The lessons learned today will be a little bit different. There won’t be many Xs and Os breakdowns, nor will they be heavily clip-heavy. I thought this would be a great place to share some thoughts that I have. As always, I’m interested in hearing everyone’s viewpoint in the comments section.
When playing the Orlando Magic, the Boston Celtics dropped their fourth straight game. But the problem isn’t the loss. Dropping games for the team is to be expected. What’s concerning is that Boston’s performance in this game was a regression as old habits reared their ugly heads.
The Miami Heat’s physical play style immediately comes to mind when considering how they routinely outscore the Celtics. They take Boston apart, get in their face, and make them look foolish. Orlando had the same plan in mind going into the Friday match.
“Did it take effort, toughness, or execution?” Joe Mazzulla inquired following the match. “I don’t want to comment on it because I don’t know which one it was, but it’s frustrating when you have empty possession after empty possession and they end up scoring on open threes and offensive rebounds.”
The Magic played with no fear. They fought through switches, got physical, and bullied the Celtics into a defeat. You can’t escape it; the Celtics shrunk as the game wore on. Orlando imposed their physicality onto Boston, and Mazzulla’s squad had little push-back.I get it. The Celtics roster has so much top-end talent allowing them to run a read-and-react offense is the best way to incorporate so many skillsets. When the team is in rhythm and playing at pace, running a free-flow system makes sense. Yet, when your opponent is shutting those principal-based actions down and is putting you into some difficult spots, there needs to be a blueprint to fall back on.
During Boston’s second game of the season against the New York Knicks, Mazzula demonstrated a well-stocked playbook that gave his team a consistent advantage. Why did the Celtics choose not to use those tactics when playing Orlando? Will we truly rely solely on exceptional isolation play throughout the season, much like we did with threes the previous time around?
