Tag: Boston Celtics

Larry Bird talks the state of today’s NBA, player movement and more on local radio

Former Boston Celtics forward Larry Bird isn’t a fan of how free agency has changed.

Larry Bird may no longer be a regular fixture in the Boston sports world but he’s also never far away.

Recently, the former Boston Celtics forward — A Hall of Fame inductee in 1998 — made an appearance on the local sports radio show Ordway, Merloni & Fauria to talk all things Celtics and the broader state of the league.

As to the latter, Larry Legend had some thoughts on the evolution of the sport to rely so heavily on 3-pointers, which were introduced to the NBA just as he himself was coming into the league in 1979.

“Obviously, we’d be taking more 3-pointers because that’s where the game’s evolving,”, said Bird (via WEEI’s Nick Friar) of how he and players of his ilk would be approaching the modern NBA.

“You know back in the day, we wouldn’t even guard guys out beyond the 3-point line. And very few guys looked at the basket from 23 to 25 feet. But the game has changed and the game goes through periods where it changes and you just have to adapt to the changes.

And that’s what we would’ve done, we would adapt. I can remember back in the day Danny Ainge said we should shoot all 3-pointers every game.”

Looking forward to the present-day Celtics, headed by Ainge as president of basketball operations, the Indianian’s words ring true. This current iteration of Bird’s sole NBA team is well known for their propensity for the 3-ball — some nights last season, to a fault.

And speaking of Bird’s only team, the “Hick from French Lick”, as Bird is sometimes called, shared his feelings on the current trend of player movement around the league.

Despite his continued role as a front office consultant for the Indiana Pacers, the 12-time All-Star was surprisingly supportive of player movement — within a certain context.

“My problem with it, if you’re a free agent, you can go anywhere you want and join any team you want, but when you start forcing your way out of teams — it’s usually the small markets, too, that draft a guy, put all our time into developing him, and then when he gets good he wants to go somewhere else,” Bird said (via Friar).”

Whether this is a veiled reference to former Indiana star Paul George forcing his way out of that organization under Bird’s tenure as a franchise advisor, or perhaps the tedious saga that unfolded during Boston’s pursuit of Anthony Davis last season or simply a general dislike of the driving force behind both is unclear, unlike Bird’s preferred manner of player movement.

“[I]f you just wait until you’re a free agent and go somewhere, I have no problem with it. But it sort of bothers me when guys want to leave a team that they’re on (and) they still have a few years left and force their way out because it puts a lot of pressure on management and the franchise.”

And while on the topic of movement, why did Larry Legend depart from the region in which his career became gold, Bird is quite vocal about how much he still loves the city, emphatically stating that Boston is “the greatest place in the world to play any sport … You’ve got the best fans in the world in every sport” (via team reporter Taylor Snow).

The answer might surprise you. Unless, of course, you lived through the disaster Bird cites as a reason for escaping the area.

“I’ll tell you why I left: because the Big Dig was coming in when I was leaving,” says Bird. I knew that was going to be 20-something years.”

To those of us who have dealt with the headaches it caused, well — we forgive you, Larry; you weren’t wrong.

Kemba Walker’s intriguing analogy for his fourth-quarter mindset

Boston Celtics point guard Kemba Walker is one of the league’s best scorers, especially in the fourth quarter.

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Boston Celtics point guard Kemba Walker is averaging 8.1 points per game in the fourth quarter, ranked sixth in the league in a tie with Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving but doing it on 46.8% shooting from the field in the fourth compared to Irving’s 42.0% in the final frames. Walker is averaging four points per game in clutch situations, which is tied with former MVP James Harden for 12th in the NBA.

This is far from unfamiliar territory for Walker, whose nickname, “Cardiac Kemba,” is a thinly-veiled allusion to his ability to pour in points when his team needs it most.

A time when most players hearts may be racing and their palms may be sweating.

Last season, Walker averaged eight points per game in the fourth quarter (ranked fourth in the league) while shooting 46.8% from the field. In 2017-18, Walker rounded out the top 15 with 6.2 points per game, though on just 41.3% shooting. Back in 2016-17,  in Walker’s inaugural All-Star season, he once again averaged 6.2 points per game to round out the top 15 but this time on 46.5% shooting.

Speaking to reporters after Wednesday’s win over the Washington Wizards — Boston’s ninth consecutive victory — Walker provided an intriguing analogy for his mindset in the fourth quarter, citing a common scenario that quite a few people have been in: having to wash dishes before your mom comes home, telling NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg:

It’s kinda like when you know you’ve got to do something. Your mom’s coming home and you ain’t done the dishes so you had to run. That’s how it is in the fourth quarter. Something just clicks like, ‘Oh, we gotta go, it’s time to turn it on.’

