The Alternate Universe

Red Averages

owes you $50
SoSH Member
Apr 20, 2003
9,058
Use the next 36 hours to discuss the state of this franchise if The Assassin’s put back is 0.2 seconds slower.

- Up 10 with 4min to play.
- Butler getting 3 foul shots instead of 2 upon review
- Smart iso into a contested look

What happens with the players and coaching staff if anything?
 

Pxer

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 16, 2007
1,704
Maine
Run it back. Who would change anything based on a single 0.2 second difference? That would be irrational.
 

OurF'ingCity

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 22, 2016
8,469
New York City
If the front office is not totally incompetent, they shouldn’t be basing any significant decisions on a freak play with 0.2 seconds left.

If they think Joe was worthy of being fired before that play it’s not like now suddenly he should be retained. And vice versa, of course.
 

lexrageorge

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 31, 2007
18,100
Butler would have gotten 3 shots even without the Celtics challenge. Still, it would have made for a very frustrating offseason thread.
 

AB in DC

OG Football Writing
SoSH Member
Jul 10, 2002
13,633
Springfield, VA
Now imagine if the refs had put 2.9 on the clock instead of 3.0. I think we'd still be sitting here debating if White's shot was good.
 

slamminsammya

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 31, 2006
9,193
San Francisco
Use the next 36 hours to discuss the state of this franchise if The Assassin’s put back is 0.2 seconds slower.

- Up 10 with 4min to play.
- Butler getting 3 foul shots instead of 2 upon review
- Smart iso into a contested look

What happens with the players and coaching staff if anything?
Just be happy.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

Found no thrill on Blueberry Hill
SoSH Member
Sep 9, 2008
42,297
AZ
Use the next 36 hours to discuss the state of this franchise if The Assassin’s put back is 0.2 seconds slower.

- Up 10 with 4min to play.
- Butler getting 3 foul shots instead of 2 upon review
- Smart iso into a contested look

What happens with the players and coaching staff if anything?
I would hope that nothing changes. The team that got out scored by 9 in the last few minutes was the same team that had built up a 10 point lead before that. Ten point leads are good because you can get outscored by 9 the rest of the way and still win.
 

bosockboy

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
19,863
St. Louis, MO
Use the next 36 hours to discuss the state of this franchise if The Assassin’s put back is 0.2 seconds slower.

- Up 10 with 4min to play.
- Butler getting 3 foul shots instead of 2 upon review
- Smart iso into a contested look

What happens with the players and coaching staff if anything?
Same as last year Game 7. Blew a 13 point late lead and Jimmy missed.
 

lars10

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 31, 2007
11,619
Use the next 36 hours to discuss the state of this franchise if The Assassin’s put back is 0.2 seconds slower.

- Up 10 with 4min to play.
- Butler getting 3 foul shots instead of 2 upon review
- Smart iso into a contested look

What happens with the players and coaching staff if anything?
Why talk about it for fifteen minutes let alone the next 36 hours? Who cares? They won?

In an alternate universe the Heat lose the play in game and this play never happens.
 

lovegtm

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 30, 2013
12,001
Not much would change. Joe showed good improvement, but shooting and officiating variance would mean they left it too late by being down 3-0 before finding themselves defensively.

They'd figure out JB's future, and then run it back next year with a full coaching staff and the lessons they've learned from playing Heat-style D in smaller lineups.
 

Pablo's TB Lover

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 10, 2017
5,963
First it's inevitable, now there's an alternate universe. Are the Cs just going to not show for game 7? 'Well the media and fans all have us eliminated, so...'
 

Bunt4aTriple

Member (member)
Silver Supporter
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
4,348
North Yarmouth, ME
What kind of fresh he'll is this if-my-aunt-had-balls-she'd-be-my-uncle? The greatest moments in sports history are all near misses, that's what makes them great.

Unless this is an attempt to expand the reverse jinx of the off-season thread?
 
Last edited:

Mystic Merlin

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 21, 2007
46,775
Hartford, CT
What kind of fresh he'll is this if-aunt-had-balls-she'd-be-my-uncle is this? The greatest moments in sports history are all near misses, that's what makes them great.

Unless this is an attempt to expand the reverse jinx of the off-season thread?
Was just coming to post something like this.

When do we do the 2004 ALCS?
 

tbrown_01923

Member
SoSH Member
Sep 29, 2006
780
j.butler was getting the three free throws either way. The biggest question was the fade and their inability to score consistently against the zone. That has been an issue (anecdotally) for a few years. It's tough to pin that on coach Joe, who I thought was fine otherwise.

The question still remains (in the inevitable planning for next season thread) is this team better offloading some combination of the guard/forward rotation to better compliment Tatum. A budget constrained roster construction is a worthy topic, but not sure that game changed anything. We already know smart is streaky, white does a bit of everything (and is nails), the team gets tight up a handful of points, and that brogdon is a luxury.

