I'm as surprised as you are. Minnesota gave up 40 points in the first quarter and then only 60 the rest of the way, jumping on Denver in a 31-12 third period that gave them the lead for good. A lot had to go right for Minnesota -- Denver missed a bunch of shots, basically stopped trying for a while, while Ryan Gomes was white-hot and Corey Brewer made about four shots that had no business going in -- but when you snap a 15-game losing streak, against one of the league's best teams, no less, you don't worry about such things.
This game really turned me off on Denver, by the way. After the 40-25 first quarter, after which it appeared to everyone (including me, and including, apparently, the Nuggets) that it would be an easy victory for the home team, they just basically turned off their effort and assumed that victory would take care of itself. The entire third quarter, as they were imploding, they acted entitled to foul calls that weren't really there, barked at officials even more than a typical NBA club, and did a bunch of cheap physical stuff that I thought was out of line.
Now, on to Mr. Flynn
Stat Line: 29 minutes, 7-17 FG, 0-4 3FG, 2-3 FT, 16 pts, 4 rebs, 6 assts, 1 stl, 2 TOs.
Great game for Jonny. The shooting numbers aren't great, but at least two were legitimately in and out, with another two just a fraction of an inch off. He got past his man most of the night, finishing well at the rim (especially with his left hand) and finding teammates.
Moreover, he only committed two turnovers, matching his season (and career) low. And you can see that he's becoming more comfortable running an NBA team; directing his teammates on the court, calling for the ball after a rebound, picking his spots to be aggressive more judiciously.
A big step forward for a player and a team that needed it. Next up is Memphis, which just got outscored 33-7 -- yes, you read that right -- in the fourth quarter to lose 98-88 at the Clips. Too early to talk about a winning streak?
Monday, November 30, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Boston 92, Miami 85
[recap][box score]
This was a strange game in which both teams found a nice rhythm offensively in the first half despite too many whistles from the officials, then hit a bit of a lull at various points throughout the third quarter before picking it up again. In the end, the Heat had some key misses and the Celtics made just enough shots to win.
Things to like:
This was a strange game in which both teams found a nice rhythm offensively in the first half despite too many whistles from the officials, then hit a bit of a lull at various points throughout the third quarter before picking it up again. In the end, the Heat had some key misses and the Celtics made just enough shots to win.
Things to like:
- Kevin Garnett making 11 of 12 shots. He's now 17 of 18 over his last two games.
- Rajon Rondo playing assertively on the road, which he doesn't always do. Rondo was a blur offensively on Sunday. He didn't always make the right decision, but the offense is so much better when he's attacking.
- Rasheed Wallace taking his game to the low post for the second straight outing.
- A strong final four-and-a-half minutes on the road against one of the game's best closers, Dywane Wade. Boston trailed 82-78 with 4:26 to play, and then turned it up on both ends in closing on a 14-3 run.
Things not to like:
- Another game where we played almost no defense in the first half.
- Letting Miami back into it immediately after grabbing an 11-point lead. We scored the first four points of the second half and two minutes in, it really looked like it was going to be the kind of third quarter we saw a lot during the championship season. But this team seems to lose its concentration with a lead, and it only took six minutes for Miami to tie the score.
Next game is Tuesday at Charlotte against a Bobcat team that a) almost always plays us tough and b) has won four straight, including an impressive win over Cleveland. Though we held them to 59 points in their season-opener at the end of October, it's not the team I want to see in the middle of a four-game road trip that takes us to San Antonio on Thursday (8 pm Eastern on TNT) and Oklahoma City on Friday. Tough week.
Boston 116, Toronto 103
[recap] [box score]
This game happened Friday. Posts to this blog may come in delayed and abbreviated form over the next few weeks, as I buckle down and study for finals.
The Raptors are awful defensively. I had been told how awful, and yet, when I watched the game, I was taken by surprise at how true the assessment was. After two turnovers, a missed layup, and a Ray Allen jumper on their first four possessions, the Celtics scored on the next seven trips down the court. Each one of those buckets was a layup. Not a little bunny shot in the post, but a layup off a drive or a drive and a pass. My only issues with the offense were too many turnovers and that we didn't devote the whole game to dribble penetration. The second team was most guilty of that; then again, the second team doesn't have a lot of guys take the ball to the basket.
This game happened Friday. Posts to this blog may come in delayed and abbreviated form over the next few weeks, as I buckle down and study for finals.
The Raptors are awful defensively. I had been told how awful, and yet, when I watched the game, I was taken by surprise at how true the assessment was. After two turnovers, a missed layup, and a Ray Allen jumper on their first four possessions, the Celtics scored on the next seven trips down the court. Each one of those buckets was a layup. Not a little bunny shot in the post, but a layup off a drive or a drive and a pass. My only issues with the offense were too many turnovers and that we didn't devote the whole game to dribble penetration. The second team was most guilty of that; then again, the second team doesn't have a lot of guys take the ball to the basket.
TMJF: Suns 120, Minnesota 95
Stat Line: 29 minutes, 5-13 FG, 2-5 3FG, 6-6 FT, 3 rebs, 6 assts, 2 stls, 4 TOs
What I liked about this game is that it re-enforces that, at least without Kevin Love, Minnesota's point guards are their most dangerous offensive players not named Al Jefferson. Jonny Flynn played alongside Ramon Sessions quite a bit once the game got out of hand. Sessions was on fire, hitting 10 of his first 11 shots on his way to 23 points. Meanwhile, Corey Brewer went 1-for-11.
What I liked about this game is that it re-enforces that, at least without Kevin Love, Minnesota's point guards are their most dangerous offensive players not named Al Jefferson. Jonny Flynn played alongside Ramon Sessions quite a bit once the game got out of hand. Sessions was on fire, hitting 10 of his first 11 shots on his way to 23 points. Meanwhile, Corey Brewer went 1-for-11.
Friday, November 27, 2009
TMJF: Nuggets 124, Minnesota 111
Stat Line: 38 minutes, 6-15 FG, 2-5 3FG, 6-8 FT, 20 pts, 2 assts, 5 TOs.
Don't be fooled by the final score; this one was over by halftime. Jonny Flynn's stat line is a little misleading, too; he had nine points and two turnovers in the meaningless fourth quarter.
Denver's in the middle of what has to be the easiest four-game stretch in the NBA this year, and maybe league history: New Jersey (0-15), at Minnesota (1-14) , New York (3-12), and Minnesota again. They then host 5-9 Golden State before their schedule gets tougher.
Don't be fooled by the final score; this one was over by halftime. Jonny Flynn's stat line is a little misleading, too; he had nine points and two turnovers in the meaningless fourth quarter.
Denver's in the middle of what has to be the easiest four-game stretch in the NBA this year, and maybe league history: New Jersey (0-15), at Minnesota (1-14) , New York (3-12), and Minnesota again. They then host 5-9 Golden State before their schedule gets tougher.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Boston 113, Philadelphia 110
[recap] [box score]
I was tired and not feeling particularly well while watching this game, so I don't have too many observations. Rasheed Wallace is still shooting terribly from deep; Rajon Rondo needs to exert his influence more consistently; and teams are knocking down a lot of jump shots against the Celtics.
I don't have data, but it's seemed to me over the past couple of years that the Boston defense forces opponents to shoot from the outside. This year, those shots seem to be going in more consistently. Whether that's due to a defensive deficiency or just a run of bad luck, I can't say. Philly was red-hot from deep until the fourth quarter, when they cooled off just enough. I will say that all is clearly not right with the defense; Wednesday, we gave up more uncontested layups than I remember seeing in a single game in quite a while.
Quick strategy note to pay attention to moving forward: Up three with 3.7 seconds left, the Celtics employed the intentional foul strategy, denying the Sixers an opportunity to tie the game with a three. This tactic is often urged and yet rarely implemented.
For me, I like it a lot better in the college game. In the pros, the combination of the continuation rule and the rule that a team can advance the ball to midcourt with a timeout make it much harder to pull off. Fouling essentially extends the game -- which is what the trailing team is trying to do -- and requires you to shoot FTs at least as well as your opponent.
Anyway, we did it, and it worked. I don't ever recall seeing Doc do this before; I wonder if it's something we'll do moving forward, or if Philly's performance from three-point land on Wednesday made it more attractive than usual.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.
I was tired and not feeling particularly well while watching this game, so I don't have too many observations. Rasheed Wallace is still shooting terribly from deep; Rajon Rondo needs to exert his influence more consistently; and teams are knocking down a lot of jump shots against the Celtics.
I don't have data, but it's seemed to me over the past couple of years that the Boston defense forces opponents to shoot from the outside. This year, those shots seem to be going in more consistently. Whether that's due to a defensive deficiency or just a run of bad luck, I can't say. Philly was red-hot from deep until the fourth quarter, when they cooled off just enough. I will say that all is clearly not right with the defense; Wednesday, we gave up more uncontested layups than I remember seeing in a single game in quite a while.
Quick strategy note to pay attention to moving forward: Up three with 3.7 seconds left, the Celtics employed the intentional foul strategy, denying the Sixers an opportunity to tie the game with a three. This tactic is often urged and yet rarely implemented.
For me, I like it a lot better in the college game. In the pros, the combination of the continuation rule and the rule that a team can advance the ball to midcourt with a timeout make it much harder to pull off. Fouling essentially extends the game -- which is what the trailing team is trying to do -- and requires you to shoot FTs at least as well as your opponent.
Anyway, we did it, and it worked. I don't ever recall seeing Doc do this before; I wonder if it's something we'll do moving forward, or if Philly's performance from three-point land on Wednesday made it more attractive than usual.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
TMJF: Clippers 91, Wolves 87
Stat Line: 29 minutes, 6-12 FG, 2-2 3FG, 3-3 FT, 17 pts, 5 assts, 1 stl, 2 TOs.
Due to a class review session, I didn't attend this one as I had planned. Law school is no fun around this time. Last year, I missed a Metallica concert to study for my Civil Procedure exam; this year, I missed one of Jonny Flynn's best games to study for Bankruptcy.
Flynn was absolutely masterful in the first quarter, with ten points, three assists, and a steal. One of those dimes was perhaps his finest pass of the season, a perfect little behind-the-back bouncer in tight quarters to Oleksiy Pecherov. Flynn also made up for a couple of mistakes -- a turnover and a play in which he ran into traffic while streaking for an outlet pass that was ultimatley intercepted -- by draining a 26-foot three-pointer on the next possession. It was his second three of the quarter, and he also scored on a floater and a pair of free throws.
The second quarter was evidence of how frustrating rookies can be, however. After sitting the first five minutes or so of the second period after playing all but a few seconds of the first, Flynn returned to the court for three minutes, recording two fouls, a turnover, and a wild shot in the process.
He scored five points in seven minutes to start the third quarter on a drive, a jumper, and a technical free throw. He was replaced, as he always is, by Ramon Sessions, who did nothing notable offensively while repeatedly getting torched on the defensive end by Sebastian Telfair. Bassy scored on four straight Clipper possessions at one point, as the Wolves went up from three up to three down with Flynn on the bench.
Flynn re-entered at the 10:26 mark and scored on a lightning-quick drive with 8:45 left, Minnesota's only points over a six-and-a-half minute stretch. Perhaps because of Minnesota's offensive struggles, perhaps because of one tough shot he took, Flynn was yanked in the middle of that stretch and didn't re-enter (this time for Corey Brewer) until 1:12 remained, about 40 seconds after Sessions burned a key Wolves possession by jumping in the air with no real plan, and throwing the ball to LA's Marcus Camby. On the possession immediately following Flynn's re-entry, he sliced through two defenders on a high pick and found Ryan Gomes for a wide-open that cut the lead to two.
Forgive me for the play-by-play, but this was a night where coach Kurt Rambis' substitution patterns with regard to his point guards made less sense than it usually does. After a hot-shooting first half, the Wolves had gone cold; their main offensive threat, Al Jefferson, was struggling, and Flynn was the only guy creating offense for himself. And yet he sat crucial minutes. It's true that the Clips extended their fourth quarter lead from three to eight with Flynn on the floor, but there's no way that the kid was responsible for that.
Frustrating night for Flynn fans in that regard, and frustrating for Wolves fans, whose team has now lost 13 straight. Los Angeles, a mediocre club at their best, was bad tonight and Minnesota played relatively well, at least for them, and they still lost. They could play for a long time without Kevin Love and not win again. Hopefully, Love will be back in the two weeks he says it will be.
Due to a class review session, I didn't attend this one as I had planned. Law school is no fun around this time. Last year, I missed a Metallica concert to study for my Civil Procedure exam; this year, I missed one of Jonny Flynn's best games to study for Bankruptcy.
Flynn was absolutely masterful in the first quarter, with ten points, three assists, and a steal. One of those dimes was perhaps his finest pass of the season, a perfect little behind-the-back bouncer in tight quarters to Oleksiy Pecherov. Flynn also made up for a couple of mistakes -- a turnover and a play in which he ran into traffic while streaking for an outlet pass that was ultimatley intercepted -- by draining a 26-foot three-pointer on the next possession. It was his second three of the quarter, and he also scored on a floater and a pair of free throws.
The second quarter was evidence of how frustrating rookies can be, however. After sitting the first five minutes or so of the second period after playing all but a few seconds of the first, Flynn returned to the court for three minutes, recording two fouls, a turnover, and a wild shot in the process.
He scored five points in seven minutes to start the third quarter on a drive, a jumper, and a technical free throw. He was replaced, as he always is, by Ramon Sessions, who did nothing notable offensively while repeatedly getting torched on the defensive end by Sebastian Telfair. Bassy scored on four straight Clipper possessions at one point, as the Wolves went up from three up to three down with Flynn on the bench.
