Celtics '20'21 - The Young and the Restless

[The Q]

I think Ainge is pretty damn shrewd overall.

Analyze any given move he has made... and the dude makes smart decisions almost every time (outside of the draft, which is a bit of crap shoot for everyone, and Ainge does ok there overall).

For instance, at first blush it may sound awful that they lost Horford for nothing.

But when you look at how Horford has played since leaving Boston... damn if that wasn't a good decision overall. If Boston overpaid to keep Horford, and he played like this... Ainge would have gotten destroyed.

Same thing with the IT situation. If Ainge "backed up the Brinks truck" there... it would have been a terrible move.

Gordon Hayward was just terrible luck with injuries... it happens, whatareyougonnado?

to be fair the sixers played him at pf, which is just asking for disaster At this point in his career

 

[Gman]

to be fair the sixers played him at pf, which is just asking for disaster At this point in his career

It was a terrible fit, by all appearances.

Maybe in a different era it might have worked.

 

[flyerhawk]

Has Danny Ainge Done More Bad Than Good Through the Past Decade?

Is Trader Danny to blame for the Celtics’ struggles this season? We take a close look at his recent decisions.

www.theringer.com

Pretty relevant.

 

[The Q]

Has Danny Ainge Done More Bad Than Good Through the Past Decade?

Is Trader Danny to blame for the Celtics’ struggles this season? We take a close look at his recent decisions.

www.theringer.com

Pretty relevant.

so he’s an average drafter. If he took just Brandon Clarke instead of either Romeo or the trade, he’d be better than average.

2016 was a particularly bad draft based on that study, because browns game and his rep on finally came together this year

 

[Stakesarehigh]

Has Danny Ainge Done More Bad Than Good Through the Past Decade?

Is Trader Danny to blame for the Celtics’ struggles this season? We take a close look at his recent decisions.

www.theringer.com

Pretty relevant.

The problem isn't that those picks were horrible but rather that he could've packaged them for something more tangible. I get that a team with 3 or 4 high priced players will need some cheap and controllable talent however

 

[Gman]

It's nice that, after that extended awful stretch, we're riding a 4 game winning streak into the All-Star break.

That being said, let's break down the anatomy of this winning streak:

• W over Indiana (the Pacers were short both LeVert and T.J. Warren)
• W over Washington (by 1 pt, against a team that is 14-20)
• W over the LAC (the Clippers were without Kawhi in this one)
• W over Toronto (the Raptors were short Siakam, VanVleet AND Anunoby)

So... the C's weren't leaping small buildings in a single bound here.

-----------

Sure beats losing, though... no doubt. At this point, we're not good enough to look down on any type of W.

 

[Wamu]

It's nice that, after that extended awful stretch, we're riding a 4 game winning streak into the All-Star break.

That being said, let's break down the anatomy of this winning streak:

• W over Indiana (the Pacers were short both LeVert and T.J. Warren)
• W over Washington (by 1 pt, against a team that is 14-20)
• W over the LAC (the Clippers were without Kawhi in this one)
• W over Toronto (the Raptors were short Siakam, VanVleet AND Anunoby)

So... the C's weren't leaping small buildings in a single bound here.

-----------

Sure beats losing, though... no doubt. At this point, we're not good enough to look down on any type of W.

At least the Celtics went into the break with some kinda confidence. It would be nice to see Kemba play better the 2nd half of the season. And I'm hoping things will change for the better once Smart returns.

 

[Gman]

At least the Celtics went into the break with some kinda confidence. It would be nice to see Kemba play better the 2nd half of the season. And I'm hoping things will change for the better once Smart returns.

I largely agree.

More than framing things in terms of confidence, though... I'd frame it in terms of feeling good versus feeling bad. I think our guys could benefit from more positive emotions.

Losing sucks, and brings all kinds of unwanted media attention in a big market like Boston... it must be an absolutely drag for the players.

----------

I'm just guessing, but I think our young team is mostly not responding great to this truncated season with less breaks and less time to breathe. The guys have often looked drained out there, mentally drained. Just not in the frame of mind to do their best.

That's my amateur, "stayed in a Holiday Inn Express last night" diagnosis anyways.

 

[Wamu]

I largely agree.

More than framing things in terms of confidence, though... I'd frame it in terms of feeling good versus feeling bad. I think our guys could benefit from more positive emotions.

Losing sucks, and brings all kinds of unwanted media attention in a big market like Boston... it must be an absolutely drag for the players.

