’s just sad. You all are laughing, but that’s real talk. I go home denying the wing.”
On one possession he covered Hawes so completely that he had no chance to shoot or pass and KG almost singlehandedly caused a 24 second violation. James Posey finished with 8 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist and played some hustle defense on Artest along with Pierce.
Rondo had an off game and Doc sat him in the 4th in favor of Eddie House as they were sagging off Rondo on defense. Rondo finished with no points but had 3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. House struggled with his shot but hit a couple of big shots when the Celtics needed them as they pulled away in the 4th quarter. He finished with 8 points on 3-10 shooting to go with 1 rebound and 1 steal. Tony played 12 minutes, including some at the point, and continued working on getting back to the old Tony. He finished with 2 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist and 2 blocks.
The Celtics are winning in historic proportions. At 12-0 they will tie the best home start ever in Celtics history. The 1984-85 Celts opened 12-0 at home and won and were 19-2 in their first 21 games. The Celtics can tie that record on Friday when they face the Milwaukee Bucks at home.
Ron Artest is one of the toughest matchups for Paul Pierce. Artest is a defensive specialist but can also score at the other end, thus making Pierce work very hard on both ends of the court. Artest will whatever it takes to slow down an opponent and he used a very unorthodox defensive method on Pierce back in 2004 when he was still with the Pacers.
I don't know which was worse, what he did to Pierce or the singing apology. Please note that while pulling his shorts back up, Pierce calmly hit a 3 in Artest's face. Expect Artest to make things difficult for Pierce once again when the Celtics face Sacramento. Unlike in years past, Pierce doesn't have to carry the offensive load on this team. But still, expect Artest to do whatever he can to take Pierce out of the game.
Scott Souza is reporting that Perk and Pollard both sat out practice today. Pollard woke up with back pain and Perk sat out with a sore foot. Doc said that it is Perk's big toe that is bothering him and that there is a good chance that the Celtics will be without both Perk and Pollard for tomorrow night's game against the Kings.
If Perkins cannot go, Kevin Garnett will switch over to center and Glen Davis may well get his first career start at power foward. Brian Scalabrine would appear the other top option as Rivers would seemingly like to keep Posey coming off the bench to back up both frontcourt positions. “We will go small - we have no choice,” Rivers said. “When you play a team like Sacramento you don’t want to go small. … Baby right now is probably a better fit, but right now I don’t know (who will start).”
"Man, that's a weird story," Perkins said after practice Tuesday. "I was asleep. I guess whoever put my bed together didn't put it together right when I moved, so one side of my bed fell. My bed was tilted, so I got out of my bed to go push down on the other side.
"And when I was about getting ready to push down on the other side, the headboard started coming in. So I tried to push the headboard back so it wouldn't fall over. My foot was under the bed and the other side of the bed fell on my foot."
X-rays were negative, but Perkins watched practice Tuesday and was limited to riding a bike and other non-basketball activities. He is averaging 7.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
You just can't make things like this up. Considering Larry Bird's back problems began from using a snow blower to clear his sidewalk, I guess truth is sometimes stranger than fiction. [Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!]
There is a rule that you should wait 20 games before passing judgement on a team at the beginning of any season. Going into the season we had a lot of questions about the team. Could Doc coach? Would we play defense? Could the 3 stars mesh on the court? Would the bench be enough? There were opinions that they may be good but it would take a year or so for them to mesh. Most felt that Doc would still mess it up even if the team played well. Many felt that 1 ball wouldn't be enough for the 3 stars and that the bench was too weak. We have played 19 games and I am going to give my 20 game report card one game early.
First of all, Pierce, Allen and Garnett get an A in chemistry. They have meshed much quicker than anyone expected. They have played very unselfish ball and because of that have made their teammates much better as well. As far as their individual play goes, that rates an A minus. The 3 stars haven't all played well in any game so far. Ray Allen has been in a shooting slump but yet has hit 2 game winning baskets so far. KG has been the most consistent, but even he has had a couple of rough games. Pierce has been up and down with his shooting but has excelled in other areas, doing whatever is needed on any given night for the win.
Coaching should get an A. Doc has done a good job of coaching this team. He is very good at motivating players and his players all respect him. The one question I would have is minutes. Ideally, the 3 stars have played too many minutes but Doc seems to be working toward playing them less and the bench more so even that isn't a major concern. Tom Thibodeau has been an invaluable addition to this team. Their defense has been the best in the league and most of that credit has to go to Tom Thibodeau. Clifford Ray has to get much of the credit for the improvement in Perk and Big Baby's development.