Flynn re-entered at the 10:26 mark and scored on a lightning-quick drive with 8:45 left, Minnesota's only points over a six-and-a-half minute stretch. Perhaps because of Minnesota's offensive struggles, perhaps because of one tough shot he took, Flynn was yanked in the middle of that stretch and didn't re-enter (this time for Corey Brewer) until 1:12 remained, about 40 seconds after Sessions burned a key Wolves possession by jumping in the air with no real plan, and throwing the ball to LA's Marcus Camby. On the possession immediately following Flynn's re-entry, he sliced through two defenders on a high pick and found Ryan Gomes for a wide-open that cut the lead to two.
Forgive me for the play-by-play, but this was a night where coach Kurt Rambis' substitution patterns with regard to his point guards made less sense than it usually does. After a hot-shooting first half, the Wolves had gone cold; their main offensive threat, Al Jefferson, was struggling, and Flynn was the only guy creating offense for himself. And yet he sat crucial minutes. It's true that the Clips extended their fourth quarter lead from three to eight with Flynn on the floor, but there's no way that the kid was responsible for that.
Frustrating night for Flynn fans in that regard, and frustrating for Wolves fans, whose team has now lost 13 straight. Los Angeles, a mediocre club at their best, was bad tonight and Minnesota played relatively well, at least for them, and they still lost. They could play for a long time without Kevin Love and not win again. Hopefully, Love will be back in the two weeks he says it will be.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Boston 107, New York 105
[box score] [recap]
One of the nice things about being a fan of an NBA team is that you can watch your team struggle against an inferior opponent, watch them blow a 14-point third quarter lead just as quickly as they got it, and still get that rush of adrenaline when your power forward drills a 20-footer at the horn to win it.
We all know that there's a lot that's not right with this team, and all the places the Celtics struggled Sunday were familiar. It all needs to get sorted out. But I've got too much going on to worry about it. Tonight, I'm relishing an entertaining, hard-fought win, even if it wasn't pretty.
One of the nice things about being a fan of an NBA team is that you can watch your team struggle against an inferior opponent, watch them blow a 14-point third quarter lead just as quickly as they got it, and still get that rush of adrenaline when your power forward drills a 20-footer at the horn to win it.
We all know that there's a lot that's not right with this team, and all the places the Celtics struggled Sunday were familiar. It all needs to get sorted out. But I've got too much going on to worry about it. Tonight, I'm relishing an entertaining, hard-fought win, even if it wasn't pretty.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
TMJF: Portland 106, Minnesota 78
Stat Line: 33 minutes, 3-11 FG, 3-3 FT, 9 pts, 3 assts, 3 TOs.
Flynn got all his points going to the basket in the second half, including one very nice reverse layup. I had the Portland feed for this game on League Pass, and the Blazers' announcers, of all people, were practically begging Kurt Rambis to let Flynn loose. Even if you don't think Minny is sitting on a goldmine with him, almost everyone recognizes that the system they're playing now minimizes everything: Flynn's effectiveness, Sessions' effectiveness, the team's chances of winning, etc. Everyone but the coach.
Flynn got all his points going to the basket in the second half, including one very nice reverse layup. I had the Portland feed for this game on League Pass, and the Blazers' announcers, of all people, were practically begging Kurt Rambis to let Flynn loose. Even if you don't think Minny is sitting on a goldmine with him, almost everyone recognizes that the system they're playing now minimizes everything: Flynn's effectiveness, Sessions' effectiveness, the team's chances of winning, etc. Everyone but the coach.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Orlando 83, Boston 78
I pity the beat writer who has to come up with a recap for this one. It was a game without a lede.
[recap][box score]
We on the Boston side can play the "What if..." game, although it's more accurately the "How often..." game: How often are we going to shoot 2-for-19 from three-point range? Those on the Orlando side, however, can respond with "How often are we going to make just 15 of 26 free throws and commit 20 turnovers?" The statistical anomalies more or less balance each other out.
Really, it boiled down to the fact that Orlando had a stretch where their shots were falling (the first quarter), whereas Boston never really got going. That's it, plain and simple. Even as Boston cut a 16-point first quarter deficit to one just before halftime, I never felt confident in our ability to score on a given possession. Nor could I really say how we ended up scoring 29 points in that period. Some free throws here, a basket in transition there, a jumper or two sprinkled in. The offense just never was clicking. The same was true after we went down 66-57 late in the third. We came back to tie the score at 78, but it took nearly a whole quarter to do it. Holding a team as good as the Magic to 12 points in 11 minutes is a terrific defensive effort, but scoring just 21 points during that stretch wasted it.
There are a couple of positive things to take from the game. Other than the first period, the defense was very good, which it hasn't been at all recently. Additionally, our two big off-season acquistions, Rasheed Wallace and Marquis Daniels, were arguably our best players tonight. Despite his terrible shooting night, Wallace had a major positive effect, grabbing 13 rebounds and making three steals in a season-high 33:38 of court time (he played the last 19 and a half minutes after Kendrick Perkins went to the bench with his fifth foul 4:30 in to the third quarter). Daniels' stat line wasn't nearly as full, but he made a lot of little plays that helped us get back in it.
Some quick bullets:
[recap][box score]
We on the Boston side can play the "What if..." game, although it's more accurately the "How often..." game: How often are we going to shoot 2-for-19 from three-point range? Those on the Orlando side, however, can respond with "How often are we going to make just 15 of 26 free throws and commit 20 turnovers?" The statistical anomalies more or less balance each other out.
Really, it boiled down to the fact that Orlando had a stretch where their shots were falling (the first quarter), whereas Boston never really got going. That's it, plain and simple. Even as Boston cut a 16-point first quarter deficit to one just before halftime, I never felt confident in our ability to score on a given possession. Nor could I really say how we ended up scoring 29 points in that period. Some free throws here, a basket in transition there, a jumper or two sprinkled in. The offense just never was clicking. The same was true after we went down 66-57 late in the third. We came back to tie the score at 78, but it took nearly a whole quarter to do it. Holding a team as good as the Magic to 12 points in 11 minutes is a terrific defensive effort, but scoring just 21 points during that stretch wasted it.
There are a couple of positive things to take from the game. Other than the first period, the defense was very good, which it hasn't been at all recently. Additionally, our two big off-season acquistions, Rasheed Wallace and Marquis Daniels, were arguably our best players tonight. Despite his terrible shooting night, Wallace had a major positive effect, grabbing 13 rebounds and making three steals in a season-high 33:38 of court time (he played the last 19 and a half minutes after Kendrick Perkins went to the bench with his fifth foul 4:30 in to the third quarter). Daniels' stat line wasn't nearly as full, but he made a lot of little plays that helped us get back in it.
Some quick bullets:
- Perkins picked up his fourth foul trying to draw a charge on Rashard Lewis with 8:47 on the clock in the third quarter. As mentioned above, he picked up his fifth a minute later, with Wallace at the scorer's table waiting to check in for him. Why do I mention it? Because Doc Rivers had two opportunities to get Perk out of there before he picked up his fifth (immediately after the foul, and when Rajon Rondo commited a loose-ball foul on the other end) and didn't do it. It probably didn't hurt us because Wallace filled in so well, but it's still a mistake that shouldn't be made.
- For the second time this year, Eddie House played the crunch time minutes in place of Rondo. I've been thinking about it for an hour or so, and I still can't decide how I feel about it. On the one hand, Rondo wasn't having much of an effect on the game and House's defense, normally a reason for Rondo over House, wasn't a problem. On the other hand, the big reason to play House over Rondo is House's outside shooting, which wasn't there at all tonight. The other argument for House is that his presence forces the opposition to play honest defense, and the rest of the Celtics got some good looks at three-pointers as Orlando ran at House on ball reversals; they just didn't knock them down. But House can't break down his man like Rondo can, and Rondo taking the ball to the basket often results in an open look for a teammate. Maybe I'd be singing a different tune if Wallace had knocked down a couple of the threes he took off of House passes, but I would've gone back to Rondo a bit sooner. We weren't hitting our jumpers and a still-hobbled Paul Pierce was having a tough time getting his own shot. We needed someone to create.
- On a related note, some of you are no doubt saying something to the effect of "No team should ever shoot 2-for-19 from three-point range" -- the idea being that if you're that cold, you should look for a different way to score. There's some truth to that, but the looks Boston got were by and large good ones. Orlando played pretty good defense, Rondo wasn't playing down the stretch, and Pierce really struggled to create for himself. Those were the shots that were available, and on a normal night, they knock enough down that it's not an issue.
- I thought Pierce did a very nice job of battling Dwight Howard on several defensive rotations, keeping the big guy out of scoring position while our bigs recovered.
- During the broadcast, ESPN's Jeff Van Gundy noted that Kevin Garnett tonight surpassed 40,000 career minutes. I hopped on to Basketball Reference to see where that ranked all-time (25th) and discovered something a little unsettling; among active players, Boston has four of the top 12 in minutes played. I knew we were old, but that was still pretty unsettling.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Boston 109, Golden State 95
[recap] [box score]
Bullets!
Bullets!
- I don't have a good explanation for why Boston's half-court defense was so bad in the first half. One theory bouncing around in my head was that Golden State is full of good, willing shooters, and our defense is predicated on helping and forcing teams to take jumpers they don't want to take. For the Warriors, the concept of a shot that they don't want to take doesn't exist. But there were a fair number of uncontested drives to the basket can't be explained away, unless the Celtics over-adjusted and stayed too close to the shooters.
- I know that our top offensive weapons prefer to play away from the basket, but we need to start punishing teams for playing small. The Warriors, like the Pacers, were undersized, but the only player who seemed interested in feeding Kendrick Perkins in the post was Kevin Garnett. It surely feels weird to pound the ball into Perk with the other options available, but we needed to exploit that mismatch more.
- Paul Pierce still looks hampered by the knee injury he suffered late last week.
- Rajon Rondo took this game over in the third quarter, scoring something like 12 of his 18 points in the period. During one stretch, he drove for a three-point play, then found Pierce for a three-pointer on the next possession. Tommy Heinsohn: "That's Rondo being Rondo!"
- On the Warriors' very next possession, Rondo gambled on a Monta Ellis crossover, and Ellis blew by him for an easy layin. QED.
- By converting the aforementioned three-point play, Rondo broke a streak of ten consecutive missed free throws. The NBA record, in case you're wondering, is 13. The camera caught him yelling an expletive in relief. His confidence at the line has clearly been shaken recently, and I've heard and read some reports that his work with shooting coach Mark Price has him uncomfortable with his shot. If that's true, it hasn't shown in live action: He stroked a very confident looking three-pointer tonight, his first of the year. I've long felt that the problem with Rondo's shot is that he's so unwilling to take it, not that it's bad. Sure, his mechanics are messed up, but the ball goes up to the rim reasonably softly, and he hits enough jumpers that it wouldn't be an issue if a)he took more of them; and b)teams didn't magnify that reluctance to fire by playing off of him.
- As a team, Boston was just 17-of-27 from the charity stripe.
- J.R. Giddens played seven minutes tonight, and not all in garbage time: He got it in the first quarter. One point, one rebound, one assist, and one turnover. His most notable play was biting on a Corey Maggette shot fake at the end of the first half, sending Maggette to the line with a chance to tie the game heading into the break. (Maggette hit one of two, and Garnett's spinning, one-handed 70-footer after grabbing the rebound was waved off because it came after the horn.)
- Giddens was also far too late on a rotation at the end of the third period, as Ellis coasted in for an easy two.
- After Chris Douglas-Roberts' career-high 27 points last night against Indiana, I mentioned to a buddy that I wouldn't at all be surprised if Giddens' career point total never exceeded CDR's single-game best. Giddens' free throw tonight gave him seven points in 15 career games. (To be fair, that's in only about 41 minutes of court time.) Douglas-Roberts, meanwhile, set a new career mark of 31 points tonight in a loss to Milwaukee, adding 10 rebounds for his second straight double-double. I compare these two, of course, because Douglas-Roberts was the player Boston should have taken with the pick it used on Giddens. That was true the day it happened, and it's looking more and more true by the game.
- Because I wasn't blogging over the summer, I didn't get a chance to write about the draft and what I saw at Summer League. Allow me, then, a few words about Golden State rookie Stephen Curry. My concern about Curry coming out of Davidson was that he was simply too small to get his shot off consistently at this level. Those concerns were put to rest in Vegas, as I saw Curry bounce his way free for the same looks he got in college. The surprising problem, however, was that he wasn't knocking them down, hitting right around a third of his attempts. A shooting slump, perhaps, but nothing to worry about. He wasn't much better in the preason, however, and I began to get concerned. Thankfully, though he was a rather pedestrian 4-for-10 against Boston, he seems to be on track, shooting just below 49 percent from the field on the season, an outstanding percentage for a guard. His ballhandling and/or decision-making still needs a lot of work, as evidenced by the six turnovers he committed against the Cs. At least three more of his passes were deflected, too, so that total could have been much worse. He may simply not have adjusted yet to the pro game as it relates to quickness and length of defenders.
- I'll leave you with this Curry story: Friday night, the same buddy mentioned above went to MSG with a bunch of Davidson grads specifically to see the kid. After playing his prized rookie just under 30 minutes a game through the season's first seven games. Woyas coach Don Nelson sat Curry for all but 2:35 of the game against the Knicks. Curry went scoreless and shotless in his brief time on the court. On the bright side, my friend and his crew got to see Curry's first career blocked shot.