On the season, Walker is averaging 25 points per game, meaning that nearly a third of his points have come in the fourth quarter. As Walker has gotten off to quite a few slow starts from the field, averaging just 8.6 points per game in the first half (ranked 57th in the league) on 32.1% shooting, his ability to turn it on and score efficiently in the most crucial possessions of a game is even more impressive.

He knows he needs to get off to better starts. As a team, the Celtics are averaging only 54.2 points in the first half (tied with the Los Angeles Lakers for 18th) and on 42.2% shooting (28th in the NBA). Their first-half offensive rating of 104.6 (18th in the league) does a disservice to their first-half defensive rating of 101.2 (tied for seventh in the league).

Nonetheless, if there’s one common quality that’s been consistently seen from the Celtics’ last three point guards — Kemba, Kyrie and Wizards guard Isaiah Thomas — it’s their performances at the end of games, which leave fans in awe and the opposition frustrated.

Like the greats, pressure elevates their performance.

*All stats gathered from NBA Advanced Stats

Isaiah Thomas: Celtics ‘playing the best basketball of any team’

Washington Wizards point guard Isaiah Thomas has high praise for the Boston Celtics, whom he led for nearly three seasons.

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Isaiah Thomas might be a bit biased when it comes to the Boston Celtics.

Still, he’s one of the most candid players in the league. So when he says that the Celtics — the team he led for three seasons before being spirited away by Boston during one of the toughest stretches of his life — are “playing the best basketball of any team in the NBA,” it’s worth paying attention to.

On a night that saw him score 18 points and dish out a team-high seven assists against his former team, Thomas just witnessed the play of this season’s Celtics first-hand. He saw Boston’s bevy of offensive options, the growth of their young wings, their active (if undersized) defense and their ball-movement, which led to seven Celtics delivering three to five assists.

Though Boston’s defense wasn’t sharp enough to stop All-Star Bradley Beal from shining, as he scored 44 points, they were dominant enough offensively to score 140 points without Gordon Hayward and savvy enough to pull out a win down the stretch.

After Wednesday’s win took the Celtics to 9-1, Boston continues to hold the league’s best record. The best part for the Celtics may be that the numbers back up how well they’re clicking on both ends.

They rank sixth in points per game (116.1); eighth in three-pointers made per game (13.0) and three-point percentage (37.0); 10th in assists per game (24.7); third in blocks per game (6.5); and first in plus-minus (9.2).

Even the advanced stats look good — if not better — with the Celtics ranked first in offensive rating (113.8), net rating (9.1), turnover percentage (11.3), assist-to-turnover ratio (2.15) and Player Impact Estimate (55.6). Their defensive rating of 104.7 ranks just outside the top-10 (12th), whole they rank in the top-10 in categories like opponents points in the paint (44.2) and fastbreak points (11.7).

Thomas, whether presenting a biased opinion or not, was right. However, the Celtics will have to play a few more games before everyone is a believer in their ability to be the best team in the league.

*All stats gathered from NBA Advanced Stats 

 

Balanced attack vs. Wizards leads to Celtics’ ninth straight win

The Boston Celtics are now 9-1 after defeating the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.

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The Boston Celtics shared the ball, took advantage of turnovers, were efficient and looked like the team to beat in the East on their way to their 10th consecutive victory, defeating the Washington Wizards 140-133 and overcoming a 44-point effort from star guard Bradley Beal.

Jayson Tatum took over in the first quarter, Carsen Edwards played well in the second quarter, Jaylen Brown dominated in the second half and Kemba Walker made his impact felt offensively throughout the game as the quarter combined to score 88 points, with each of Tatum, Brown and Walker breaking the 20-point  mark.

Staying true to the players they’ve been this season, Tatum focused on scoring outside the lane while Brown attacked the rim and Walker let loose from outside. In fact, Walker knocked down 6-12 threes on Wednesday after entering the game shooting a career-high 43.7% from three, his efficiency from outside only matched by Edwards (4-5 from three) and Marcus Smart (4-8 from three) on the Celtics’ side.

Edwards’ career-high 18 points was nice to see, as he went scoreless last game and entered the contest averaging just 4.0 points per game. For a player who torched opponents to the tune of 24.3 points per game at Purdue in his third and final season before averaging 15.3 points per game in the preseason, his performance through the season has been underwhelming.

However, Edwards played light a bolt of lightning against Washington, racing down the court and making play after play.

The Celtics were unable to bottle up Beal, rookie forward Rui Hachimura (21 points on 9-12 shooting) or even Isaiah Thomas (18 points on 7-14), the latter of which who hit a three before the half to cut Boston’s lead down to two.

