aron baynes

Ball Scrutiny: 3 Reasons Why Celtics Fall Against Knicks

Another downfall against the reigning team this season. Boston Celtics is slowly collapsing and is losing its grip at the top. It would be interesting at the same time helpful to know what are the possible reasons that triggered a strong team like Celtics to lose.

1. With a strong point guard lies an inefficient center

It is noticeable also to Warriors. Knowing that the Dubs have incredible point guards, they have a weak center which cannot contribute that much even in winning games of the team.
Now same with the Boston Celtics, they have Kyrie Irving which is undeniably a killer scoring machine popping out at any spot on the court. Aron Baynes, Celtics’ center could not contribute much particularly during the Knicks game scoring only 4 points after 22 minutes of play.
In fact he barely touched the ball with only 4 attempts in 22 minutes. All he does is run the floor back and forth.

2. Sufficient but Inefficient

Just like James Harden’s 51 point lost, Kyrie Irving’s 32 point loss against Knicks is a similar story. Kyrie shot 12-27 from the field, less than 50 percent and it is too risky. Why? The subsequent disaster is also near what Rockets have recently experienced.

3. Battle for the boards

The man who shot the most missed the most yet scored the most. Nevertheless, missed shots may cost the game if not rebounded. And that’s exactly what had happened. Knicks hurt Boston in rebounds 60 – 45.

Conclusion

Team’s with great guards must try to relay the offensive focus on the unnoticed big guys inside. It would perhaps bolster the offensive intensity of the team given that everyone regardless of position would have the chance to deliver. 

Ball Scrutiny: 3 Reasons Behind Celtics’ Collapse Against Jazz

Aron Baynes

As forecasted, the Celtics lost to another team coming from the bottom of the league. The Utah Jazz put Kyrie Irving’s 33 point performance to waste after defeating them 107 -95.


With Kyrie scoring humongously, what could’ve gone wrong for Boston to draw their 7th loss?



1. 59 – 42 Rebounds

A wide gap of 17 in terms of total rebounds significantly tells us a story of who controlled the game. As cliche as it may sound, he who controls the rebound controls the game. And so the Utah Jazz did.

2. Kyrie’s 33 points were sufficient but inefficient

Yes, Uncle Drew scored undeniably high for the Celtics. But looking closely, he shot 11-25 from the field, delivering less than half of his attempts and we know that the Celtics fail to capitalize on the rebounds as stated in reason number 1. This numerous misses became vital as they could not get second possessions in their misses. In fact, Celtics only got 2 offensive boards while Jazz snatched 9 from them.

3. Celtics fail to take advantage of Jazz having no true center

With Rudy Gorbert being injured very early on his left knee, he only managed to play a total of 2 minutes and yet Celtics could not dominate the shaded area particularly their center Aron Baynes, playing 16 minutes but only scoring 2 points given that he has the size advantage without a true center defender.
Maybe at some point, Kyrie is at fault. Those 16 minutes Baynes is on the floor, it was Kyrie who solely runs and finishes the offensive play.

Conclusion

It may not be stated that Celtics ‘fail’ to take advantage. They may have failed to see their advantage on the inside. Baynes only got 4 attempts and finished only one. Clearly, the offense didn’t focus on the opponents weak side. Celtics played the way they used to — focusing on Irving — instead of playing smarter — taking advantage of opponent’s weakness.

By the Numbers: Boston Extends Streak to 10, Beats Struggling Lakers

The Lakers falter after roaring back in the 3rd quarter

Kyrie Irving led the Celtics with another all-around performance.

The Boston Celtics got Kyrie Irving in a trade that had them send Isaiah Thomas plus some other players to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a deal that unquestionably shook the balance in the Eastern Conference- if we are to look at the current positions of both squads. Even before that, the Celtics already had Gordon Hayward on board after  Hayward decided to sign with Boston. So on paper, the Cs have two new players who can hopefully help them beat the Cavs come playoff time.
However, things didn’t start well for Boston as they lost to the Cavs to open the season in a game which saw them lose Gordon Hayward who twisted his foot, 6 minutes into the game. After that, the Celtics next lost to the Milwaukee Bucks. Since then, Kyrie Irving and company haven’t dropped a game coming into their game against their all-time rival, Los Angeles Lakers.
After watching the young Lakers trim down the lead to just 3 points late in the 3rd quarter,  the Celtics outscored Los Angeles, 20-15 in the final quarter en route to a 107-96 victory over the Lakers in a game which Boston didn’t have Al Horford due to injury and Jayson Tatum who was hurt during the game. Fortunately, the rest of the Celtics did more than enough to keep their winning streak going and below are the numbers that will explain how good were the Boston against the Lakers:

Terry Rozier and Aron Baynes: Because Kyrie Irving Cannot do it Alone

In a game where the Celtics were already without Hayward, Horford and now, Tatum, the Boston Celtics were clearly outmanned this time around against their archrivals. 
Don’t forget, folks, Kyrie Irving had a miserable shooting night, going 7 for 21 in the field while missing all 7 of his attempts from the three-point line. Fortunately, Aron Baynes scored 21 points in in just 23 minutes of play. Terry Rozier complimented Baynes and Marcus Morris’ (18 points) outputs with 14 points on his own while coming off the bench. With Hayward missing out the entire season, Kyrie Irving cannot do it all alone and save the Celtics every now and then. Fortunately, he didn’t have to do everything alone. He had help. Lots of it.

The Team that Makes more Shots, Wins

In a game where both teams were shooting under 50% (Lakers at 43% while Celtics at 38%), Boston won because they were able to make more shots than the Lakers, especially from the free throw line. In fact, it was the number of free throws which won the game for Boston as the Celtics made 24 of 31 31 charities which is a far cry to Los Angeles’ 17 of 23 performance from the line. 

Conclusion

If anything, the Celtics have already proven that yes, they can win even when Kyrie Irving was missing 14 shots. Their unimpressive victory against the struggling Lakers proved that yes, they are still a complete team even without Gordon Hayward. Imagine if Gordon Hayward was around. But then, the Celtics won’t be needing Hayward around for now, especially if they are winning without him.