TMJF: Rockets 97, Wolves 84
Stat Line: 24 minutes, 4-12FG, 0-2 3FG, 1-1 FT, 9 pts, 1 reb, 2 assts, 3 TOs.
Blah.
My enthusiasm for writing about Minnesota is waning. I still have faith in Flynn, but he's in for a long year.
Blah.
My enthusiasm for writing about Minnesota is waning. I still have faith in Flynn, but he's in for a long year.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
TMJF: Grizzlies 97, Wolves 87
Stat Line: 30 minutes, 5-14 FG, 0-3FG, 2-2FT, 10 pts, 3 rebs, 3 assts, 1 blk, 6 TOs.
I had to watch this game on League Pass broadband and it was a frustrating experience for a variety of reasons and I didn't really finish it. Here's his stat line. I think this was probably his worst game as a pro.
I had to watch this game on League Pass broadband and it was a frustrating experience for a variety of reasons and I didn't really finish it. Here's his stat line. I think this was probably his worst game as a pro.
Indiana 113, Boston 104
Hey. A losing streak.
[recap] [box score]
This game was frustrating, not just because we lost, but because there was a relatively simple way we could have won this game, and we didn't do it.
Two, actually. Due to injury to Troy Murphy, current Indiana coach and former Celtics boss Jim O'Brien started a small lineup of Earl Watson, Brandon Rush, Dahntay Jones, Danny Granger, and Roy Hibbert. That created an obvious mismatch of Granger on Kevin Garnett. It's a mismatch on both ends, but Garnett should have the advantage because there's really nothing Granger can do to stop his shot.
The simplest way to win would have been to ride Garnett all evening. The Celtics went to him early and went to him effectively (he shot better than 63 percent for the game), but they didn't go to him often enough (he only took 11 shots). The Pacers, on the other hand, rode Granger to 29 points and the victory. What's frustrating is that Boston knows how to exploit a mismatch; they just only seem to do it when Paul Pierce is involved.
The other way would have been to counter with a small lineup, replacing one of the bigs with Marquis Daniels. I don't like this as much, as it lets the other team dictate the game and takes one of our top defenders off the court. But if we weren't going to exploit our size mismatch, at least trying a lineup of Daniels, Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo, and, say, Garnett (or Kendrick Perkins or Rasheed Wallace) would have made sense.
[recap] [box score]
This game was frustrating, not just because we lost, but because there was a relatively simple way we could have won this game, and we didn't do it.
Two, actually. Due to injury to Troy Murphy, current Indiana coach and former Celtics boss Jim O'Brien started a small lineup of Earl Watson, Brandon Rush, Dahntay Jones, Danny Granger, and Roy Hibbert. That created an obvious mismatch of Granger on Kevin Garnett. It's a mismatch on both ends, but Garnett should have the advantage because there's really nothing Granger can do to stop his shot.
The simplest way to win would have been to ride Garnett all evening. The Celtics went to him early and went to him effectively (he shot better than 63 percent for the game), but they didn't go to him often enough (he only took 11 shots). The Pacers, on the other hand, rode Granger to 29 points and the victory. What's frustrating is that Boston knows how to exploit a mismatch; they just only seem to do it when Paul Pierce is involved.
The other way would have been to counter with a small lineup, replacing one of the bigs with Marquis Daniels. I don't like this as much, as it lets the other team dictate the game and takes one of our top defenders off the court. But if we weren't going to exploit our size mismatch, at least trying a lineup of Daniels, Pierce, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo, and, say, Garnett (or Kendrick Perkins or Rasheed Wallace) would have made sense.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
TMJF: Mavs 89, Wolves 77
Stat Line: 30 minutes, 4-9 FG, 0-2 3FG, 3-6 FT, 11 pts, 2 rebs, 4 assts, 3 stls, 4 TOs.
The stats show a rather unremarkable night, but tonight we saw a little more of the real Jonny Flynn than we have all season. More of the most part, he was assertive without being overly aggressive, snapping one-handed bounce passes to open jump shooters, flipping the pill behind his back to a cutting Ryan Hollins on a fast break, even mixing it up with Dirk Nowitzki when the German got tangled up with Hollins in the third quarter. Flynn's 11 points and four assists were team-highs, and he would have had two or three more helpers if his teammates had hit shots and finished plays that you would expect NBA players to finish.
I'm too tired to do the research on this and I'll be gone all day tomorrow, but it seems that coach Kurt Rambis is playing Flynn alongside Ramon Sessions more in recent games, with Sessions handling the point guard duties and Flynn playing off the ball a bit more. Flynn's future in the Association is as a point guard, but Rambis may be realizing that in the absence of Al Jefferson (out due to an illness and his family) and Kevin Love (injury), Flynn is his most dangerous scoring option.
The stats show a rather unremarkable night, but tonight we saw a little more of the real Jonny Flynn than we have all season. More of the most part, he was assertive without being overly aggressive, snapping one-handed bounce passes to open jump shooters, flipping the pill behind his back to a cutting Ryan Hollins on a fast break, even mixing it up with Dirk Nowitzki when the German got tangled up with Hollins in the third quarter. Flynn's 11 points and four assists were team-highs, and he would have had two or three more helpers if his teammates had hit shots and finished plays that you would expect NBA players to finish.
I'm too tired to do the research on this and I'll be gone all day tomorrow, but it seems that coach Kurt Rambis is playing Flynn alongside Ramon Sessions more in recent games, with Sessions handling the point guard duties and Flynn playing off the ball a bit more. Flynn's future in the Association is as a point guard, but Rambis may be realizing that in the absence of Al Jefferson (out due to an illness and his family) and Kevin Love (injury), Flynn is his most dangerous scoring option.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Atlanta 97, Boston 86
There haven't been too many nights over the past two-plus seasons where I've been disappointed in this team's effort. Tonight was one of them.
[recap] [box score]
I don't expect 100% effort every night; I know enough about the modern NBA to understand that you're not getting guys to play all-out 82 nights a year. So I understand when we have games like last week against New Jersey. What I don't understand is not coming to play from the start against an opponent worth paying attention to, and then not showing any fight as you get shown up on your home floor.
Almost from the getgo, Boston didn't seem interested in doing the work that would be necessary to win this game. On the Hawks' second possession, Atlanta got the first two of its 16 offensive rebound on the night, with Al Horford tipping in a Marvin Williams putback for the night's first points. It was a recurring theme for the evening.
It was not, lest you be misled, one of those nights where a younger, more athletic team simply beat a hard-working Boston club. The Celtics actually played pretty good "first-shot" defense, but simply stood around and watched the Hawks go around them for rebounds once that shot was missed.
Offensively, the only guy who was at all assertive was Paul Pierce, who by the end was fighting through a bruised knee suffered in the third quarter. (Pierce also played excellent defense on Joe Johnson when matched up against him). When Pierce went out for a few minutes in the third, no one stepped up. I'm particularly frustrated with Rajon Rondo, whose four shot attempts included a half-court heave at the end of the first half, as well as a driving layup with 4:30 left after the Hawks had taken their biggest lead of 12 points. Rondo blew by Bibby on that play, like he should have been doing all night. Rondo seems overly concerned with his assist totals and getting other players shots early in this season. Tonight was a night we needed his offense, and he never even tried.
That's all from me on this one. No use spending too much time in a game like this wondering "What went wrong?" The answer is obvious, and Boston will look to do better tomorrow night vs. Indiana (no national TV).
[recap] [box score]
I don't expect 100% effort every night; I know enough about the modern NBA to understand that you're not getting guys to play all-out 82 nights a year. So I understand when we have games like last week against New Jersey. What I don't understand is not coming to play from the start against an opponent worth paying attention to, and then not showing any fight as you get shown up on your home floor.
Almost from the getgo, Boston didn't seem interested in doing the work that would be necessary to win this game. On the Hawks' second possession, Atlanta got the first two of its 16 offensive rebound on the night, with Al Horford tipping in a Marvin Williams putback for the night's first points. It was a recurring theme for the evening.
It was not, lest you be misled, one of those nights where a younger, more athletic team simply beat a hard-working Boston club. The Celtics actually played pretty good "first-shot" defense, but simply stood around and watched the Hawks go around them for rebounds once that shot was missed.
Offensively, the only guy who was at all assertive was Paul Pierce, who by the end was fighting through a bruised knee suffered in the third quarter. (Pierce also played excellent defense on Joe Johnson when matched up against him). When Pierce went out for a few minutes in the third, no one stepped up. I'm particularly frustrated with Rajon Rondo, whose four shot attempts included a half-court heave at the end of the first half, as well as a driving layup with 4:30 left after the Hawks had taken their biggest lead of 12 points. Rondo blew by Bibby on that play, like he should have been doing all night. Rondo seems overly concerned with his assist totals and getting other players shots early in this season. Tonight was a night we needed his offense, and he never even tried.
That's all from me on this one. No use spending too much time in a game like this wondering "What went wrong?" The answer is obvious, and Boston will look to do better tomorrow night vs. Indiana (no national TV).
Viewing Alert
The Hawks come to town tonight in a game that will be televised on ESPN at 8 p.m., Eastern.
Other than opening night in Cleveland, this game is unsurpassed in importance by any other thus far in this young season. Ever since the Hawks took us to seven games in the 2008 playoffs, they've loomed as a potential thorn in our side, if not a real contender. However, they have yet to make that leap against us, getting swept during the last two regular seasons and losing nine in a row in our barn.
At 6-2, Atlanta is off to a fast start and is the favorite to be the fourth seed in the East (behind us, Orlando, and Cleveland). A victory in Boston might start to give them ideas that they can beat the Celtics in a playoff series. That's why a win is important tonight.
Other than opening night in Cleveland, this game is unsurpassed in importance by any other thus far in this young season. Ever since the Hawks took us to seven games in the 2008 playoffs, they've loomed as a potential thorn in our side, if not a real contender. However, they have yet to make that leap against us, getting swept during the last two regular seasons and losing nine in a row in our barn.
At 6-2, Atlanta is off to a fast start and is the favorite to be the fourth seed in the East (behind us, Orlando, and Cleveland). A victory in Boston might start to give them ideas that they can beat the Celtics in a playoff series. That's why a win is important tonight.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
RwH Wednesday Night Mashup
Apologies for posting this a day late. I had a ton of basketball on my plate last night and didn't get all the away through it. I don't know how Kelly Dwyer does it. It was a bit like being drunk: I don't remember parts of the evening; I fell asleep in my chair; at one point, I made a sandwich but didn't bother using a plate, resting it on my chest in between bites.
This afternoon, though, I caught up. Brief thoughts on everything I watched.
Boston 105, Utah 86 [recap] [box score]
I DVRed this game and watched it after getting home from Clips-Thunder (see below). It seems like it was one of these games where no one and nothing in particular stands out, except for the fact that one team seems overmatched. I supposed Rajon Rondo's night stands out, statistically, but it wasn't one of those games that he just controls; his 14 points and 11 assists came rather quietly. In all, Boston had seven guys in double figures, led by Kevin Garnett's 18. The Jazz, now 3-5, certainly don't look like a playoff team right now.
TMJF: Blazers 107, Wolves 84
Stat Line: 25 minutes, 5-11 FG, 1-2 3FG, 4-4 FT, 15 pts, 6 rebs, 1 asst, 2 TOs.
I sorta zoomed through this one this afternoon because I already knew the score (it turns out that trying to avoid learning the score of three NBA games while attending another NBA game is a fairly pointless exercise). Jonny Flynn had what is becoming his usual game, playing solidly until he felt the game slipping away, then trying to force the action a little too much. Coach Kurt Rambis gave him an early hook after a few poor trips before the half and to start the third quarter. Flynn's replacement, Ramon Sessions, had his best game of the year (1o points, 5 assists), and I guess we'll soon see how steep Rambis expects Flynn's learning curve to be.
Muy Beno: Oklahoma City 83, Los Angeles Clippers 79
Wow, this was an ugly game. The Thunder seemed content to shoot jumpers all night, missing most of them, while LA's Chris Kaman, perhaps upset by being left off the All-Star ballot despite being the reigning Western Conference player of the week, missed a variety of bunnies on his way to a nice little 9-for-26.
At this point, you're probably wondering, "What did you expect?" And it's fair to wonder why I'd even bother going to a Thunder-Clips game. The answer, of course, is Kevin Durant. KD is liable to put on a show every time he steps on the hardwood, and so when he comes to town, you go see him, particularly if you can get tickets for $2.99 on Ticket Exchange.
Durant had a relatively quiet 30 points on 12-of-20 shooting, but it's really jarring to see this guy in person. He's a peculiar mix of tall, long, and thin, a unique combo of lanky and gangly and athletic and smooth. Of course, you know this from his reputation and from watching him on TV. But until you see him live, you can't appreciate just how odd it is to see a guy built like him operate the way he does, draining long jumpers, gliding in for dunks, putting the ball on the deck, pulling up, and shooting in what seems like one continuous motion, the ball at the bottom of the net before you even realize it's left his hand. He's still one-dimensional, all offense, but what a spectacular dimension it is.
I love his nickname -- The Durantula -- but while his phsyique is vaguely insectual (!), his long, thin body and vast wingspan does nothing to recall the meaty, plodding arachnid from which the moniker is derived. It's a great nickname, but it's so inapt. Think I can drum up any public support for calling him The Praying Durantis?
Muy Beno: Cleveland 102, Orlando 93
This was by far the best performance of the season by a Cavs team that has struggled in the early going. The difference between this game and last season's Eastern Conference finals is that last night, Lebron James had some help from his teammates. Heading into last year's playoffs, all the talk was that James finally had the supporting cast he needed to win a title. But that cast, after playing so well all year as Cleveland amassed the league's best record, turned into a bouquet of shrinking violets in losing four out of six to the Magic last summer. Quite frankly, the rest of the Cavs looked afraid to create anything for themselves during that series, as though they feared that if they shot and missed, they'd be criticized for not getting the ball to the league's most dominant force.