A game that plenty of runs, the game wasn’t out of reach for the Wizards until the final seconds, with Walker hitting a clutch three to put the Celtics up 140-133.

Injury Report: Robert Williams III, Daniel Theis downgraded to out vs. Wizards

With Boston Celtics centers Robert Williams III and Daniel Theis out, Celtics head coach Brad Stevens will have to rely on a pair of rookies to help protect the rim in their absence.

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Per an announcement from the Boston Celtics, centers Robert Williams III (right ankle sprain) and Daniel Theis (little finger sprain) won’t be suiting up against the Washington Wizards.

Theis was listed as questionable as recently as Tuesday and Celtics head coach Brad Stevens appeared hopeful that Theis could play after shootaround, per Boston.com. Though team doctors have held him out against Washington, Boston will face off against the hobbled Golden State Warriors on Nov. 15, a game in which he may return.

Williams wasn’t listed on yesterday’s injury report and Stevens said nothing after shootaround to indicate that he wouldn’t be playing. So, the injury seems to have occurred shortly before the team’s scheduled  7:30 p.m. ET tipoff.

Though Theis and Williams bring similar elements to the game in terms of their rim-protection and rim-running ability, they’re largely different players with Williams playing the part of an extraordinary athlete and elite shot-blocker (as well as finisher) and Theis being a heady pivot who can stretch the floor.

Without either center available, Celtics center Enes Kanter — who started in the season opener — may open the game in the starting unit with either Vincent Poirier or Grant Williams (or both) playing the five when he’s off the floor.

Former Celtics forward Walter McCarty coaches Evansville to upset over top-ranked Kentucky

Former Boston Celtics forward and assistant coach Walter McCarty has early success with Evansville, defeating national powerhouse Kentucky.

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The success being enjoyed by the current iteration of the Boston Celtics must be contagious.

Former Celtics forward and assistant coach Walter McCarty and the Evansville collegiate squad he left Boston to coach had their own Kevin Garnett-like moment last night as they took down the top-ranked University of Kentucky men’s basketball team 67-64.

For McCarty, it was doubly significant, as he happens to be an alumnus of the school his unranked Purple Aces defeated. Even more impressive, it happened on Kentucky’s home court at Rupp Arena.

25-point underdogs or no, McCarty motivated his hometown team, which he took the reins of after leaving the Celtic in 2018, to dig in and pull off the upset win.

You can listen to the local radio play-by-play announcers narrate Kentucky’s failed attempt to tie the game up in its final seconds below:

Opposing coach John Calipari reportedly admitted after the game he was out-coached by the former Celtics staffer, according ESPN’s Myron Medcalf. “Give credit to Walter. He had his team better prepared than I had my team. They deserved to win”, noted the Hall of Fame coach.

6-foot-6 Evansville guard Sam Cunliffe gushed over the win, saying (per the Evansville Courier-Press’ Chad Lindskog), “It’s amazing … Coming to a school like this, you talk about making history like this. You know, making history and playing in front of these bright lights.”

“We prepared the right way and had our minds in the right spots, so to actually do it is surreal,” he added. “I couldn’t have imagined this ever in my life.”

Cunliffe, a four-star recruit McCarty was instrumental in landing, joined guard K.J. Riley in leading the team with 17 and 18 points, respectively, with Cunliffe adding a half-dozen boards for good measure.

“They are a great team, the toughest team to play us,” McCarty offered after the win. “But I believe in my guys. I told them, ‘We’re gonna go in there and get them. We’re gonna surprise some people today.’ I told them, ‘This is a great day to be a Purple Ace. Let’s go do it.”

Somehow, despite the odds and hostile environment, they did.

It’s refreshing to see so many current and former Celtics finding success again after such a rough season for Boston’s fans.

A composite overview of the Celtics’ 2020 NBA Draft projections

The Boston Celtics could have three first-round picks in the 2020 NBA Draft.

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While it’s never too early to think about the future, it might be a little bit early to start projecting the 2020 NBA Draft.

That hasn’t stopped at least ten intrepid attempts to divine just what NCAA and international prospects will end up come summer, even considering the fact many have hardly played more than a handful of games at their current level and a few none at all.

With as many as three possible first-round selections at their disposal in a deep if not especially eye-popping draft class, where are these analysts projecting the Boston Celtics to have interest?

CelticsWire assembled ten different early projections of the coming NBA Draft to try and answer that question despite the many months between this moment and the actual night of the event.