Defense also gets a grade of A. This is very important because defense wins championships. The fact that this team has come together this quickly defensively is incredible. They top the NBA in defensive statistics and still have room to improve. If we are to win a championship, this is where the team must continue to excel.
The "Little 2" gets a B+. Rondo has done a good job of running the team and he has been hitting his shots at a 55% rate. However, he is only shooting 49% from the line. He has shown poise on the floor in directing the offense and does a good job of finding and setting up the open man. Perk has been playing very well but has had limited minutes. Even when he is playing very well, it seems that Doc doesn't play him as much as he could.
The Bench gets a B+ as well. They have opened a lot of eyes. Posey has played very well at both ends of the floor. He brings energy off the bench and has hit some clutch 3s as well as playing excellent defense. House has been streaky with his shot, but has played well at the point and also played better defense than expected coming in. Big Baby has been a revelation. He has been giving us some quality minutes at the 4 and 5. He plays with energy and has a knack for rebounding. Tony Allen has been up and down as he tries to come back from the knee injury but we can see improvement from game to game. Scal's minutes have been dwindling as Big Baby's have been increasing. Powe and Pollard have played very sparingly but have played well when given the minutes. The bench has been able to hold leads and in some cases, even built on leads and have surprised a lot of people who felt we didn't have a bench coming into the season.
Overall play gets a B- only because they have much room to improve. As a team they are committing over 16 turnovers per game. Pierce, Garnett, and Allen have yet to all have a good game at the same time. The results are undeniable with a 17-2 record, but we have yet to play 5 of the top 6 teams and the one top 6 team we did play beat us.
Excitement factor A+ This team has been exciting to watch. We have seen a blowout of over 40 points as well as overtime wins at the buzzer. They are unbeaten at home and continue to give us exciting plays on both offense and defense. They play with intensity and hustle. We see stars diving on the floor for loose balls and incredible passes to find the open man. And best of all, we are seeing lock down defense. I would say that the first quarter of the season was a big success. Now the competition gets even harder, but something tells me that this team is going to get even better. ] [Discuss this topic on the Celtics Green Forums!]
Watching the highlights from the Bulls game on NBA TV, they had some footage of the 1986 playoff series between the Celtics and the Bulls. I was thinking back to that series and how great that Celtics team really was. They have been considered perhaps the greatest team ever. They won 67 games that year including going 40-1 at home and 31 straight home wins.
But, in spite of how great that team was, a young Michael Jordan and the Bulls gave them all they could handle in the playoffs. Michael Jordan had missed most of the season with a broken foot and returned to the lineup just 6 weeks before. The first two games of the series were played in the Garden where the Celtics had been practically unbeatable that season. In game 1, Jordan scored 49 points in a Bulls loss. After the game, McHale responded by saying, "That will never happen again."
Well, McHale was partly right. In game 2, Jordan didn't score 49 points. He scored 63. But, once again, the Bulls lost in spite of the barrage of points from Jordan. After the game, Bird made his famous (or infamous) quote, "That was God disguised as Michael Jordan. He's the most awesome player I've ever seen...he was getting his points in the flow of the game...scary." Celtics coach KC Jones added these thoughts, "I was watching and all I could see was this giant Jordan and everyone else was just in the background."
More than anything, these games always stood out to me as proof that team play is greater than one player taking over a game on his own. Jordan scored 63 points but the Celtics had a balanced attack with everyone contributing and that is what won the game. The Celtics had 3 stars but they had a team concept with everyone contributing and that won out over the single player trying to do it all himself.
That 1986 Celtics team was a thing of beauty. I remember watching their fast breaks where the ball never touched the floor. DJ to Bird to DJ to McHale inside. Or DJ to Ainge to Bird for the 3. It was always about team and no matter what team was in town you always expected a win. When they didn't win, you were surprised and knew that it was just a bump in the road. They would win the next game... they never lost two in a row. I remember that feeling and it was a good one. It is starting to come back, but we also still have that gnawing feeling from the past 20 years that something has to go wrong.
This year's Celtics have brought a lot of comparisons to that '86 team. Both have a "Big Three" and they both emphasize team and team play. Their records are an identical 17-2 after 19 games and both teams were undefeated at home at this point of the season. I remember very well the excitement around that last championship team. I remember watching Michael Jordan playing 5 on 1 and team winning over individual stardom. I also remember the joy of winning that last championship. It sure feels good to have that excitement back and once again having the Celtics winning and being dominant.