Last night, the Cavs went to new acquisition Shaquille O'Neal early and often, drawing two quick fouls on Dwight Howard. Mo Williams, whose disappearance in the Eastern Conference finals was probably most notable because of how effective he had been during the regular season, was assertive from the outset. His confidence was no doubt buoyed by the fact that he was white-hot, hitting his first nine shots. Cleveland shot absurdly well for the stretch of the game that mattered, settling in at 48 percent for the night only after cooling off considerably in the last half of the third quarter and all of the fourth (with the game well in hand).
This wasn't on display last night, but it's been clear through the season's first couple of weeks that Cleveland and Orlando are both struggling to consistently incorporate new players into their attacks, though injuries and suspensions and other absences have no doubt contributed. That had to be expected, though, and it's worth noting in these pages only because it's in contrast to the entire KG-Ray Allen era in Boston. Two seasons ago, everyone expected the new-look Celtics to take some time to gel, but they hit the ground running on the way to league's best record and the franchise's 17th championship.
This year, a completely revamped second unit has meshed extremely well, despite losing a key component (Glen Davis) to injury on the eve of the season. Eddie House is still a chucker, and no one (including me) has a problem with it. Not even Rasheed Wallace, a guy who -- while he's never had an alpha dog complex -- is something of a volume shooter himself. No one seems to care that Wallace spends most of his time hoisting threes on the perimeter. Marquis Daniels has subordinated his playing time and statistics (he was a starter in Indiana, remember), gladly playing the role of facilitator for the bench guys. As a unit, they seem to have the same sort of chemistry that the starting group has.
Credit the coaching staff, I guess, as well as the leadership of the veterans that set the tone for the team. In a year where the race for best record in the East promises to be tight and homecourt advantage just might tip the scales in the playoffs, little things like a fast or slow start to the season just might make the difference.
Housekeeping: Please see the important update to Tuesday night's post on timing issues in the Denver-Chicago game.
This afternoon, though, I caught up. Brief thoughts on everything I watched.
Boston 105, Utah 86 [recap] [box score]
I DVRed this game and watched it after getting home from Clips-Thunder (see below). It seems like it was one of these games where no one and nothing in particular stands out, except for the fact that one team seems overmatched. I supposed Rajon Rondo's night stands out, statistically, but it wasn't one of those games that he just controls; his 14 points and 11 assists came rather quietly. In all, Boston had seven guys in double figures, led by Kevin Garnett's 18. The Jazz, now 3-5, certainly don't look like a playoff team right now.
TMJF: Blazers 107, Wolves 84
Stat Line: 25 minutes, 5-11 FG, 1-2 3FG, 4-4 FT, 15 pts, 6 rebs, 1 asst, 2 TOs.
I sorta zoomed through this one this afternoon because I already knew the score (it turns out that trying to avoid learning the score of three NBA games while attending another NBA game is a fairly pointless exercise). Jonny Flynn had what is becoming his usual game, playing solidly until he felt the game slipping away, then trying to force the action a little too much. Coach Kurt Rambis gave him an early hook after a few poor trips before the half and to start the third quarter. Flynn's replacement, Ramon Sessions, had his best game of the year (1o points, 5 assists), and I guess we'll soon see how steep Rambis expects Flynn's learning curve to be.
Muy Beno: Oklahoma City 83, Los Angeles Clippers 79
Wow, this was an ugly game. The Thunder seemed content to shoot jumpers all night, missing most of them, while LA's Chris Kaman, perhaps upset by being left off the All-Star ballot despite being the reigning Western Conference player of the week, missed a variety of bunnies on his way to a nice little 9-for-26.
At this point, you're probably wondering, "What did you expect?" And it's fair to wonder why I'd even bother going to a Thunder-Clips game. The answer, of course, is Kevin Durant. KD is liable to put on a show every time he steps on the hardwood, and so when he comes to town, you go see him, particularly if you can get tickets for $2.99 on Ticket Exchange.
Durant had a relatively quiet 30 points on 12-of-20 shooting, but it's really jarring to see this guy in person. He's a peculiar mix of tall, long, and thin, a unique combo of lanky and gangly and athletic and smooth. Of course, you know this from his reputation and from watching him on TV. But until you see him live, you can't appreciate just how odd it is to see a guy built like him operate the way he does, draining long jumpers, gliding in for dunks, putting the ball on the deck, pulling up, and shooting in what seems like one continuous motion, the ball at the bottom of the net before you even realize it's left his hand. He's still one-dimensional, all offense, but what a spectacular dimension it is.
I love his nickname -- The Durantula -- but while his phsyique is vaguely insectual (!), his long, thin body and vast wingspan does nothing to recall the meaty, plodding arachnid from which the moniker is derived. It's a great nickname, but it's so inapt. Think I can drum up any public support for calling him The Praying Durantis?
Muy Beno: Cleveland 102, Orlando 93
This was by far the best performance of the season by a Cavs team that has struggled in the early going. The difference between this game and last season's Eastern Conference finals is that last night, Lebron James had some help from his teammates. Heading into last year's playoffs, all the talk was that James finally had the supporting cast he needed to win a title. But that cast, after playing so well all year as Cleveland amassed the league's best record, turned into a bouquet of shrinking violets in losing four out of six to the Magic last summer. Quite frankly, the rest of the Cavs looked afraid to create anything for themselves during that series, as though they feared that if they shot and missed, they'd be criticized for not getting the ball to the league's most dominant force.
Last night, the Cavs went to new acquisition Shaquille O'Neal early and often, drawing two quick fouls on Dwight Howard. Mo Williams, whose disappearance in the Eastern Conference finals was probably most notable because of how effective he had been during the regular season, was assertive from the outset. His confidence was no doubt buoyed by the fact that he was white-hot, hitting his first nine shots. Cleveland shot absurdly well for the stretch of the game that mattered, settling in at 48 percent for the night only after cooling off considerably in the last half of the third quarter and all of the fourth (with the game well in hand).
This wasn't on display last night, but it's been clear through the season's first couple of weeks that Cleveland and Orlando are both struggling to consistently incorporate new players into their attacks, though injuries and suspensions and other absences have no doubt contributed. That had to be expected, though, and it's worth noting in these pages only because it's in contrast to the entire KG-Ray Allen era in Boston. Two seasons ago, everyone expected the new-look Celtics to take some time to gel, but they hit the ground running on the way to league's best record and the franchise's 17th championship.
This year, a completely revamped second unit has meshed extremely well, despite losing a key component (Glen Davis) to injury on the eve of the season. Eddie House is still a chucker, and no one (including me) has a problem with it. Not even Rasheed Wallace, a guy who -- while he's never had an alpha dog complex -- is something of a volume shooter himself. No one seems to care that Wallace spends most of his time hoisting threes on the perimeter. Marquis Daniels has subordinated his playing time and statistics (he was a starter in Indiana, remember), gladly playing the role of facilitator for the bench guys. As a unit, they seem to have the same sort of chemistry that the starting group has.
Credit the coaching staff, I guess, as well as the leadership of the veterans that set the tone for the team. In a year where the race for best record in the East promises to be tight and homecourt advantage just might tip the scales in the playoffs, little things like a fast or slow start to the season just might make the difference.
Housekeeping: Please see the important update to Tuesday night's post on timing issues in the Denver-Chicago game.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Muy Beno: Quibbling Over Tenths of a Second
Denver beat Chicago 90-89 tonight after Brad Miller's last-second shot was (correctly) deemed to have left his hand a split-second after the horn. Miller sank a long two after catching an inbounds pass with three-tenths of a second left on the clock, but my argument with the referees and how these situations are handled in general actually starts with the play before.
With the score tied at 89, Denver's Chauncey Billups drove and was fouled with six tenths of a second remaining. He made the first free throw, and missed the second. Chicago's Joakim Noah grabbed the rebound, the horn sounded, and the game was apparently over.
The officials, however, ordered three tenths of a second put back on, ruling that the Bulls had called a timeout prior to the horn sounding. They did this without consulting the tape. By rule, Chicago had the right to advance the ball to midcourt, setting the stage for its last-ditch play.
Why three tenths? I can't say for sure, but I can make a good guess, because it's what first seemed proper to me, before I took a moment to think about it: The NBA has a rule that a player can catch and shoot in three tenths of a second -- anything less, and the player must tip the ball. Presumably, then, it takes as long to catch the ball and call timeout.
But hang on. If it takes three tenths to catch and shoot, it can't possibly take the same amount of time to catch and call timeout. Catching and shooting involves two distinct actions that must be taken by the same player; namely, gaining possession of the ball, and shooting it. Because you can call timeout verbally and because the officials presumably awarded the timeout to the Bulls on the basis of coach Vinny Del Negro alerting the officials prior to Billups' second shot that his team wanted a timeout as soon as they grabbed the rebound. The gaining of possession and the timeout occurred contemporaneously. Noah didn't bobble the ball. He presumably caught it as fast as anyone can or would have. There's nothing about the "catch" of a rebound that is different from the "catch" in the three-tenths-to-catch-and-shoot rule. Because the officials didn't consult the tape and therefore weren't measuring the time it took Noah to control the ball, the catch couldn't logically have taken three tenths to complete. Given the league's current rules, then, the refs should have put more time back on the clock.
On to the final play, where the three-tenths-to-catch-and-shoot rule again factors in. If we accept, as I think we have to, the premise that some players have quicker releases than other players, then for this rule to make any sense at all, three tenths of a second has to be the absolute minimum amount of time it takes to catch and shoot. If someone can do it faster, then it's unfair to take that skill away from them with the rule. In order for Miller to have gotten his shot off in time, his release would have to be at least as fast as any other player's in the league, something that isn't terribly plausible.
There are a number of other problems with this rule, and precision timing in the end-game in general. For instance, the rule -- at least in its application -- doesn't seem to contemplate where the receiver catches the ball. We've all probably seen instances of a player catching a ball away from his release point, moving it to said point, and releasing it, allegedly within the three tenths of a second time limit. Moving the ball from catch point to release point takes some amount of time, however small, and if you can catch, move, and release in three tenths of a second, you therefore can catch and release, without moving to a release point, in less time.
The way these situations are handled also treat human reaction time oddly, or at least inconsistently. Back when I played high school ball (without tenths of a second on our clocks or the benefit of replay), I learned from my father, a ref, that the rules allowed for one second of reaction time from the moment of the occurrence that triggered the stopping of the clock. For example, on a simple play where the ball goes out of bounds, there's no sensor in the physical basketball that automatically stops the clock the moment the ball hits the floor. The official has to notice that the ball has gone out of bounds and blow his whistle, and the scorer has to similarly react to the whistle. That takes time; hence, the one-second allowance for human reaction time. That time is "made up," so to speak, when the ball is inbounded, and the scorer re-starts the clock a fraction of a second after it has been touched (which is what triggers time beginning to run again).
Today, replay and tenths of a second eliminate this reaction time for stoppages, but it doesn't for restarts. By going to the tape, the officials can see a freeze-frame of the precise moment the ball hits the floor out of bounds, and can reset the clock accordingly, eliminating the reaction time. They cannot similarly do so when the ball is touched by a player on an inbounds pass, and the result is that teams get more time than they technically should.
I do not, at the moment, have a solution that preserves the precision timing an entire generation of basketball fans has become accustomed to. I think it's important, however, to understand the problems with the current system.
(UPDATE: My father, the former ref, did the research I should have done and discovered that, by rule, "no less than :00.3 must expire on the game clock when a player secures possession of an unsuccessful free throw attempt and immediately requests a timeout." This strikes me as kind of silly and arbitrary, as I see no reason why it should take as long to call a timeout as it does to shoot a basketball. But it appears that the officials were right, and I apologize to the officials, as well as anyone who may have been swayed by my argument. It's a good thing hardly anyone reads this blog.)
With the score tied at 89, Denver's Chauncey Billups drove and was fouled with six tenths of a second remaining. He made the first free throw, and missed the second. Chicago's Joakim Noah grabbed the rebound, the horn sounded, and the game was apparently over.
The officials, however, ordered three tenths of a second put back on, ruling that the Bulls had called a timeout prior to the horn sounding. They did this without consulting the tape. By rule, Chicago had the right to advance the ball to midcourt, setting the stage for its last-ditch play.
Why three tenths? I can't say for sure, but I can make a good guess, because it's what first seemed proper to me, before I took a moment to think about it: The NBA has a rule that a player can catch and shoot in three tenths of a second -- anything less, and the player must tip the ball. Presumably, then, it takes as long to catch the ball and call timeout.
But hang on. If it takes three tenths to catch and shoot, it can't possibly take the same amount of time to catch and call timeout. Catching and shooting involves two distinct actions that must be taken by the same player; namely, gaining possession of the ball, and shooting it. Because you can call timeout verbally and because the officials presumably awarded the timeout to the Bulls on the basis of coach Vinny Del Negro alerting the officials prior to Billups' second shot that his team wanted a timeout as soon as they grabbed the rebound. The gaining of possession and the timeout occurred contemporaneously. Noah didn't bobble the ball. He presumably caught it as fast as anyone can or would have. There's nothing about the "catch" of a rebound that is different from the "catch" in the three-tenths-to-catch-and-shoot rule. Because the officials didn't consult the tape and therefore weren't measuring the time it took Noah to control the ball, the catch couldn't logically have taken three tenths to complete. Given the league's current rules, then, the refs should have put more time back on the clock.