Drawing on the mock drafts of The Athletic, Bleacher Report, ESPN, Forbes, NBA Draft.net, Rookie Wire, Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News, Stadium and Tankathon, we’ve assembled a composite overview to help you get an idea of some of the prospects to keep an eye on as their respective seasons unfold.

Controlling the Memphis Grizzlies’ first-round selection should it fall outside of the top-six protection it has this season (it will become entirely unprotected next season should it not convey this year), the Milwaukee Bucks’ unprotected first-rounder, as well as their own selection, Boston could add even more young talent to help fill out an increasingly expensive roster.

The Celtics could also package the picks to move into the low lottery to snatch up a high-value player.

It’s important to note that each of these individual projections were recently produced at different times with different methodologies, so their interpretations should be taken with a grain of salt given just how much things can change between now and when players actually hear their names called.

The bad news for fans of Boston is nearly all analysts noted in this article assume the Memphis pick will not convey, meaning moving up for a low lottery pick is likely off the table for the Celtics.

The good news is that the combination of recently-flattened NBA Draft Lottery odds, and lack of actual performance to base both draft prospects and team order on means the range of possible outcomes is still about as wide as things like draft protection and realistic outcomes can allow.

That being said, the range of players projected to be taken with picks under Boston’s control varies considerably as one might expect this early in the basketball year, but there are a few interesting overlaps worth a closer look.

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Isaiah Thomas comes full circle, returning to play Boston as a Wizards starter

Boston, the Boston Celtics and Isaiah Thomas have a bond that will never be broken.

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“The reaction’s going to be love. It’ll always be love.”

So said ex-Celtics point guard Isaiah Thomas (via The Athletic’s Fred Katz), beloved by fans only now emerging from the shadow of his successor, Kyrie Irving, who the diminutive guard was traded for after re-injuring his hip in the 2018 NBA Playoffs.

The dynamic guard made a name for himself in Boston, accelerating a post-Big Three rebuild as much with his infectious smile as his prodigious scoring on an underdog roster that bears an uncanny resemblance to this season’s.

The trade, which cast team president Danny Ainge in a cold light, was begrudgingly accepted by Thomas’ beloved fanbase with the knowledge that it could be years before the Washington native returned to even a shadow of his former self.

The aptly-called King in the Fourth has had a journey back to redemption worthy of his Game of Thrones nickname. Much like Jon Snow, IT resurrected himself after a long and often frustrating period of healing and comparative obscurity.

Failing to return to form first with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers, and finally Denver Nuggets, it looked like a man poised to ink a deal so big it’d need a Brinks Truck to transport might be on his career’s last legs.

Then, after his first full summer to rest and rehabilitate his body without incident or setback, Thomas landed a spot on the Washington Wizards roster with only veteran point guard Ish Smith to split significant minutes with, while star point guard John Wall is on the mend for much if not all of this season.

He quickly parlayed that opportunity into a starting role, wresting the job away from Smith just in time to face his former team in tonight’s home game against the Wizards.

To date, he’s scoring 13.2 points per game on 42.9% shooting from the field and 36.4% shooting from deep while dishing out 6.2 assists per game (the best he’s logged since being at the height of his powers with the team he’ll face this evening).

But the “Mighty I.T.”, conscious of the high regard he is still held by former teammates and fans alike, made a point of getting to the city early to support now-opponent Marcus Smart’s Young Game Changer Foundation bowling benefit.

“I had to show my support,” said the former Husky (via MassLive’s John Karalis) of his longtime friend and former teammate’s charity effort. “It is a brotherhood … You’ve built that bond with them, so like with the coaching staff and the team that I had for the three years I was here, we’ll be friends forever.”

And it’s not just the bond Thomas built with former teammates; he recognizes the intense connection fans still have with him.

“This city has meant that much to me though too,” Thomas explained. “It’s genuine. The love is genuine, and I can’t thank the city enough. I went through a real life situation in this city and they rolled with it with me.”

Thomas, a man with a heart nearly as big as him, was alluding to the loss of his younger sister Chyna, who lost her life in a car accident just hours before Thomas was to play in the postseason that he aggravated a hip injury sustained earlier in the regular season in, a pivotal moment for the fiery floor general on multiple fronts.

With the past firmly behind him, Boston and Thomas can have some much-needed closure with the latter finally looking to be back on track to being a valuable — and more importantly, valued — NBA player again.

“I’m going to be an All-Star again, for sure,” Thomas said (via the Washington Post’s Candace Buckner). “I know that for a fact.”

“Everybody else talks about Boston, I don’t. That’s in the past. I’m in the present right now, looking forward to the future,” Thomas explained, contextualizing this new chapter of his life.

