Boston 101, Chicago 95

[recap] [box score]

Been a long time since I last updated -- after starting 0-2, Boston beat Washington twice, lost to Philly, and then beat Milwaukee in a rematch on Saturday night to even their record at 3-3. Tonight against the Bulls was probably the teams best performance of the young season, at least until the fourth quarter.

On a macro level, Doc Rivers seems to have settled on a starting lineup. After experimenting for a few games with Jared Sullinger as our starting four, Brandon Bass has been opening the game up front alongside Kevin Garnett the last two times out. As much as I was lobbying to play the kid with the first team, I agree with this move. Sullinger wasn't getting going with the first unit, and Bass was struggling to find his offense, as well. The other big change has been Jason Terry starting at two over Courtney Lee, which seems to have gotten Terry off the schneid after a slow start to the season. This one may not be permanent -- Terry has a long track record of success in the sixth man role, and while the Celtics might be able to get away with Terry and Rondo in the backcourt against Brandon Jennings/Monta Ellis and Nate Robinson/Rip Hamilton, some bigger guard pairings could make Lee's size and defense important to have in the starting lineup.

One thing everyone has been talking about since the preseason is how Boston wants to run more this year, and indeed, our pace is way above what we're used to. What's interesting about it is that the Celtics are not, at least to my eye, getting a ton of fast break points. What they are doing, however, is getting a lot of early offense. It's a smart move and a welcome change from the bogged down offensive sets we've seen in recent years. I've noticed that it's particularly beneficial to Bass, whose bread-and-butter shot is the mid-range jumper. Instead of beating the ball downcourt, Bass has been trailing the plays a bit as Rondo rushes upcourt. Bass' defender, meanwhile, has to worry about Rondo (a threat to get to the basket at any time) and isn't used to picking up power forwards above the free throw line, so he sets up down low and waits for Bass. All Bass has to do, then, is stop at whatever spot he's most comfortable and await the feed from Rondo for the wide-open jumper. Once teams start to pick Bass up earlier, you can expect to see more layups for Rondo, whose Inspector Gadget arms and crafty finishing have befuddled many a back-pedaling would-be shotblocker.

The Cs were pretty much in control of this one until the fourth quarter, when they went ice-cold from the floor (Kevin Garnett in particular). It also coincided with increased playing time for rookie point guard Marquis Teague and power forward Taj Gibson, who shored up a defense that was surprisingly vulnerable to penetration over the first three quarters given that they are coached by Tom Thibodeau. Ultimately, the Celtics sealed the game with a couple nifty screen-and-roll plays with Rondo and Garnett that led to KG alley-oop dunks (the play involves staggered ball screens on the side, with the first screener, a shooter, flaring to the three-point line and KG, the second screener, rolling to the bucket).

This is a busy week for Boston, which is about to embark on one of those grueling four-games-in-five-nights stretches. We host Utah on Wednesday before playing Brooklyn on Thursday (that one's a national TV game), then play Toronto and at Detroit on the weekend. Those latter two opponents are currently a combined 1-14, but the Jazz and Nets are the team's toughest games since the opener against the Heat. These upcoming games should be a good bellwether for how the team is coming together.