On to the final play, where the three-tenths-to-catch-and-shoot rule again factors in. If we accept, as I think we have to, the premise that some players have quicker releases than other players, then for this rule to make any sense at all, three tenths of a second has to be the absolute minimum amount of time it takes to catch and shoot. If someone can do it faster, then it's unfair to take that skill away from them with the rule. In order for Miller to have gotten his shot off in time, his release would have to be at least as fast as any other player's in the league, something that isn't terribly plausible.
There are a number of other problems with this rule, and precision timing in the end-game in general. For instance, the rule -- at least in its application -- doesn't seem to contemplate where the receiver catches the ball. We've all probably seen instances of a player catching a ball away from his release point, moving it to said point, and releasing it, allegedly within the three tenths of a second time limit. Moving the ball from catch point to release point takes some amount of time, however small, and if you can catch, move, and release in three tenths of a second, you therefore can catch and release, without moving to a release point, in less time.
The way these situations are handled also treat human reaction time oddly, or at least inconsistently. Back when I played high school ball (without tenths of a second on our clocks or the benefit of replay), I learned from my father, a ref, that the rules allowed for one second of reaction time from the moment of the occurrence that triggered the stopping of the clock. For example, on a simple play where the ball goes out of bounds, there's no sensor in the physical basketball that automatically stops the clock the moment the ball hits the floor. The official has to notice that the ball has gone out of bounds and blow his whistle, and the scorer has to similarly react to the whistle. That takes time; hence, the one-second allowance for human reaction time. That time is "made up," so to speak, when the ball is inbounded, and the scorer re-starts the clock a fraction of a second after it has been touched (which is what triggers time beginning to run again).
Today, replay and tenths of a second eliminate this reaction time for stoppages, but it doesn't for restarts. By going to the tape, the officials can see a freeze-frame of the precise moment the ball hits the floor out of bounds, and can reset the clock accordingly, eliminating the reaction time. They cannot similarly do so when the ball is touched by a player on an inbounds pass, and the result is that teams get more time than they technically should.
I do not, at the moment, have a solution that preserves the precision timing an entire generation of basketball fans has become accustomed to. I think it's important, however, to understand the problems with the current system.
(UPDATE: My father, the former ref, did the research I should have done and discovered that, by rule, "no less than :00.3 must expire on the game clock when a player secures possession of an unsuccessful free throw attempt and immediately requests a timeout." This strikes me as kind of silly and arbitrary, as I see no reason why it should take as long to call a timeout as it does to shoot a basketball. But it appears that the officials were right, and I apologize to the officials, as well as anyone who may have been swayed by my argument. It's a good thing hardly anyone reads this blog.)
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
TMJF: Warriors 146, Wolves 105
Stat Line: 34 minutes, 8-17 FG, 1-6 3FG, 3-3 FT, 20 pts, 5 rebs, 6 assts, 1 stl, 6 TOs.
It's hard to analyze an individual player performance in a game that got so out of hand so quickly. Jonny Flynn took too many three-pointers, but can you blame him for jacking a few up when his team trailed by 19 by halftime, 34 at the end of the three, and as many as 45 in the fourth? Six turnovers is certainly ghastly, but that's what happened when a hyper-competitive rookie point guard finds himself quarterbacking a sinking ship.
Other than Al Jefferson, Flynn is Minnesota's most dangerous offensive weapon right now (and with Big Al J hardly looking like himself in the early going, Flynn may be tops on that list). The threes and the turnovers aren't going to make coach Kurt Rambis happy, but Flynn's presumed replacement, Ramon Sessions, has been as careless with the ball without being as much of a scorer on a team that needs points. It looks like Flynn's burn is safe, at least for the foreseeable future.
I have a feeling that watching the Wolves 82 nights this year is going to be more soul-crushing than enjoyable. I've never seen a team play as badly on both ends of the floor as they did last night: Sloppy with the ball, despite not running anything terribly intricate on offense; and absolutely clueless defensively. Lack of respect for the rock and low basketball IQ are two of my pet peeves, and the Wolves seem to have both in spades. I don't mean to pile on, but the scoreline and the boxscore really don't do justice as to just how bad Minnesota was last night.
It's hard to analyze an individual player performance in a game that got so out of hand so quickly. Jonny Flynn took too many three-pointers, but can you blame him for jacking a few up when his team trailed by 19 by halftime, 34 at the end of the three, and as many as 45 in the fourth? Six turnovers is certainly ghastly, but that's what happened when a hyper-competitive rookie point guard finds himself quarterbacking a sinking ship.
Other than Al Jefferson, Flynn is Minnesota's most dangerous offensive weapon right now (and with Big Al J hardly looking like himself in the early going, Flynn may be tops on that list). The threes and the turnovers aren't going to make coach Kurt Rambis happy, but Flynn's presumed replacement, Ramon Sessions, has been as careless with the ball without being as much of a scorer on a team that needs points. It looks like Flynn's burn is safe, at least for the foreseeable future.
I have a feeling that watching the Wolves 82 nights this year is going to be more soul-crushing than enjoyable. I've never seen a team play as badly on both ends of the floor as they did last night: Sloppy with the ball, despite not running anything terribly intricate on offense; and absolutely clueless defensively. Lack of respect for the rock and low basketball IQ are two of my pet peeves, and the Wolves seem to have both in spades. I don't mean to pile on, but the scoreline and the boxscore really don't do justice as to just how bad Minnesota was last night.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
TMJF: Blazers 116, Wolves 93
Stat Line: 30 minutes, 4-10 FG, 1-4 3FG, 2-3 FT, 11 pts, 3 assts, 2 stls, 2 TOs.
Six straight losses for Minnesota, after the opening night, come-from-behind victory over (still winless) New Jersey. Jonny Flynn is looking for his offense more and more; he took ten shots against Portland, right on his average, but eight of those came in the first half. Clearly, the Timberwolves' offensive ineptitude is getting to Flynn, as it would to any young point guard who consistently sees his teammates miss open jumpers and play out-of-control offensively (see Brewer, Corey). This will probably have a negative impact on Flynn's playing time -- coach Kurt Rambis seems most concerned with getting Flynn to quarterback the offense, even if it comes at the expense of empty possessions. To his credit, Rambis seems to treat each game as a clean slate, and Flynn's mis-steps associated with trying to create something out of nothing do not seem to carry over in his coach's eyes.
The Wolves play Golden State on Monday night, and the Warriors' uptempo style should provide Flynn with the most comfortable environment of his short career. Flynn should look to get to the basket and get to the line, and could easily set a career-high in assists against Golden State's rather lax defense.
Six straight losses for Minnesota, after the opening night, come-from-behind victory over (still winless) New Jersey. Jonny Flynn is looking for his offense more and more; he took ten shots against Portland, right on his average, but eight of those came in the first half. Clearly, the Timberwolves' offensive ineptitude is getting to Flynn, as it would to any young point guard who consistently sees his teammates miss open jumpers and play out-of-control offensively (see Brewer, Corey). This will probably have a negative impact on Flynn's playing time -- coach Kurt Rambis seems most concerned with getting Flynn to quarterback the offense, even if it comes at the expense of empty possessions. To his credit, Rambis seems to treat each game as a clean slate, and Flynn's mis-steps associated with trying to create something out of nothing do not seem to carry over in his coach's eyes.
The Wolves play Golden State on Monday night, and the Warriors' uptempo style should provide Flynn with the most comfortable environment of his short career. Flynn should look to get to the basket and get to the line, and could easily set a career-high in assists against Golden State's rather lax defense.
Boston 86, New Jersey 76
Ugh.
[recap] [box score]
[recap] [box score]
- First of all, poor New Jersey. The only regular starter who played was center Brook Lopez. They started Rafer Alston (filling in for Devin Harris), Trenton Hassell (Courtney Lee), Bobby Simmons (Chris Douglas-Roberts), and Josh Boone (Yi Jianlian). They played their guts out -- just as they did in a narrow loss the night before in Philadelphia -- but you aren't going to win starting three career journeymen and Rafer Alston. The Nets are 0-7, and with a Wednesday home date against Philly followed by a weekend back-to-back in Florida, it looks very likely that they'll have to wait at least another full week before they get their first win.
- Doc Rivers again tried an all-bench lineup to start the second quarter, but House, Giddens, Wallace, Scalabrine, and Shelden Williams couldn't get anything going. Without Marquis Daniels, who missed this game while tending to personal matters, the second unit needs Pierce or Ray Allen to spark the offense. That three-minute stretch was the best indicator we've had of how good Daniels has been thus far.
- I won't be at all surprised if Giddens doesn't have a job in the NBA next year.
- The Nets committed 23 turnovers, an incredible 20 of which were Boston steals. Rajon Rondo led the way with 5 thefts, but in all, six other Celtics got at least one: Rasheed Wallace (4 steals), Kevin Garnett (3), Brian Scalabrine (3), Paul Pierce (2), Eddie House (2), and J.R. Giddens (1). Boston had active hands and jumped passing lanes all night, but New Jersey also threw quite a few balls directly to men wearing green jerseys.
- One such steal by Eddie House was basically an outlet pass, and House turned it into a two-on-one break down the right side, with Scalabrine filling the left lane. House dropped a perfect bounce pass that caught Scal in stride; for a great number of NBA players, this was a catch, two steps, and a jam. Scal being who he is, however, stopped more or less on a dime and backed the ball out. Seeing it teed up so perfectly for Scal, I was led to contemplate whether he could still dunk. I know what you're thinking: "He's 6'9", of course he can dunk." Well, I played with a guy in high school who was 6'8", and he could only throw it down if he could take one step, gather, and jump off of two feet; in other words, he could only really do it in practice. Again, I know what you're thinking: "Okay, but he was an NBA player?" No, he wasn't, but he also wasn't a 31-year-old with a bad back, an extra 20 pounds or so on his frame, and a nickname ("Veal") that isn't just a play on words. It's entirely possible that he can't. Even if you disagree with me, you wouldn't feel very comfortable betting on it, would you?
- Scal did give us the lead for good by burying a three (our first successful attempt from long distance) on the first possession of the fourth quarter. He hit a long two a couple trips later. I can't believe I'm saying it, but we may want to keep him around all year, rather than trade his expiring contract for another piece.
- Boston's lineup for the final four minutes: House, Allen, Pierce, Garnett, Kendrick Perkins. Rondo sat the entire fourth quarter and didn't look terribly amused about it while sitting on the bench.
- They mentioned on the broadcast that this was the 50th anniversary of the first meeting between Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain. Ironic for me, because I just finished the Russ v. Wilt chapter of Bill Simmons' new book, The Book of Basketball. I'm no Sports Guy fanboy, but I'm excited for the rest of this book. Simmons has bitten off a lot -- he defines his purpose as "evaluating why certain players and teams mattered more than others" -- but as an NBA fanatic first and a journalist (I use that term loosely) second, he seems up to the task. I'll have a full report once I finish the nearly 700-page treatise.
Off 'til Wednesday, when the Jazz come to town. Three days off should be a welcome break for the Cs, who have played a league-leading eight games in the season's first twelve days (a few teams have only played five games, and Golden State has played just four). This should be a chance for the team to get back in the practice gym to work out some of the kinks from the last two games, as well as to get some well-deserved rest.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
TMJF: Bucks 87, Wolves 72
Stat Line: 9-17 FG, 0-3 3FG, 2-3 FT, 20 pts, 4 reb, 1 asst, 3 stls, 3 TOs.
This game was touted by some as Jonny Flynn vs. Brandon Jennings, the two lottery point guards. Flynn got the better of Jennings in their one-on-battle, but Jennings got the win.
Flynn scored 12 of his game-high 20 points in the fourth quarter, going against Luke Ridnour as Jennings sat the whole fourth quarter. Minnesota is so offensively inept right now that I have to believe Kurt Rambis is going to give Flynn more of a leash in the first three periods.
Flynn got many of his buckets on pull-up jumpers, but he also got five points on breakaways that were the highlights of his game.
The first came when the Bucks posted up Andrew Bogut on the right block. Flynn snuck around the big man and knocked the ball loose, then went hard to the basket. He was met there by Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, who tried to wrap Flynn up. Flynn absorbed the contact, then flipped up a little seven-footer that crawled in. Flynn then drained the free throw.
On the second play, the steal was the highlight. Bogut set a high screen for Ridnour, who dribbled right. Flynn managed to avoid getting swallowed up by the pick, but he was rubbed enough for Ridnour to gain a half-step on him. Nevertheless, Flynn, off balance from the contact with Bogut, managed to reach out and pick Ridnour cleanly, retrieving the ball and going in uncontested for an emphatic, if ultimately meaningless, jam.
This game was touted by some as Jonny Flynn vs. Brandon Jennings, the two lottery point guards. Flynn got the better of Jennings in their one-on-battle, but Jennings got the win.
Flynn scored 12 of his game-high 20 points in the fourth quarter, going against Luke Ridnour as Jennings sat the whole fourth quarter. Minnesota is so offensively inept right now that I have to believe Kurt Rambis is going to give Flynn more of a leash in the first three periods.
Flynn got many of his buckets on pull-up jumpers, but he also got five points on breakaways that were the highlights of his game.
The first came when the Bucks posted up Andrew Bogut on the right block. Flynn snuck around the big man and knocked the ball loose, then went hard to the basket. He was met there by Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, who tried to wrap Flynn up. Flynn absorbed the contact, then flipped up a little seven-footer that crawled in. Flynn then drained the free throw.
