The Celtics have been nothing short of disappointing to start the season. With a record of 5-5, they are sitting in the 8 spot in the eastern conference. While many teams would be happy with a .500 record, the Celtics should not be one of them. They were so hyped up and had so many expectations coming into the season, it is hard not to be pissed about where they are standing.
I know, I know, Horford and Crowder being sidelined with injuries is huge for them but even with them on the court, it does not solve any of their big problems which are rebounding and ball movement. Rebounding more than anything because Horford and Crowder are not great rebounders. The Celtics are only in front of one team (Portland) for dead last in rebounding differential. I know we weren’t supposed to be the biggest rebounders in the league because we are trending towards the smaller lineup but damn, 29th? Hey Brad, could you run a couple of box-out drills in practice once or twice cause we might as well just sit on the offensive end just to save us a little time. The rebounding woes need to stop if we want any chance of making the playoffs let alone the eastern conference finals.
Horford needs to come back if we want any sort of functional offense cause I am sick to my stomach watching this team run through the same couple plays and failing miserably. Having Olynyk back helps spread the floor but nothing compared to what Horf can give the team. It seems every time we’re on the offensive end it goes 3 ways, either Isaiah gets it and drives to the basket, Avery comes off a pick and shoots from the key, or Tyler Zeller gets his shit blocked right in front of the rim. Isaiah and Avery have both been very good and are currently our whole offense but we need someone else to step up.
Also, what the fuck happened to our defense? We were 3rd last year in defensive efficiency and now we just let everyone walk all over us. Langston Galloway just dropped 21 on us for fuck sake. What happened? Isaiah says it’s apparently about lack of effort but I find that hard to believe that everyone is simply just not trying hard enough. I get it that this team runs on grit and heart but there has to be something that we are fucking up.
There are some good signs that have come out of the start of the season. Jaylen Brown looks like he can be an everyday player and contribute to the team but he really needs to work on his free throws. He can be a player that can get to the line a lot in this league so if he works on that his game could be dangerous to other teams. If I were the Celtics and I needed to think of something to change the energy of this team, it might be time to start playing James Young. The one game he plays for 16 mins he comes out with 12 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals but then other than that he hasn’t played more than 6 minutes in a game. You kept him on the roster for the final spot for a reason and he has finally shown some potential so now is the time to do it. The James Young era is about to start folks, get ready. The emergence of Avery Bradley is also starting to kick in, the points are finally starting to come with some consistency and holy hell is this guy rebounding his little heart out. How does a 6’2″ shooting guard lead his team by almost 2 rebounds a game? Marcus Smart has definitely put in some time into his shot this offseason but still isn’t quite there yet but he is close to becoming an okay shooter.
Next up for the Celtics are the 2-7 Mavs and the Celts are currently a 6 point favorite at home. We need to start a run here before Horf and Crowder come back so we have a little momentum so step it up.
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