Celtics' loss to Warriors exposed three trouble spots that need fixing
Celtics' loss to Warriors exposed three trouble spots that need fixing originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Here's the proof we have that this year's Celtics are "different" -- they blew out the Bulls to momentarily avoid In-Season Tournament elimination, and they put the upstart Magic in their place during a recent back-to-back.
That's kinda it. Otherwise? The song remains the same.
If we needed any more proof that the C's aren't there yet, it came on Tuesday night at Golden State, where their tormentors once again demonstrated the difference between frontrunning and closing.
The Celtics can blow open a lead like anyone. Seeing it through to the finish requires a killer instinct, though, and during a 132-126 overtime loss, the Celtics exhibited the same frustrating habits that have plagued them for years.
Their offense stagnated as they played not to lose, in the words of our Eddie House. They missed a hailstorm of 3-pointers. They bricked layups. They suffered defensive breakdowns on a couple of the greatest shooters of all time. Their potential game-winning possessions were completely unimaginative and low percentage. They failed to respond to Golden State's intensity.
The result was a loss nowhere near as gutting as last year's blowout by the Bay, but one that nonetheless calls into question how well they'll respond to playoff pressure come spring, which is all we really care about around here.
At 20-6, they're still a great team, but will they be equipped to take down the Bucks in the East or the defending champion Nuggets in the West? Those are the questions we still can't answer.
In the meantime, here are the three biggest trouble spots from Tuesday's loss.
1. Crunch time offense
The faces may change, but the approach remains the same. Given a double-digit lead against a legitimate opponent, the Celtics have an infuriating habit of flipping from cheetahs to turtles, and they did it again on Tuesday night.
Their offense is at its worst when they walk the ball up the floor (or even worse, roll it), which is neither a revelatory observation nor a recent development, and yet it keeps happening. The possessions invariably look the same: walk it up, perform dribble handoffs 30 feet from the basket while the defense aggressively extends, and force up something contested late in the shot clock without ever touching the paint.
It was hard to miss the juxtaposition of the Celtics dithering near the logo on one end, while Mr. Perpetual Motion, Steph Curry, torched them at the other. Playing not to lose inevitably produces that exact outcome.
2. Bombs away . . . and away, and away
The 3-pointer isn't going anywhere and there's no sense in bemoaning its outsized significance in the team's offense. That's life in today's NBA. But did they really need to miss 41 of them on a night when they were getting pretty much whatever they wanted at the rim and on the attack?
There's a stubborn belief that every wide-open 3-pointer is a good shot, no matter who takes it or when, but is that really true? The Celtics built their 17-point lead in the third quarter with seven layups and one 3-pointer. They blew it in the fourth quarter after Sam Hauser missed four straight threes as part of a miserable shooting night, and Payton Pritchard stepped out of bounds on the one that went in.
Between Derrick White's game-tying 3-pointer in the final two minutes of regulation and Al Horford's desperation shot that cut the lead to one in the waning seconds of overtime, the Celtics missed six straight from deep. When a low-percentage shot comprises a high percentage of your offense, a couple of colds nights can send you home for the summer.
It would be one thing if they played that way because they had no alternative. But Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are two of the best rim finishers and transition scorers in the NBA, and especially when Kristaps Porzingis is healthy, the Celtics have other options to prioritize over simply launching every open three.
3. Matching intensity with intensity
The Warriors may be aging, below .500, and in Draymond-fueled disarray, but when they absolutely needed to find another gear down the stretch, it was there. The Celtics, meanwhile, struggled to respond.
It's why they lost in overtime in Minnesota and Charlotte, and it's certainly why they withered in Indiana while being bounced from the In-Season Tournament, the one other game until Tuesday night's with playoff intensity.
The Warriors stars stepped up. Chris Paul looked decrepit until it mattered, with all nine of his points coming over the final 20 minutes. Klay Thompson continually relocated for 3-pointers and finished with 24 points.
And don't even get us started on Curry, who not only scored 33, and not only sank the dagger three because of course he did, but dominated the game despite picking up his fifth foul early in the third quarter.
The Celtics played tight by contrast down the stretch, with Brown and Tatum each missing layups, and Tatum looking particularly limited by the left ankle sprain he played through for most of the game.
Whether it was the Heat in the Bubble or the Warriors in the Finals or the Warriors last year or last night, the Celtics continually look discombobulated against championship-caliber competition when the pressure ratchets up, and that needs to change lest the pursuit of Banner 18 become perpetual.