On the second play, the steal was the highlight. Bogut set a high screen for Ridnour, who dribbled right. Flynn managed to avoid getting swallowed up by the pick, but he was rubbed enough for Ridnour to gain a half-step on him. Nevertheless, Flynn, off balance from the contact with Bogut, managed to reach out and pick Ridnour cleanly, retrieving the ball and going in uncontested for an emphatic, if ultimately meaningless, jam.
Phoenix 110, Boston 103
Phoenix was good. Boston wasn't.
[recap] [box score]
That's not really even accurate. Defensively, they were disorganized, but Boston's offense was fine, although the uncharacteristically poor three-point shooting (4-of-18) probably cost them the game. Even with that horrible showing from deep, the Celtics still shot better than 51 percent from the field. They also only committed 12 turnovers, a nice number for them.
But they couldn't stop Jason Richardson, and they couldn't stop Amar'e Stoudemire, and they couldn't stop Channing Frye when it mattered.
Even with all of that, Boston had a shot at this game. Rajon Rondo was alone under the basket with the score 104-100, but Stoudemire blocked his shot. Boston got a stop and Rasheed Wallace got a good look at a three, but it rimmed out. Steve Nash drained a three on the other end and that was that.
I've been ruminating on this one for a while now and I really can't think of anything to say. (I guess I'm a lot better when we win.) We didn't play good defense, they did a nice job on Pierce. We missed threes, they hit threes. We missed a bunch of free throws, they didn't. We lost, they won.
Oh well. Who knew Brian Scalabrine was so important?*
*Scalabrine didn't play because of back spasms. In a game last year against Phoenix, however, Scal held Stoudemire to three points while scoring four himself. Clearly, that was the problem on Friday.
[recap] [box score]
That's not really even accurate. Defensively, they were disorganized, but Boston's offense was fine, although the uncharacteristically poor three-point shooting (4-of-18) probably cost them the game. Even with that horrible showing from deep, the Celtics still shot better than 51 percent from the field. They also only committed 12 turnovers, a nice number for them.
But they couldn't stop Jason Richardson, and they couldn't stop Amar'e Stoudemire, and they couldn't stop Channing Frye when it mattered.
Even with all of that, Boston had a shot at this game. Rajon Rondo was alone under the basket with the score 104-100, but Stoudemire blocked his shot. Boston got a stop and Rasheed Wallace got a good look at a three, but it rimmed out. Steve Nash drained a three on the other end and that was that.
I've been ruminating on this one for a while now and I really can't think of anything to say. (I guess I'm a lot better when we win.) We didn't play good defense, they did a nice job on Pierce. We missed threes, they hit threes. We missed a bunch of free throws, they didn't. We lost, they won.
Oh well. Who knew Brian Scalabrine was so important?*
*Scalabrine didn't play because of back spasms. In a game last year against Phoenix, however, Scal held Stoudemire to three points while scoring four himself. Clearly, that was the problem on Friday.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Boston 92, Minnesota 90
Doc Rivers won't like it. Most fans won't like it. But that's how I like my Celtics-Wolves games to be.
[recap] [box score]
I always want Minnesota to do well because they have Al Jefferson, one of the truly likable former Celtics, as well as Ryan Gomes, another Boston guy who was part of the Garnett trade and who I've loved since his freshman year at Providence. And, of course, they have Jonny Flynn, whose performance I'll get to in a little bit.
So, coming into the game, given that Boston was 5-0 and Minnesota hadn't tasted victory since a wild comeback in their season-opener, I was worried that this one would be a laugher. I even told a friend of mine who's a Wolves fan that I wouldn't really care if we lost this one, and I meant it. At least I think I did. Ultimately, I was pleased with the game: A night when the Celtics finally had to face a little adversity; a confidence-builder for the Wolves; and an eventual win for the green-and-white.
If I were a rabid Wolves fan (see what I did there?), I'd be awfully upset with coach Kurt Rambis. Either Minnesota doesn't have a single player who can play help defense worth a damn, or Rambis decided to introduce a defensive scheme on the fly without installing it in practice first. Either way, it likely cost his team the game.
Minnesota defended Rajon Rondo the way the Lakers did in the 2008 Finals, when Rambis was an assistant coach in LA: They sagged way off of him (never covering him above the free throw line), using his defender to double the ball or clog driving lanes. Eventually, the Celtics realized that leaving Rondo at the top of the key wasn't the best counter to this strategy, and started moving him around the basket.
My favorite action they ran to counter Minny's defense was to iso Paul Pierce on the wing, with Garnett on the opposite block and Rondo floating on the baseline. The other two men on the floor were up high, opposite the ball. Flynn, the designated free safety, was stationed just outside the lane on the strong side, keeping an eye on Pierce. Garnett came across the lane to set a screen on Flynn; Garnett's defender, Ryan Hollins, followed him (he had to, to keep KG from posting up Flynn); no one rotated down or over; and Pierce hit Rondo with a pass for an easy two. Rondo had 14 points in the third quarter, and a good portion of it came on plays like that.
The reason I think there's a chance that 'sota never practiced this before is because after every Rondo layup, Flynn's head snapped over to the Wolves' bench, as if he were asking Rambis, "Am I really supposed to just leave him back there?" I've never seen a player act this way, and while it may have just been some rookie frustration boiling over, it really looked like the team wasn't on the same page at all.
Bullets:
[recap] [box score]
I always want Minnesota to do well because they have Al Jefferson, one of the truly likable former Celtics, as well as Ryan Gomes, another Boston guy who was part of the Garnett trade and who I've loved since his freshman year at Providence. And, of course, they have Jonny Flynn, whose performance I'll get to in a little bit.
So, coming into the game, given that Boston was 5-0 and Minnesota hadn't tasted victory since a wild comeback in their season-opener, I was worried that this one would be a laugher. I even told a friend of mine who's a Wolves fan that I wouldn't really care if we lost this one, and I meant it. At least I think I did. Ultimately, I was pleased with the game: A night when the Celtics finally had to face a little adversity; a confidence-builder for the Wolves; and an eventual win for the green-and-white.
If I were a rabid Wolves fan (see what I did there?), I'd be awfully upset with coach Kurt Rambis. Either Minnesota doesn't have a single player who can play help defense worth a damn, or Rambis decided to introduce a defensive scheme on the fly without installing it in practice first. Either way, it likely cost his team the game.
Minnesota defended Rajon Rondo the way the Lakers did in the 2008 Finals, when Rambis was an assistant coach in LA: They sagged way off of him (never covering him above the free throw line), using his defender to double the ball or clog driving lanes. Eventually, the Celtics realized that leaving Rondo at the top of the key wasn't the best counter to this strategy, and started moving him around the basket.
My favorite action they ran to counter Minny's defense was to iso Paul Pierce on the wing, with Garnett on the opposite block and Rondo floating on the baseline. The other two men on the floor were up high, opposite the ball. Flynn, the designated free safety, was stationed just outside the lane on the strong side, keeping an eye on Pierce. Garnett came across the lane to set a screen on Flynn; Garnett's defender, Ryan Hollins, followed him (he had to, to keep KG from posting up Flynn); no one rotated down or over; and Pierce hit Rondo with a pass for an easy two. Rondo had 14 points in the third quarter, and a good portion of it came on plays like that.
The reason I think there's a chance that 'sota never practiced this before is because after every Rondo layup, Flynn's head snapped over to the Wolves' bench, as if he were asking Rambis, "Am I really supposed to just leave him back there?" I've never seen a player act this way, and while it may have just been some rookie frustration boiling over, it really looked like the team wasn't on the same page at all.
Bullets:
- I haven't written much yet this season about Marquis Daniels, but he's just a perfect player for us. He does a little bit of everything, which you can see from the box scores, and he takes the pressure off of whichever starter (usually Pierce or Ray Allen) plays with the second unit to be the primary ballhandler and initiator of the offense, which you can't see from the box scores. Brian Scalabrine's recent return allowed Doc to trot out a five-man bench unit (Daniels, Scal, Rasheed Wallace, Eddie House, and Shelden Williams) in the second quarter, and that group cut a 31-23 lead to 33-31 in about three-and-a-half minutes together.
- Perkins then replaced Williams and became the only starter on the floor, somethin I've fairly certain we haven't seen in the past two-plus seasons, at least outside of crunch time. Perk promptly dropped in a half hook over Jefferson off the glass, and Allen came in for Scal at the next stoppage. That's about all the "Perkins as Option A on offense" I'm comfortable with, but I'm encouraged that this experiment didn't have me staring in horror at my television, which it would have as recently as last year, before the playoffs.
- The bench gets the credit for this win: No Boston starter had a positive +/-.
- Boston had been shooting the leather off the ball to start the year, but they cooled off considerably on Wednesday, shooting just 44.6 percent from the floor and making only five of 19 threes. I had wondered how the team would react when the shots stopped falling -- in particular, whether Rondo would step up his aggressiveness. We didn't really find out, as Rambis' peculiar defensive scheme sort of ran our offense for us.
- As good as Boston had been offensively, they had been better defensively, and that also wasn't the case for most of this game. Minnesota shot 52 percent for the game, and everyone -- especially Oleksiy Pecherov, but also Gomes and Jefferson -- seemed to be making whatever the put up. (The exception was Corey Brewer, a unique but maddening player who cannot be portrayed any more favorably than he is here.) The D stepped up big-time when we needed it, however, allowing just one bucket in Minnesota's final eight possessions.
- Celtics play-by-play guy Mike Gorman kept pronouncing Minnesota journeyman forward Brian Cardinal's last name "Car-di-NAL," like he was from Ibiza and not Illinois. For God's sake, look at the guy. How do you think he pronounces his name?
TMJF: Stat Line: 33 minutes, 4-6 FG, 1-1 3FG, 1-1 FT, 10 pts, 5 rebs, 5 assts, 2 TOs.
Wednesday was probably Flynn's best game as a pro, though most of his stat line came in the first half, and those who didn't watch the game will blame him for Rondo's big offensive night. He stayed within himself most of the evening, his only real mis-step coming on a couple of drives to the bucket that resulted in a missed layup and a blocked layup. But he left Rondo in the dust on a number of occasions, a testament to his quickness. And he played more than twice as much as Sessions, a sign that Rambis was pleased with his play, as well.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Muy Beno: A Rhymes With Hondo Production
Earlier, I introduced TMJF, billed as the first of two new features of RwH. Here's the second.
In addition to being a (slightly) clever pun on the Spanish phrase for "very good," the name "Muy Beno" is an homage to the Slovenian point guard for the Sacramento Kings, Beno Udrih. Phonetics are not my thing, but his name is roughly pronounced BAY-noh OOH-drick.
As a lover of basketball and an occasional bed-partner of writing and, above all, a person who values his opinion on the subject of basketball extremely highly, I've been thinking for a while now that I wanted to start an NBA blog and name it "Muy Beno" -- a mildly clever Spanish language pun and an homage to Beno Udrih, the Slovenian point guard for the Sacramento Kings. However, as the reader of my college basketball blog knows, more than one writing project at this stage in my life is too many, and only one gets my full attention. Combine this with the fact that I can hardly seem to keep this blog barely presentable in terms of graphics and updated links, and a separate NBA blog just doesn't seem plausible. So I've expanded the scope of this blog to include non-Celtics NBA musings, starting now.
This initial installment has just a few light items of interest, culled from the way-too-many NBA blogs I subscribe to in Google reader.
-First, rumor is that Sasha Vujacic is dating Maria Sharapova. (I'm not linking to a picture because my head is spinning with all the options to choose from. Plus, my Mom reads this blog.) Regardless of what Adam Levine may or may not have said about her, this is a grave injustice. Sasha may have a new haircut, but Maria deserves to be with someone who can play some D. Hasn't she seen this?
-Drew Gooden of the Dallas Mavericks has been accused of using a homophobic slur in a verbal battle with some hecklers in Los Angeles, and one of the alleged heckler-slash-victims is actor Chris Wylde. Fellow American University alums (circa the mid-to-late 1990s) know him better as Chris Noll.
In addition to being a (slightly) clever pun on the Spanish phrase for "very good," the name "Muy Beno" is an homage to the Slovenian point guard for the Sacramento Kings, Beno Udrih. Phonetics are not my thing, but his name is roughly pronounced BAY-noh OOH-drick.
As a lover of basketball and an occasional bed-partner of writing and, above all, a person who values his opinion on the subject of basketball extremely highly, I've been thinking for a while now that I wanted to start an NBA blog and name it "Muy Beno" -- a mildly clever Spanish language pun and an homage to Beno Udrih, the Slovenian point guard for the Sacramento Kings. However, as the reader of my college basketball blog knows, more than one writing project at this stage in my life is too many, and only one gets my full attention. Combine this with the fact that I can hardly seem to keep this blog barely presentable in terms of graphics and updated links, and a separate NBA blog just doesn't seem plausible. So I've expanded the scope of this blog to include non-Celtics NBA musings, starting now.
This initial installment has just a few light items of interest, culled from the way-too-many NBA blogs I subscribe to in Google reader.
-First, rumor is that Sasha Vujacic is dating Maria Sharapova. (I'm not linking to a picture because my head is spinning with all the options to choose from. Plus, my Mom reads this blog.) Regardless of what Adam Levine may or may not have said about her, this is a grave injustice. Sasha may have a new haircut, but Maria deserves to be with someone who can play some D. Hasn't she seen this?
-Drew Gooden of the Dallas Mavericks has been accused of using a homophobic slur in a verbal battle with some hecklers in Los Angeles, and one of the alleged heckler-slash-victims is actor Chris Wylde. Fellow American University alums (circa the mid-to-late 1990s) know him better as Chris Noll.