----------

I'm just guessing, but I think our young team is mostly not responding great to this truncated season with less breaks and less time to breathe. The guys have often looked drained out there, mentally drained. Just not in the frame of mind to do their best.

That's my amateur, "stayed in a Holiday Inn Express last night" diagnosis anyways.

It's never good when athletes in any sport lose some confidence. I think that happened to the Celtics. And as we both know winning cures alotta things. The talent is there. And I see no reason that during the second half of the season they can't find their groove before the playoffs start. That is as long as the injury bug/virus protocols don't hit again.

They got the pieces to make another deep run in the playoffs. But if their in a funk heading into the playoffs it could be a first round exit depending on who they play.

 

[Wamu]

It would be cool if Jaylen Brown wins A.S. game MVP.

 

[Gman]

Here's my "State of the Celtics" take at the All-Star Break...

• JB has been a revelation - The biggest positive so far this season has been the leap that Jaylen Brown has taken. Brown has always been a dynamic athlete who has flashed as a 3pt shooter & scorer... but this season he is scoring at all levels with a silky jump shot and he has also been extremely efficient. Jaylen's not perfect, and he sometimes devolves into dribbling too much and careless turnovers... but overall his growth has been phenomenal.
• Kemba has made steady progress - Walker's early struggles after coming back from injury initially raised all kinds of concerns, but he has played well recently and (more importantly) he has passed the "eye ball test"... Kemba is moving great and finishing at the basketball better.
• Time Lord ascending? - Robert Williams III has taken a step of his own. His athleticism and coordination absolutely pop, and the game seems to be slowing down for him in his 3rd year. It's nice to see this developmental prospect actually developing and panning out.
• Where would we be without Payton Pritchard? - A 19-17 record is disappointing (although understandable when factoring in the injuries and flux we've had to this point in the season), but it could have been worse. Imagine if we didn't have Fast PP. The boost we've gotten from this rookie has been both unexpected and necessary after Smart got injured and Teague disappointed. I've watched a lot of our games... I'm telling y'all, we might be something like 15-21 without him.
• The Bench is an odd collection of spare parts - Seems like the middle and back-end of our roster is filled with the same type of player: tweeners who have some degree of athleticism and versatility, but who are significantly limited on the offensive end. With Aaron Nesmith looking like he is not quite ready for the big time, we absolutely could use more scoring pop here... and a trade seems in order to both improve and clear out the redundancy.
• What do we have with this '20'21 team? - We haven't been able to see anything like a finished product yet... what with the aforementioned injuries and flux. At the beginning of the year, we were one of the co-favorites to compete for the Eastern Conference crown... now? Doesn't seem like that's the story. The '6ers and the Nets look very good, Milwaukee has got Giannis, the Heat are dangerous... and the C's have yet to put it together. Yet, we still have tremendous talent and upside potential... and Ainge still has the big trade chip in his back pocket.

It'll be fascinating to see where we go from here.

 

[trojanfan12]

Here's my "State of the Celtics" take at the All-Star Break...

• JB has been a revelation - The biggest positive so far this season has been the leap that Jaylen Brown has taken. Brown has always been a dynamic athlete who has flashed as a 3pt shooter & scorer... but this season he is scoring at all levels with a silky jump shot and he has also been extremely efficient. Jaylen's not perfect, and he sometimes devolves into dribbling too much and careless turnovers... but overall his growth has been phenomenal.
• Kemba has made steady progress - Walker's early struggles after coming back from injury initially raised all kinds of concerns, but he has played well recently and (more importantly) he has passed the "eye ball test"... Kemba is moving great and finishing at the basketball better.
• Time Lord ascending? - Robert Williams III has taken a step of his own. His athleticism and coordination absolutely pop, and the game seems to be slowing down for him in his 3rd year. It's nice to see this developmental prospect actually developing and panning out.
• Where would we be without Payton Pritchard? - A 19-17 record is disappointing (although understandable when factoring in the injuries and flux we've had to this point in the season), but it could have been worse. Imagine if we didn't have Fast PP. The boost we've gotten from this rookie has been both unexpected and necessary after Smart got injured and Teague disappointed. I've watched a lot of our games... I'm telling y'all, we might be something like 15-21 without him.
• The Bench is an odd collection of spare parts - Seems like the middle and back-end of our roster is filled with the same type of player: tweeners who have some degree of athleticism and versatility, but who are significantly limited on the offensive end. With Aaron Nesmith looking like he is not quite ready for the big time, we absolutely could use more scoring pop here... and a trade seems in order to both improve and clear out the redundancy.
• What do we have with this '20'21 team? - We haven't been able to see anything like a finished product yet... what with the aforementioned injuries and flux. At the beginning of the year, we were one of the co-favorites to compete for the Eastern Conference crown... now? Doesn't seem like that's the story. The '6ers and the Nets look very good, Milwaukee has got Giannis, the Heat are dangerous... and the C's have yet to put it together. Yet, we still have tremendous talent and upside potential... and Ainge still has the big trade chip in his back pocket.

