Right idea, Wrong city. The Bulls traded Holiday to Memphis for flotsam. I like this move by the Bulls to send a strong message. Becoming a fan of what Boylen is doing there.
You think it will work in the current league? I don't have a strong opinion yet. It is true that teams have a ton of leverage over guys in their first 8 years in the league, so I can see it working better than people would think.
It's not just hot shooting either. The Spurs are beating up Toronto's offense and then getting out and running over and over. The Celtics' loss doesn't look quite so awful at the moment.
They clearly needed a culture change from early in the year so in this regard it is already working. Benching Jabari and his indifference to defense while trading Holiday, one of the practice boycott leaders following a 50+ point loss sends a strong message. They are 4-5 in their last 9 since Dunn has been back in the starting lineup including a win in San Antonio.
The forgotten man in this whole NBA drama is DeMar DeRozan who leads all scorers thus far with nine points. More impressively, he has eight boards and four assists and there is still plenty of time in the half. He may have a double-double by halftime. It bet its not a coincidence that he is playing well this evening.
DeRozan has been fabulous all year. I'm sure he still has his share of detractors around here though.
Oh and SoSH's favorite target from when the C's played the Spurs - Derrick White - also has nine points and three assists thus far. The guy didn't just get pulled off the street so he could dice up the C's defense. He has been getting a ton of run from Pop and playing really well (he has hit threes in six straight games).
I like DeRozan but his limitations are pretty well documented. Fortunately for him, he landed with an organization that excels at maximizing what players do well while minimizing their flaws.
He's right up there with James Harden in the top 5.
On the well liked list. Not top 5 player.
They also have lost three games in that stretch by 25, 25, and 28. That team blows and Boylen has a young team playing at a snail's pace when they should be doing the exact opposite .
Going by point per game, the Nuggets have the 3rd best defense in the NBA. Only the Pacers and Grizzlies are better. I know that doesn't mean much.
If we're going to freak out about bad Celtics games, we need to acknowledge the eggs other teams lay on occasion. Toronto has everyone except Lowry, and the Spurs have been spanking them in every quarter.
I agree with this and think the freaking out is ridiculous but Lowry is a pretty big deal.
Agreed - after tonight, the Celtics will have only 3 more losses than the Raptors. Considering all the doom and gloom (and calls to trade half the team) a little perspective is needed for the Celtics.
Every team lays eggs in the NBA. Losses are never encouraging but the Celtics only have like 4 or 5 double digit losses. That leads me to believe that there is considerable upside with this team. With that said, I don’t have any problem with people showing their frustration with the first half of the season. They’ve have looked pretty bad for a good chunk of it. But things could change quickly. I think most everyone expects them to have it figured out come April/May.
This is true; we just forget that most of the other good teams have also had similar amounts of bad-looking chunks (which is what net rating essentially measures).
Agreed but I think this is mostly just a function of super high expectations. Last year, the Pats had a similar issue. They had just won a SB and signed Gilmore in the offseason. Here comes more domination! And then they came out looking like ass on defense and people were confused, bummed, etc. But they stayed the course, improved, and came damn close to winning another title.
The Celtics were in Game 7 of the ECF without Kyrie/Hayward so it was logical for expectations to be sky high. Then we come out and things aren’t so peachy. But the season prognosis remains high due to the talent and pedigree.
I really enjoy watching the Rockets get run. I'm not even a Golden State fan, by any means, but I hope they win by 1,000 tonight. Poor James only got to the line 5 times in the first half. If he only gets there 10 times for the game, they're fucked. Of course, he had zero free throws against the C's at halftime, and finished with 17, so long way to go.
Harden just traveled so bad, and he got a phantom foul anyway, after the travel. I'm a couple minutes behind on DVR.
So its still early in their respective careers but remember when Cs fans were bummed that Golden State was able to nab Jordan Bell ahead of Semi Ojeleye. Neither guy is getting a ton of run and Bell is a decent defender in spots. But the delta between the two is not big at all, especially given Semi's ability to hit the three occasionally vs never for Bell.
That Harden, with a supporting cast of role players at best, has the Rockets within 6 going into the 4th is amazing. I say that as no big fan of the guy.
That supporting cast is 10/25 from 3 tonight. They are playing really well, especially on the offensive end.
On the flip side, Golden State really should have put them away, but like they do on occasion, they got sloppy and lost focus. 14 turnovers through 3 quarters against a team that isn't really stifling defensively is not very good. At times, it's been like watching the Celtics this year. You can see Durant getting frustrated, and Curry trying to take get his, instead of moving the ball around, etc.
Golden State has 16 fouls.
Houston has 15 fouls.
Both teams have taken 77 shots from the field.
Golden State has taken 29 3's.
Houston has taken 40 3's.
Golden State has 12 free throw attempts
Houston has 25 free throw attempts.
It's uncanny.
Houston has 15 fouls.
Both teams have taken 77 shots from the field.
Golden State has taken 29 3's.
Houston has taken 40 3's.
Golden State has 12 free throw attempts
Houston has 25 free throw attempts.
It's uncanny.
Capela at 26/19 right now. Golden State has had no answer for him. I suspect that will no longer be an issue if Boogie comes back healthy.
Harden has only 7 FTA though so what’s your point? That the entire Rockets team is being reffed differently?
Austin Rivers, for all his grittiness and hustle, makes some horrible basketball decisions by calling his own number at the worst time.
Harden actually only has 7 free throws today. I don't mind him as much when he plays like this. But I think Houston has been allowed to be far more aggressive defensively than Golden State has throughout the game.
The foul they just called on Klay on the body to Harden at the free throw line, that's the one Kyrie never gets when he goes to the hoop.
Harden draws full contract. Kyrie avoids it. Different styles of play.
Well, the other saving grace is that the guys they have playing ISOball are Durant, Curry and Thompson. It's not Smart, Jaylen and Tatum.
So when Kyrie bounces off a defender, he's avoiding it? If he avoids it, it wouldn't be a foul, and we wouldn't be having the conversation.