Boston 105, Philadelphia 74
I've always hated when coaches rail to the media about their team's sloppy play in a blowout victory or chew out their players on the sideline in a lopsided victory. So trust me when I say that we really didn't look all that good in this one, despite what the scoreboard says.
[recap] [box score]
Don't get me wrong; it was every bit a one-sided victory. But the third quarter was marred by seven turnovers, the exact kind of sloppy stretch we seem prone to once we build a comfortable lead. Several times, I looked at the score after another miscue and was surprised to see Boston still up 14.
These sloppy third quarters are growing a bit tiresome, even as the Celtics roll through their early season schedule. It's not something that's new this year; the team's concentration has waned with big leads each of the previous two seasons, as well. But it sure seems that these stretches are becoming more and more common -- though I don't have the data to back up or disprove it.
If I was in the habit of giving out game balls, I'd give this one to Rasheed Wallance, who scored early and often on his way to 20 points, including a cool six-for-eight from deep. 'sheed came in after Kendrick Perkins picked up a couple of early fouls against a surprisingly active Samuel Dalembert and nailed a nine-foot turnaround jumper to pick up a sluggish offense. He added a three later in the period and never really stopped.
Bullets!
[recap] [box score]
Don't get me wrong; it was every bit a one-sided victory. But the third quarter was marred by seven turnovers, the exact kind of sloppy stretch we seem prone to once we build a comfortable lead. Several times, I looked at the score after another miscue and was surprised to see Boston still up 14.
These sloppy third quarters are growing a bit tiresome, even as the Celtics roll through their early season schedule. It's not something that's new this year; the team's concentration has waned with big leads each of the previous two seasons, as well. But it sure seems that these stretches are becoming more and more common -- though I don't have the data to back up or disprove it.
If I was in the habit of giving out game balls, I'd give this one to Rasheed Wallance, who scored early and often on his way to 20 points, including a cool six-for-eight from deep. 'sheed came in after Kendrick Perkins picked up a couple of early fouls against a surprisingly active Samuel Dalembert and nailed a nine-foot turnaround jumper to pick up a sluggish offense. He added a three later in the period and never really stopped.
Bullets!
- Wallace also picked up a technical in the third quarter when he didn't get to go to the line after being fouled in the act of shooting. He carried on in typical 'sheed fashion, and in such a blowout, I was a little surprised one of the refs didn't run him.
- The game highlights have a couple instances of Rajon Rondo in all his Rondo-ness. At the end of the first quarter, he hit a ridiculous 13-footer from the baseline that I thought, at first glance, went over the top of the backboard. Upon further review, however, it appears that he may have somehow shot the right over the corner. Whether it should have counted or not, it was a remarkable shot, over seven-foot Jason Smith while falling out of bounds. Later, after a Sixers turnover, he threaded a blind, left-handed behind-the-back pass to a streaking Paul Pierce. The angle on this pass was extremely tough, as Pierce was filling the lane behind him. What made this assist particularly special, however, was that Rondo had tipped the outlet pass into the frontcourt, and surveyed the court as he chased it down. Gathering the ball right around the free throw line, he knew exactly where Pierce was, and, as importantly, knew that Thaddeus Young was lurking to challenge his layup. So he dropped a picture-perfect dime into Pierce's hands, taking Young out of the play, and the result was an easy two for Boston. These two plays were an excellent display of the $55 million dollar man's court awareness.
- First five minutes of the year for Brian Scalabrine. He got in during garbage time and showed no ill effects of either his injury suffered in the preseason or his summer off to recover from concussions. Five points for the former Human Victory Cigar, including a three-pointer.
- Lester Hudson played for another extended stretch in the fourth quarter and this time showed no qualms about displaying his offensive ability. He canned two triples in seven effective minutes. I think he's a better shooter than Gabe Pruitt, but he's not ready for a regular role with the big club the way Pruitt might have been.
- J.R. Giddens was a little bit better (read: a little less useless) than he has been, but he did nothing to make the Celtics regret not picking up his option next year.
- Boston hit 14 of 20 three-pointers. We're now at 48.6 percent from behind the arc on the young season, just two-tenths of a percent behind Phoenix. Philly, having been torched from deep previously by Orlando, has allowed opponents to shoot 45.1 percent from that distance through four games, the fifth-worst mark in the league.
- Philly shot just 36.3 percent on the game, and didn't hit a three-pointer until the waning minutes. The Celtics are the league's stingiest team in terms of field goal percentage and points against. At times, it looks simply like the opposition is missing shots, but the scheme and the players have a ton to do with that.
Next game is tonight (Wednesday) at 8 p.m. Eastern, against Minnesota. No national TV, but if you can find a way to watch this one, do it: the Wolves have former Celtics Al Jefferson and Ryan Gomes, plus RwH fave Jonny Flynn, and it's always fun to see Big Al J and Gomes compete against some of their former teammates. Plus, KG back in 'sota is always a nice experience.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Viewing Alert
Not a game. "Without Bias," an hour-long program about Len Bias, airs on ESPN at 8 pm. I believe it re-airs on Wednesday and Thursday, as well. Check your local listings. (I've always wanted to say that!)
I have no memory of this tragic chapter in Celtics (and NBA, and human) history, but I find myself drawn to the Bias story, both as a Cs fan and as someone who grew up in the age when an icon's drug overdose became a somewhat regular occurrence. I can't decide if I'll watch tonight or one of the re-airs (the Celts have a game and I'm interested in the Cavs-Wizards matchup, as well) but I'm sure I'll have some thoughts when I do.
Speaking of the game tonight, we play the Sixers in Philadelphia at 7 p.m. Eastern. There's no national TV and I can't tell if the free preview of NBA League Pass is still going on.
As I think about this matchup, it seems like we match up poorly with Philly; Andre Iguodala is a nightmare cover for Ray Allen and Thaddeus Young is big, athletic, and physical matching up with Paul Pierce at the small forward spot. We swept four games against them last year, though the two wins in Philly came by a combined three points. Then again, we blew their doors off twice in Boston before the Christmas holiday.
This year, the Sixers have a new coach (Eddie Jordan) and a new offense (Jordan prefers Princeton-style sets). I haven't seen them yet this year, but they're 2-1, bouncing back from an opening night loss in Orlando with a home win against Milwaukee and an overtime triumph at Madison Square Garden. My hunch is that Philly's offense, which is still new to them, will negate some of the difficult matchups that they theoretically pose. At the other end, it seems like they are having a hard time guarding the three-point line: the Magic went 16-for-29 and the Knicks hit 14 of an astonishing 41 attempts. The Celtics have been both willing and capable three-point shooters this season, so that's something to watch.
I have no memory of this tragic chapter in Celtics (and NBA, and human) history, but I find myself drawn to the Bias story, both as a Cs fan and as someone who grew up in the age when an icon's drug overdose became a somewhat regular occurrence. I can't decide if I'll watch tonight or one of the re-airs (the Celts have a game and I'm interested in the Cavs-Wizards matchup, as well) but I'm sure I'll have some thoughts when I do.
Speaking of the game tonight, we play the Sixers in Philadelphia at 7 p.m. Eastern. There's no national TV and I can't tell if the free preview of NBA League Pass is still going on.
As I think about this matchup, it seems like we match up poorly with Philly; Andre Iguodala is a nightmare cover for Ray Allen and Thaddeus Young is big, athletic, and physical matching up with Paul Pierce at the small forward spot. We swept four games against them last year, though the two wins in Philly came by a combined three points. Then again, we blew their doors off twice in Boston before the Christmas holiday.
This year, the Sixers have a new coach (Eddie Jordan) and a new offense (Jordan prefers Princeton-style sets). I haven't seen them yet this year, but they're 2-1, bouncing back from an opening night loss in Orlando with a home win against Milwaukee and an overtime triumph at Madison Square Garden. My hunch is that Philly's offense, which is still new to them, will negate some of the difficult matchups that they theoretically pose. At the other end, it seems like they are having a hard time guarding the three-point line: the Magic went 16-for-29 and the Knicks hit 14 of an astonishing 41 attempts. The Celtics have been both willing and capable three-point shooters this season, so that's something to watch.
TMJF: Clippers 93, Wolves 90
Stat Line: 22 minutes, 4-8 FG, 1-1 3FG, 4-4 FT, 13 pts, 3 rebs, 4 assts, 1 stl, 5 TOs.
It was a tale of two halves in Los Angeles for Minnesota's rookie point guard. You see the above stat line? Jonny Flynn amassed all of it, save four minutes and four turnovers, before halftime.
Flynn played very well in the first 24 minutes, contributing a nice balance of scoring and setting up his teammates. His only mis-steps were a missed connection on a pick-and-roll at the end of the first quarter and a back-rimmed jam that would have been Sportscenter material (the kid can really get up). Flynn got 18 minutes at point guard in the first half, while Ramon Sessions, who played 31 minutes to Flynn's 19 in Phoenix on Sunday, got just six.
Things changed quickly after halftime. On the Wolves' first possession after the break, Flynn threw an ill-advised lob pass that was intercepted by Eric Gordon. I was in attendance -- having scored $100 face value tickets for a cool ten bucks off of Stubhub -- and so I couldn't rewind the play to see whether Flynn was completely at fault or Corey Brewer broke off his cut to the basket. Four possessions later, Flynn over-dribbled with no real purpose and had the ball stolen by Rasual Butler. At 10:19 left in the third quarter, Flynn went to the bench, where he'd stay for the next 17 minutes of game time.
Entering for Sessions down 84-82 with 5:05 remaining, Flynn was called for walking a minute and a half later, having taken an extra step as he forced his way to the basket. As the Clips brought the ball up, Minnesota coach Kurt Rambis called Sessions' name, and Sessions was at the table waiting to check in when Flynn threw a predictable lob pass on a fast break that Baron Davis easily swallowed up.
It's clear that, early on at least, Rambis has a short hook for Flynn. My best guess is that he wants to break Flynn of the habit of over-penetrating, a noble goal. But the tactic of sitting a guy -- particularly for a long stretch -- the first time he does something you don't like is a dangerous one, and a decidedly different approach than the one taken by Paul Westphal with Tyreke Evans in Sacramento and Scott Skiles with Brandon Jennings in Milwaukee. Having entrusted the starting role to Flynn, Rambis needs to give him some room to learn the position. Either that, or Rambis needs to decide that Flynn isn't ready for the responsibility, install Sessions as the starter, and have Flynn come off the bench. I think the former is the smart play, but starting a guy and yanking him quickly is a recipe for messing with his head and stunting his development. If Rambis is concerned with winning now, then the latitude he gives to other Wolves players, Brewer especially, is puzzling.
* * *
An amusing note from tonight's game: At some point in the first half, Clippers center Chris Kaman went to the line, and an "M-V-P!" chant started in the crowd, a nod to Kaman's outstanding play to open the season. This continued every time Kaman shot free throws the rest of the night. High comedy.
Also, these people were the halftime entertainment. As much as I like the Asian lady who flips dishes onto her head while riding a unicycle, I'm officially a fan of the Russian Bar Trio.
It was a tale of two halves in Los Angeles for Minnesota's rookie point guard. You see the above stat line? Jonny Flynn amassed all of it, save four minutes and four turnovers, before halftime.
Flynn played very well in the first 24 minutes, contributing a nice balance of scoring and setting up his teammates. His only mis-steps were a missed connection on a pick-and-roll at the end of the first quarter and a back-rimmed jam that would have been Sportscenter material (the kid can really get up). Flynn got 18 minutes at point guard in the first half, while Ramon Sessions, who played 31 minutes to Flynn's 19 in Phoenix on Sunday, got just six.
Things changed quickly after halftime. On the Wolves' first possession after the break, Flynn threw an ill-advised lob pass that was intercepted by Eric Gordon. I was in attendance -- having scored $100 face value tickets for a cool ten bucks off of Stubhub -- and so I couldn't rewind the play to see whether Flynn was completely at fault or Corey Brewer broke off his cut to the basket. Four possessions later, Flynn over-dribbled with no real purpose and had the ball stolen by Rasual Butler. At 10:19 left in the third quarter, Flynn went to the bench, where he'd stay for the next 17 minutes of game time.
Entering for Sessions down 84-82 with 5:05 remaining, Flynn was called for walking a minute and a half later, having taken an extra step as he forced his way to the basket. As the Clips brought the ball up, Minnesota coach Kurt Rambis called Sessions' name, and Sessions was at the table waiting to check in when Flynn threw a predictable lob pass on a fast break that Baron Davis easily swallowed up.
It's clear that, early on at least, Rambis has a short hook for Flynn. My best guess is that he wants to break Flynn of the habit of over-penetrating, a noble goal. But the tactic of sitting a guy -- particularly for a long stretch -- the first time he does something you don't like is a dangerous one, and a decidedly different approach than the one taken by Paul Westphal with Tyreke Evans in Sacramento and Scott Skiles with Brandon Jennings in Milwaukee. Having entrusted the starting role to Flynn, Rambis needs to give him some room to learn the position. Either that, or Rambis needs to decide that Flynn isn't ready for the responsibility, install Sessions as the starter, and have Flynn come off the bench. I think the former is the smart play, but starting a guy and yanking him quickly is a recipe for messing with his head and stunting his development. If Rambis is concerned with winning now, then the latitude he gives to other Wolves players, Brewer especially, is puzzling.
* * *
An amusing note from tonight's game: At some point in the first half, Clippers center Chris Kaman went to the line, and an "M-V-P!" chant started in the crowd, a nod to Kaman's outstanding play to open the season. This continued every time Kaman shot free throws the rest of the night. High comedy.
Also, these people were the halftime entertainment. As much as I like the Asian lady who flips dishes onto her head while riding a unicycle, I'm officially a fan of the Russian Bar Trio.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Rondo Gets His
5 years, $55 million.
