skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Jesus Shuttleworth, aka Ray Allen, saved the Celtics from the jaws of defeat in a 98-95 overtime victory over the Toronto Raptors. That was two weeks ago.
Against the Orlando Magic, the Celtics tried to rise from the dead, battling from 25 point down to almost win the game with the help of some timely threes from Jesus.
Almost doesn't cut it, however. The Celtics' hopes to keep their perfect record were resurrected when Allen sank his last three with under fifteen to go. But it wasn't enough.
Maybe next time.
You'd think a team down by 25 at the half would be out of it, but with 24 minutes of basketball left, and a team record on the line, the Boston Celtics fought hard, but fell short in the last quarter, finally falling to an inspired Orlando Magic team, 104-102.
Shoulda / Woulda
Played defense. The Celtics allowed 58 points in the first half. For a team that takes pride in its D, this was unforgivable. Credit, however, should also go to the Magic, who really pounded it inside to Dwight Howard, who has shown improvements to his already expanding game. Orlando point guard Jameer Nelson also impressed with his ability to distribute the ball, finding wing men Rashard Lewis and Keith Bogans in the right spots. Nelson was the key; if they had frustrated him early, they would've been able to make him less effective.
Cut down turnovers. Boston should really cut down on their turnovers, sometimes the result of too much passing. Allen and Pierce aren't guilty of this; as scorers, they take shots when they're given. KG, however, has a tendency to pass out and not explore his options first. The others (Tony Allen, Rajon Rondo) pass up open shots that they should take. Too much deference to the Big Three. Just taking care of the ball better would've helped.
Matched up better. Doc Rivers should've put a bigger body on Dwight Howard from the start. Reserve Scott Pollard did a good job on him in the fourth, and should've been utilized earlier. Rondo was outplayed by Jameer, who's much stronger.
Made some serious fourth quarter stops. The Celtics almost had the game by getting into the flow of their offense in the fourth quarter, but when they needed to lock down the Magic, they couldn't. This is what separates elite teams from good teams––the ability to make stops at will. The Spurs are great at this, and this is absolutely necessary, either when making a big comeback––as was the case here––or staying close when your offense sputters. Those threes by Turkoglu to push the Magic ahead? Unforgivable. What use is neutralizing Howard and Lewis––the Magic's first and second options––if you leave shooters like Turk open?
Improve shot selection in crunch time. Pierce was doing it the right way, driving inside for layups, making contact to get fouls to get to the line. KG is usually money fading away close to the basket, but in tight games, every point counts. Creating separation from your man is a great way of getting free for a shot, but it also means almost zero opportunities for fouls. The Celtics should also avoid running plays for KG when there are so many options, i.e., Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. Garnett is more valuable under the basket, boxing out and grabbing potential misses and putting them back in, rather than taking shots. Ironically, Pierce, who drove in against the Heat for the go-ahead basket in their nail-biter against Miami, took a long three on Boston's last possession, when conventional wisdom dictated that he drive it in for either the potential game-tying basket or two free throws.
Coulda
The Celtics could've won nine straight games, and if not for some bad breaks in the end, their comeback would've been complete. But then again, it was just a matter of time before Boston lost. It might as well be to the Magic, a good, young team that could beat any team on any given night.
When was the last time four players on one team grabbed ten or more rebounds in the same game? Four Atlanta Hawks players swooped in to grab rebound after rebound, resulting in a 105-96 win against the Phoenix Suns.
Forwards Al Horford (15 rebounds), Marvin Williams (12), Josh Smith (10), and Josh Childress (10) banged the boards all night, giving the high-flying athletic Hawks––who also beat Western Conference superpower Dallas last week––another surprising win.
"We should be 4-0," stressed walking highlight film Josh Smith, referring to the two close losses of the Hawks, who lost to the Detroit Pistons by a point, and to the New Jersey Nets by five.
For a team that won only 30 games last season, their 2-2 record––compiled against some of the league's better teams (the Mavericks, Pistons, Nets, and Suns were a combined 222-106 last season)––is impressive. Let's see if they can keep flying against the Boston Celtics, who they face this Friday.
AP/John Amis
The Houston Rockets didn't let me down, giving the San Antonio Spurs their first loss, 89-81.Despite a poor showing by reigning Western Conference Player of the Week Tracy McGrady, the Rockets got the W behind the strong play of center Yao Ming, who played better than Tim Duncan. (See graphic below.) TD made only a third of his attempts from the field, compared to Yao, who shot 50%. Worth noting is the fact that Yao took 24 shots in the game––10 more than T-Mac. Yao's final statline was impressive: 28 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 blocks. NBA Livesque numbers. :)
Yao may have read my previous post, where I said that Yao shoots too far away from the basket. If the graphic above is to be believed, it looks like he decided to play like the center he is.
What a menacing sight, eh? Too bad we don't see enough of it.Houston center Yao Ming has often been faulted for being too soft––for not dominating when he should be kicking the ass of every center in the L. That he doesn't take the ball inside enough, and that he is too much of a finesse player. Hey, I have no problems with a tall dude who can shoot the ball from the outside, I just think it's ridiculous that almost half the made shots of the NBA's tallest player came outside the paint. (See graphic below.)
Don't get me wrong; hitting 9 of 12, or 75% of one's shots, is excellent. But shouldn't more of these come on dunks or something? With his height and his skill, Yao should be imposing his will on the game, and not adjust his to the defenses thrown at him.
I didn't watch the Rockets play the Mavericks last night, so I don't know if the shots Yao took were by design or by force of circumstance. Under new coach Rick Adelman, Yao will be playing more from the high post than in previous years, and if that works, fine. But the only way Yao Ming will cement his place as the L's best center is by doing what centers do best: stuffing the ball down the throats of their opponents. And something tells me the Rockets will be way better when he does.
Layne Murdoch/NBAE/Getty Images
Graphic taken from ESPN SHOTCHART
San Antonio (3-0) at Houston (3-1)Forward Luis Scola was looking forward to playing for the NBA Champions, and then he found out he was shipped to Houston for, uh, a large pail of spit. Now he has a chance to show them Spurs what they're missing out on, as he and fellow Rocketeers host the Spurs. The new-look Rockets have everything to prove, while the same-look Spurs have nothing to prove (yet), so expect Houston to come out on top.
Denver (2-1) at New York (1-1)Let's get ready to ruuuuuuumble! The Nuggets and the Knicks meet for the first time since that disastrous (for the Nuggets, at least) fracas last year, which got Carmelo Anthony suspended for a shitload of games. Since Carmelo can't hit anyone today, I'm betting he's going to light it up for the Nuggets, and will hit the Knicks where it really hurts––in the win-loss department.
The Dallas Mavericks stopped Yao Ming and the Houston Rockets today, ending the latter's perfect record and spoiling the day of Houston star Tracy McGrady, who was named by the NBA as this season's first Western Conference Player of the Week.
The Mavs won at home, 107-98, behind the strong play of sixth man Jason Terry, who came off the pine to score 31 points.
Still no sign, by the way, of Houston prodigal son Steve Francis, who has yet to play for the Rockets this season.
AP Photo/Donna McWilliam