It'll be fascinating to see where we go from here.

Seems like it would have been easier and less time consuming to just say "The Celtics still suck".

 

[LogicMan]

Here's my "State of the Celtics" take at the All-Star Break...

• JB has been a revelation - The biggest positive so far this season has been the leap that Jaylen Brown has taken. Brown has always been a dynamic athlete who has flashed as a 3pt shooter & scorer... but this season he is scoring at all levels with a silky jump shot and he has also been extremely efficient. Jaylen's not perfect, and he sometimes devolves into dribbling too much and careless turnovers... but overall his growth has been phenomenal.
• Kemba has made steady progress - Walker's early struggles after coming back from injury initially raised all kinds of concerns, but he has played well recently and (more importantly) he has passed the "eye ball test"... Kemba is moving great and finishing at the basketball better.
• Time Lord ascending? - Robert Williams III has taken a step of his own. His athleticism and coordination absolutely pop, and the game seems to be slowing down for him in his 3rd year. It's nice to see this developmental prospect actually developing and panning out.
• Where would we be without Payton Pritchard? - A 19-17 record is disappointing (although understandable when factoring in the injuries and flux we've had to this point in the season), but it could have been worse. Imagine if we didn't have Fast PP. The boost we've gotten from this rookie has been both unexpected and necessary after Smart got injured and Teague disappointed. I've watched a lot of our games... I'm telling y'all, we might be something like 15-21 without him.
• The Bench is an odd collection of spare parts - Seems like the middle and back-end of our roster is filled with the same type of player: tweeners who have some degree of athleticism and versatility, but who are significantly limited on the offensive end. With Aaron Nesmith looking like he is not quite ready for the big time, we absolutely could use more scoring pop here... and a trade seems in order to both improve and clear out the redundancy.
• What do we have with this '20'21 team? - We haven't been able to see anything like a finished product yet... what with the aforementioned injuries and flux. At the beginning of the year, we were one of the co-favorites to compete for the Eastern Conference crown... now? Doesn't seem like that's the story. The '6ers and the Nets look very good, Milwaukee has got Giannis, the Heat are dangerous... and the C's have yet to put it together. Yet, we still have tremendous talent and upside potential... and Ainge still has the big trade chip in his back pocket.

It'll be fascinating to see where we go from here.

We lack ball movement still. On one hand it’s encouraging to know we have players who can take over end of games. But offense is too predictable

 

[Gman]

We lack ball movement still. On one hand it’s encouraging to know we have players who can take over end of games. But offense is too predictable

I don't disagree. A major open question with our team is whether or not our offense can click when it matters the most...

 

[Gman]

Good news on the injury front... both Smart and Langford are on the mend, Marcus should be back as soon as tomorrow night:

Celtics coach Brad Stevens gives encouraging injury updates on Smart, Langford

The Boston Celtics open the second half of their regular season schedule Thursday night against the surging Brooklyn Nets, and roster reinforcements should be coming soon.

www.nbcsports.com

 

[BigKen]

hey need a spark plug off the bench. Like the old days of Don Nelson and Havlicek types. They check in force everyone else to run with them and exhaust the other team while outscoring them 22-6.

 

[Wamu]

Seems like it would have been easier and less time consuming to just say "The Celtics still suck".

Those are fighting words! Let's go.

 

[fightinfunbags]

What are your guys thoughts on whether or not Tatum and Brown are a good fit together? Also, I think Celtics fans are being reminded of just how valuable Marcus Smart is to their franchise. As a Sixers fan, I hate the guy. But that’s because he’s a baller that is all day tough and hates to lose.

 

[LogicMan]

I can’t take this brand of basketball

 

[oldmaninthedesert702]

I Think not keeping Rozier was a bad mistake, the Celtics for the most look like 90% of the teams in the league...do they feel like playing tonight, or did they rip the bong too many times while they were playing video games during the day. As a gambler this league will drive you nuts. I like that scoring is back up.