Up to this point, I've avoided writing about this topic because I didn't have any "insider" information and I didn't have much to say that wasn't already out there. Now that he's signed his contract extension, a few words on the subject.
(I don't have the most knowledgeable or interesting perspectives on this, so you may also want to look at what these guys have to say:
As a general rule, if there are no negative consequences to waiting, it makes sense to wait: an injury to Rondo or other key parts could change the direction the team is headed, and therefore affect whether the Celtics wanted to pay him. In this case, however, there were two possible negative consequences of waiting:
1)Rondo signs an offer sheet for a little more than we could have signed him to an extension before the deadline; and/or
2)Rondo signs an offer sheet for a LOT more than we could have signed him to an extension before the deadline.
The first of these was overwhelmingly likely. Teams always overpay in free agency. However, if this was the only concern, I'd still counsel waiting: Paying Rondo 12 or 13 million dollars a year instead of 11 isn't going to make a huge difference (the team will still be over the cap and their flexibility to pick up other free agents therefore hamstrung).
The second was less likely, but much more concerning: someone wildly overpaying him, all but forcing us to let him go.
An interesting factor at play here is that the current economic market combined with the top-heavy free agent class in 2010 has resulted in a large number of NBA teams cutting salary. That means that next summer, more teams than usual will have a lot of cap space, and while some will certainly not spend all of it for financial reasons, some team or teams will, having missed out on the big-name free agents (Lebron, Wade, Bosh) and responding to pressure from fans, will use up that cap space to overpay the next tier of available free agents, which includes Rondo.
Because of that possibility, this is a logical signing for the Celtics: It's a little more than they wanted to pay for him and it comes with some risks, but it takes losing him altogether out of the equation, vital for a team that is committed to winning now and in the next couple of years.
By the way, note that Rondo did not, through four games this year, play like a man in search of a contract extension. The extension he sought and ultimately signed is for five years, by which time Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen will be well beyond the age when we can count on them for deep playoff runs. For the Boston front office to sign Rondo to an extension, they had to believe he was capable of playing a different role for this team than the one he plays currently. It would have been easy, then, for Rondo to display his scoring ability, at the expense of others. Instead, Rondo has played as unselfishly as ever, taking his role as catalyst to new levels. Through these first four games, Rondo has twice as many assists as field goal attempts (47 to 23). He's gone about this the right way, and it's nice to see him rewarded.
Up to this point, I've avoided writing about this topic because I didn't have any "insider" information and I didn't have much to say that wasn't already out there. Now that he's signed his contract extension, a few words on the subject.
(I don't have the most knowledgeable or interesting perspectives on this, so you may also want to look at what these guys have to say:
- Tony Massarotti of the Globe
- Jeff Clark of CelticsBlog
- Brian Robb of Celtics Hub
As a general rule, if there are no negative consequences to waiting, it makes sense to wait: an injury to Rondo or other key parts could change the direction the team is headed, and therefore affect whether the Celtics wanted to pay him. In this case, however, there were two possible negative consequences of waiting:
1)Rondo signs an offer sheet for a little more than we could have signed him to an extension before the deadline; and/or
2)Rondo signs an offer sheet for a LOT more than we could have signed him to an extension before the deadline.
The first of these was overwhelmingly likely. Teams always overpay in free agency. However, if this was the only concern, I'd still counsel waiting: Paying Rondo 12 or 13 million dollars a year instead of 11 isn't going to make a huge difference (the team will still be over the cap and their flexibility to pick up other free agents therefore hamstrung).
The second was less likely, but much more concerning: someone wildly overpaying him, all but forcing us to let him go.
An interesting factor at play here is that the current economic market combined with the top-heavy free agent class in 2010 has resulted in a large number of NBA teams cutting salary. That means that next summer, more teams than usual will have a lot of cap space, and while some will certainly not spend all of it for financial reasons, some team or teams will, having missed out on the big-name free agents (Lebron, Wade, Bosh) and responding to pressure from fans, will use up that cap space to overpay the next tier of available free agents, which includes Rondo.
Because of that possibility, this is a logical signing for the Celtics: It's a little more than they wanted to pay for him and it comes with some risks, but it takes losing him altogether out of the equation, vital for a team that is committed to winning now and in the next couple of years.
By the way, note that Rondo did not, through four games this year, play like a man in search of a contract extension. The extension he sought and ultimately signed is for five years, by which time Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen will be well beyond the age when we can count on them for deep playoff runs. For the Boston front office to sign Rondo to an extension, they had to believe he was capable of playing a different role for this team than the one he plays currently. It would have been easy, then, for Rondo to display his scoring ability, at the expense of others. Instead, Rondo has played as unselfishly as ever, taking his role as catalyst to new levels. Through these first four games, Rondo has twice as many assists as field goal attempts (47 to 23). He's gone about this the right way, and it's nice to see him rewarded.
TMJF: Suns 120, Wolves 110
Stat Line: 19 minutes, 4-9 FG, 1-2 3FG, 2-2 FT, 11 pts, 2 rebs, 4 assts, 2 stls, 2 TOs.
Sunday night brought quite a few firsts in young Jonny Flynn's three-game career:
The first time he's played against a truly great NBA point guard. With apologies to the New Jersey Nets' Devin Harris, a fine young lead guard in his own right, Phoenix's Steve Nash is the first great point guard Flynn's lined up against. The two-time MVP took advantage of the rookie early, drawing two quick fouls and sending Flynn to the bench. To Flynn's credit, he didn't back down from Nash, nor did he try to prove too much.
The first time he's played the Suns, or a team like them. Playing an up-tempo opponent like Phoenix can be a trap for young point guards, particularly those who may feel a bit, ah, fettered by their team's offense. As I've mentioned before, the Triangle doesn't make the best use of Flynn's talents, and the wings he plays with are offensively challenged. Flynn is a flashy and freewheeling playmaker, and it has to be difficult for him to play in such a regimented system, especially one where he plays a reduced role. The temptation against a team like Phoenix is to match their style, and while the Wolves want to run this year, they aren't quite cut out for seven seconds or less-style offense. I thought Flynn resisted the siren call of the uptempo pace the Suns set fairly well. I attribute his playing "outside" himself and/or the offense first to his foul trouble, which may have made him anxious to make his mark when he was on the floor, and second to the fact that he played alongside Ramon Sessions for what I believe was the first time all season. I was preparing dinner and not watching all that closely, but it appeared at times that Flynn was in the off-guard role, which really doesn't suit him.
The first time he's sat in crunch time. There was no crunch time against Cleveland, but Flynn led the charge in the wild come-from-behind victory over New Jersey to start the season. Tonight, Sessions got the late minutes. A starter at point guard from the moment he arrived on Syracuse's campus, tonight had to be the first time in a long time that Flynn was benched as his team tried to make a late comeback. Flynn can take some solace in the fact that Al Jefferson sat in favor of Ryan Hollins for much of this stretch, but it has to have him in a weird place, mentally. Already, some are calling for Sessions to get the starter's minutes that are currently gong to Flynn, which I find weird because Sessions has hardly torn it up in his time on the court -- although head coach Kurt Rambis praised Sessions' play Sunday night, which has to mess with Flynn's psyche even further. It will be interesting to see what Flynn's minutes -- and his reaction to them -- are like Monday night against the Clippers in Los Angeles (and yes, RwH will be in attendance).
Sunday night brought quite a few firsts in young Jonny Flynn's three-game career:
The first time he's played against a truly great NBA point guard. With apologies to the New Jersey Nets' Devin Harris, a fine young lead guard in his own right, Phoenix's Steve Nash is the first great point guard Flynn's lined up against. The two-time MVP took advantage of the rookie early, drawing two quick fouls and sending Flynn to the bench. To Flynn's credit, he didn't back down from Nash, nor did he try to prove too much.
The first time he's played the Suns, or a team like them. Playing an up-tempo opponent like Phoenix can be a trap for young point guards, particularly those who may feel a bit, ah, fettered by their team's offense. As I've mentioned before, the Triangle doesn't make the best use of Flynn's talents, and the wings he plays with are offensively challenged. Flynn is a flashy and freewheeling playmaker, and it has to be difficult for him to play in such a regimented system, especially one where he plays a reduced role. The temptation against a team like Phoenix is to match their style, and while the Wolves want to run this year, they aren't quite cut out for seven seconds or less-style offense. I thought Flynn resisted the siren call of the uptempo pace the Suns set fairly well. I attribute his playing "outside" himself and/or the offense first to his foul trouble, which may have made him anxious to make his mark when he was on the floor, and second to the fact that he played alongside Ramon Sessions for what I believe was the first time all season. I was preparing dinner and not watching all that closely, but it appeared at times that Flynn was in the off-guard role, which really doesn't suit him.
The first time he's sat in crunch time. There was no crunch time against Cleveland, but Flynn led the charge in the wild come-from-behind victory over New Jersey to start the season. Tonight, Sessions got the late minutes. A starter at point guard from the moment he arrived on Syracuse's campus, tonight had to be the first time in a long time that Flynn was benched as his team tried to make a late comeback. Flynn can take some solace in the fact that Al Jefferson sat in favor of Ryan Hollins for much of this stretch, but it has to have him in a weird place, mentally. Already, some are calling for Sessions to get the starter's minutes that are currently gong to Flynn, which I find weird because Sessions has hardly torn it up in his time on the court -- although head coach Kurt Rambis praised Sessions' play Sunday night, which has to mess with Flynn's psyche even further. It will be interesting to see what Flynn's minutes -- and his reaction to them -- are like Monday night against the Clippers in Los Angeles (and yes, RwH will be in attendance).
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Boston 97, New Orleans 87
Our first subpar performance of the season.
[recap] [box score]
The Celtics may have fallen victims to their own early-season success a little bit in this one. Despite not shooting particularly well, they looked to have the game completely in control, holding a nine-point lead late in the third. Whether they let up at that point or simply couldn't find the killer instinct they had in putting the Bobcats and Bulls away I can't say, but letting a Chris Paul-led team hang around without paying for it. The Celtics' price for their lethargy was a much more difficult final period than it needed to be.
This one wasn't over until just over two minutes remained in the fourth. Boston went to a 3/4 pick-and-roll for three consecutive possessions. On the first two, Paul Pierce posted up Peja Stojakovic on the left wing, took an entry pass from Kevin Garnett, and then dribbled right over a screen from Garnett, forcing a switch. The ball then went to KG in the post, and the havoc this mismatch wreaked on the Hornets' defense resulted in in an easy bucket for Rondo cutting to the hoop and a wide-open three for Pierce after New Orleans triple-teamed KG. The last time we ran this action, Pierce took a high screen from KG and dribbled right. Garnett rolled to the foul line, took a pass from Pierce, drew Emeka Okafor out ever so slightly, and dumped it down to Kendrick Perkins for an easy two.
Bullets:
[recap] [box score]
The Celtics may have fallen victims to their own early-season success a little bit in this one. Despite not shooting particularly well, they looked to have the game completely in control, holding a nine-point lead late in the third. Whether they let up at that point or simply couldn't find the killer instinct they had in putting the Bobcats and Bulls away I can't say, but letting a Chris Paul-led team hang around without paying for it. The Celtics' price for their lethargy was a much more difficult final period than it needed to be.
This one wasn't over until just over two minutes remained in the fourth. Boston went to a 3/4 pick-and-roll for three consecutive possessions. On the first two, Paul Pierce posted up Peja Stojakovic on the left wing, took an entry pass from Kevin Garnett, and then dribbled right over a screen from Garnett, forcing a switch. The ball then went to KG in the post, and the havoc this mismatch wreaked on the Hornets' defense resulted in in an easy bucket for Rondo cutting to the hoop and a wide-open three for Pierce after New Orleans triple-teamed KG. The last time we ran this action, Pierce took a high screen from KG and dribbled right. Garnett rolled to the foul line, took a pass from Pierce, drew Emeka Okafor out ever so slightly, and dumped it down to Kendrick Perkins for an easy two.
Bullets:
- The bench had a nice sequence starting at the end of the third quarter, after New Orleans had come back from down 12 to tie it. Rasheed Wallace hit a three with the shot clock expiring to end the period, then hit a little turnaround in the lane to again push the lead to three with a minute and a half gone in the fourth. Stojakovic tied it with a three, but Marquis Daniels drew a foul on the next possession. He hit the first free throw and missed the second, but he then combined with Wallace to tap out the offense rebound, and Wallace hit a three on the possession. Eddie House then sandwiched nice assists to Shelden Williams and Daniels around a Stojakovic triple, which gave the starters the cushion they needed.
- Rajon Rondo didn't have a bad game, but he made several mistakes in the fourth quarter: A bad pass, a dribbling violation, a gamble on Paul that used up Boston's foul to give, and an over-aggressive attempt to keep the ball out of Paul's hands that ended up putting CP3 on the line. He was hardly the only guy not at his best Sunday night, but he came down to earth a bit after his remarkable start to the season.
- Stojakovic nearly buried us with his outside shooting (26 points on 9-of-15, including 6-of-10 from deep). Pierce was on him a big chunk of the time and Stojakovic just ran him off of screens. Boston never really helped; it was as though they were totally unprepared for New Orleans to run plays for Peja. That may be forgivable, given how balky his back has been, but it sure was frustrating to see the guy who is fourth all-time in three-pointers made have so much daylight over and over in the second half. Boston didn't really make him work on the defensive end until the final few minutes, either, despite the fact that his cover, Pierce, had a very strong first half offensively.
A win's a win, though, and the Celtics move to 4-0. Next game is Tuesday night, at Philly.
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