Tatum's numbers are great this postseason (a 50 spot will move averages) - and he isn't playing to his standard. Still learning how to handle doubles, and attack stacked defenses...
 

Eddie Jurak

canderson-lite
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 12, 2002
44,478
Melrose, MA
In the real universe - one game 7 win away from a return trip to the finals - I think Mazzulla has done well enough to merit a return, none of the key players have played their way off the team, etc.

I'm not sure that White not being there at the end or missing the layup or not having time changes much. Still basically the same situation. Maybe it changes the evaluation of White's role going forward. (As in, what he did do last night should elevate him in the eyes of the organization).

Mazzulla has upped his coaching game during this series, after the team fell behind 3-0.

At the same time, the team's halfcourt offense is stupid, and stagnant, and overly reliant on individual physical dominance by their star players, and Miami's less talented but more disciplined defense shows the flaws of that approach. (By contrast, the Celtics transition offense is smart, fluid, and creative - of course it also relies on the individual physical dominance of the players, but it also has good decision-making). And the Celtics halfcourt offense never looks worse than when they are deliberately trying to play slowly and run time off the clock to protect a lead - that style even seems to detract from the defensive focus.

Clearly some of the lessons of last year were not learned, and some type of changes need to be made to address that. But I think they have hit a point, even if they had lost last night, where more minor changes were in order rather than major ones.
 

lovegtm

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 30, 2013
12,001
In the real universe - one game 7 win away from a return trip to the finals - I think Mazzulla has done well enough to merit a return, none of the key players have played their way off the team, etc.

I'm not sure that White not being there at the end or missing the layup or not having time changes much. Still basically the same situation. Maybe it changes the evaluation of White's role going forward. (As in, what he did do last night should elevate him in the eyes of the organization).

Mazzulla has upped his coaching game during this series, after the team fell behind 3-0.

At the same time, the team's halfcourt offense is stupid, and stagnant, and overly reliant on individual physical dominance by their star players, and Miami's less talented but more disciplined defense shows the flaws of that approach. (By contrast, the Celtics transition offense is smart, fluid, and creative - of course it also relies on the individual physical dominance of the players, but it also has good decision-making). And the Celtics halfcourt offense never looks worse than when they are deliberately trying to play slowly and run time off the clock to protect a lead - that style even seems to detract from the defensive focus.

Clearly some of the lessons of last year were not learned, and some type of changes need to be made to address that. But I think they have hit a point, even if they had lost last night, where more minor changes were in order rather than major ones.
Yes, I am starting to think that the halfcourt offense is going to require somewhat drastic personnel and schematic changes to be reliable. They've resisted making Tatum the PG his whole career, but I think that's where this is heading eventually.

That, or a trade that turns Brown into an elite primary initiator.
 

Lose Remerswaal

Experiencing Furry Panic
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
At the same time, the team's halfcourt offense is stupid, and stagnant, and overly reliant on individual physical dominance by their star players, and Miami's less talented but more disciplined defense shows the flaws of that approach. (By contrast, the Celtics transition offense is smart, fluid, and creative - of course it also relies on the individual physical dominance of the players, but it also has good decision-making). And the Celtics halfcourt offense never looks worse than when they are deliberately trying to play slowly and run time off the clock to protect a lead - that style even seems to detract from the defensive focus.
it is the NBA version of the Prevent Defense.
 

JakeRae

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 21, 2005
8,125
New York, NY
Now imagine if the refs had put 2.9 on the clock instead of 3.0. I think we'd still be sitting here debating if White's shot was good.
I think it would’ve been, but it’s really hard to be certain. It would’ve come down to millimeters/milleseconds.
 

Archer1979

shazowies
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2005
7,872
Right Here
Yeah. And 200 years from now, Spock gets a beard and Sulu tries to bang Uhura. This is not a good alternate universe.

Every season, all but two teams make it to the Finals. The only legitimate reason to fire Mazulla stems from the allegations that the team quit on him after Game Three. I think, win or lose, that the Celts took this to the final second of Game Six is a good counter to that idea. This wasn't a Grady Little moment. Missing that bucket would have been a basketball moment.
 
Last edited:

brendan f

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 13, 2019
267
The only legitimate reason to fire Mazulla stems from the allegations that the team quit on him after Game Three.
I don't think it's fair to even call these accusations. They were suppositions put forth by members of the sports media looking for a narrative to help explain how and why the Celtics lost by so much to a seemingly inferior team.
 

bakahump

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Jan 8, 2001
7,522
Maine
.....and yet in another time stream....
JT does not twist his ankle in the first minute.