“I think at the time I was upset because it came out of nowhere. I got hurt playing for them, so that was tough and then for them to do that. I understand it’s a business but I don’t feel like you’re supposed to go about it that way …

Obviously, I want to kill them. I want to score 50. I want to beat them. I want to do all that … I feel like they made a mistake but I’ve been moved on.”

Here’s to scoring 50, and to moving on.

Getting beat by IT and the Wiz, though? It’d be nice to skip that part.

Wizards-Celtics odds: Boston a large home favorite

Previewing Wednesday’s Washington Wizards at Boston Celtics sports betting odds and lines, with NBA matchup analysis, picks and tips.

The Washington Wizards (2-6) visit the Boston Celtics (8-1) Wednesday at TD Garden for a 7:30 p.m. ET start. We analyze the Wizards-Celtics odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.

Wizards at Celtics: Key injuries

Celtics

  • SF Gordon Hayward (hand) out
  • C Enes Kanter (knee) questionable
  • PF Daniel Theis (finger) doubtful

Wizards at Celtics: Odds, lines, picks, and betting tips

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 9:00 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Celtics 119, Wizards 103

Moneyline (ML)

The -400 line for the home CELTICS seems of little concern as Boston has won eight straight games. That includes a 4-0 mark in Boston with several convincing wins.

It is unlikely the Wizards can win with a +310 line and 1-3 road record. Washington has an average scoring margin of minus-4.1 points per game.

New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the CELTICS to win outright returns a profit of $2.50. It’s very chalky, but it’s better than trying to win with Washington.

Line/Against the Spread (ATS)

The CELTICS -9.5 (+100) is the play here. A Boston cover (win by 10 or more points) returns a profit of $10.

Washington is 3-1 against the spread on the road and covers the spread by 4.8 points per game while Boston is 3-1 ATS at home and covers by 4.5 points per game. Washington has the ability to stay close but Boston has the shooting to put this game away.

Over/Under (O/U)

The Over/Under is set at 224.5 (O: -106, U: -115). With Washington allowing nearly 118 points per game, the lean is to side on the Under as the Wizards likely struggle to get to 105. AVOID.

Want some action in this one? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Chris’ NBA betting record: 30-18

Follow @ChrisWasselDFS and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

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Celtics assign rookies to Red Claws for practice

The Boston Celtics assigned the majority of their rookies to the Maine Red Claws on practice on Tuesday.

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Per the Boston Celtics, the team assigned rookies Grant Williams, Vincent Poirier, Carsen Edwards and Romeo Langford “for various portions of the [Maine] Red Claws practice” on Tuesday at the Auerbach Center, where the Celtics normally hold their team practice.

Though the Red Claws are based in Portland, ME., their next game isn’t until Nov. 16 against the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in Indiana, which could provide the reason that Boston’s G League affiliate was able to travel to the Celtics’ practice facility on Tuesday.

However, that Boston felt the need to have their rookies — sans guard Javonte Green — practice on a day that practice wasn’t held for the Celtics shows that Boston believes their neophytes need work.

While Langford has yet to play significant minutes in any game, the teaching is experience for he and Edwards in particular is necessary, as Langford is not only the youngest and most inexperienced player on the team but has been unable to fully perform physically for large portions of the team’s offseason, preseason and now regular season.

Despite delivering a scintillating debut with the Red Claws at the same time that veteran forward Gordon Hayward went out with a fractured hand, Boston opted to play Green in the rotation over a player that was the 14th overall pick in the most recent draft.

That’s likely because Green has not only produced well in the minutes he’s played but because he’s more experienced after having spent four seasons at the college level and four seasons playing internationally.

Edwards is a shoot-first player and Celtics head coach Brad Stevens seems to see the Purdue product as more of an off-ball player because of it, playing Edwards with point guard Brad Wanamaker for 40 minutes — the third-most of any two-man lineup he’s been in, per Basketball Reference — this season. Whether it’s to make Edwards less reliant on playing with another lead guard or to make him more comfortable playing off-ball, additional practice would be beneficial.

Especially as he’s only averaging 4.0 points per game on 31.3% shooting from the field and 25.0% shooting from three after averaging 15.3 points per game on 51.2% percent shooting from the field and 45.2% from three.

Williams, though a high IQ player has also struggled from the field, averaging just 2.8 points per game on 26.7% shooting from the field and going 0-13 from behind the arc to start the season.

Averaging a combined 26.6 minutes per game, their offensive woes are a primary reason the Celtics remain 30th in the league in bench scoring, per NBA Advanced Stats.

Boston recalled each of those players after practice but Langford may be headed back to Maine at the end of the week, when the Red Claws face the Mad Ants and the Raptors 905 in back-to-back days.