Random Thoughts on Rozier, Defense and More

 I was pleased to watch Terry Rozier take a leap and play very well in Summer League.  Following his strong showing in Vegas,  there have been several articles talking about him having a break out season.  One, on NESN, quotes Isaiah Thomas who feels that Rozier will surprise people this season and that he is ready to make an impact.



But, in the past two days I've seen a very nasty video on a forum with a very wasted Terry Rozier flashing money and cavorting at a strip club and also several articles asking if he is affiliated with the Bloods.  I'm not going to post the link here because it really is nasty but if you really want to find it, google Terry Rozier is a Blood and it will probably show up.

I know it's all circumstantial and there may be nothing to this but on a team that prides itself on having guys of character and chemistry,  it's a bit concerning.  There is the video and several people have noticed that when he posts online he changes all his c's to k's, which supposedly is a sign of being in the Bloods.  I've also seen a couple of photos where he is making what are reported to be gang signs.

I'm not sure what to think about all this but I hope it's just a lot of talk about nothing.  Rozier clearly has talent and showed it in Summer League and also in spurts last season.  I really hate to think that he is going to throw that away by doing drugs or running in a gang.  Things like that never end well. Like I said, it may be nothing, but the reports are out there and hopefully Danny sees them and nips it in the bud.

While I was watching Team USA playing in Rio,  it struck me that the reason they struggled early was a lack of chemistry, especially on the defensive end.  They didn't have a lot of chemistry on the offensive end with players often ignoring passes to take the shots themselves.  But, the biggest problem was the lack of chemistry on the defensive end.  They just weren't defending and covering for each other.

Eventually by the final two games they figured it out and were playing better together on both ends and it showed in the final scores.  Watching them made me glad that the Celtics have players who take their defense seriously.  Defense wins games and defense wins championships!  I know I've said this many times but I love that line from Kevin Bacon's movie, The Air Up There, where he tells the young tribesmen that he is teaching to play that defense is more important than breathing.

With defensive minded players like Avery Bradley (First Team All Defense), Jae Crowder, Marcus Smart, and the above mentioned Terry Rozier, and with Brad Stevens putting it all together,  the Celtics should have a top 5 defense in the league.   In everyone's desire for a star this summer, I always questioned trading Jae Crowder, who does a great job of guarding the star forwards in the league like LeBron, for a star who doesn't play much defense.

In my opinion, stopping the other team's stars from scoring is as important to getting a win as scoring points yourself.   Danny has gone after players who are defensive stoppers for the most part and I like that.  This Celtics team has been so much fun to watch because they play as a team and because they play tough scrambling defense from start to finish.  I really hope the Celtics continue to make defense a priority.  

Every day brings us one more day closer to the start of the season.  I can't wait to see Celtics basketball once again!   Bryan Doo has been posting some photos and videos of the young guys working out recently.  It's great that they are all working out together in Boston.  With 4 players fighting for the final 2 spots on the team, training camp is going to be fun.  

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