He's out and about at a public forum. If it was anything serious i doubt he would be on stage.
I'm not a doctor but I'll play one here. infection. antibiotics. 10-14 days
Charlotte would be 12 days between games
2019-2020 Celtics Regular Season Thread
- Thread starter Devizier
- Start date
I'm not a doctor but I'll play one here. infection. antibiotics. 10-14 days
Charlotte would be 12 days between games
It was helpful.
It permitted Brad to play his core extended minutes against the Knicks and Bucks with Brown, TL and Kanter out
I feel 4 days off this time of the year is detrimental. You want to be playing and getting into a ryhthm. These guys bodies are trained to play every day or every other day especially in November.
And presumably they pay for it with less time off later in the season when everyone is more wore down than they are now.
Over the course of the season, the long schedule and tons of travel limit practice time. I've always been curious about the NBA (and the NHL as well) - what is a full practice session worth? If you have a bunch of younger guys, I'd think it was worth gold. If you run a complex offense or defense, I'd think a lot (in hockey special teams installations as well). Early in the season, maybe not as much - unless it is an immediate opportunity to accelerate what the young guys are absorbing.
Any thoughts? Like if Danny could wave a wand every week or so and offer Brad a 3 hour practice where one didn't exist, would he jump all over it, or decline?
Any thoughts? Like if Danny could wave a wand every week or so and offer Brad a 3 hour practice where one didn't exist, would he jump all over it, or decline?
I recall Brad talking about how limited the regular season opportunities for practice were, so I'm sure they're taking advantage of it. Probably not bad timing since they've played enough now to see some things they need work on. Downside obviously is they'll have less chances later. Big picture it probably doesn't matter a whole lot either way.
Practices are very minimal during the season. For example, I remember hearing about the Celtics only having 2 practices after the All-Star Break, and those were optional.
As I understand it, everything changed when the league modified the older schedule format in an effort to remove back to back games. Not that B2B don't exist now, but there are fewer. Instead, we get every other day cadences for games. This limits the practice time. Game, travel, recover, game. Used to be that there would be an extra day in there for practice.
It hurts younger teams with good coaches.
Just looking after tomorrow's game, the only times the every other day cadence changes are the following:
Nov 23/24. They'll be traveling back from Denver at the start of this stretch.
Dec 2/3. They play in NY on the 1st and are home on the 4th.
Dec 7/8: Sandwiched by two home games.
Dec 13th thru 17th: Home before and in Dallas after. Probably their best chance to have multiple practices.
Dec 23/24: They play in Toronto Christmas afternoon.
Dec 29/30: This break is after a back-to-back and a 3-in-4 stretch. They play in Charlotte on New Year's Eve.
Jan 1/2: This is the last multi-day break until the All Star weekend.
Feb 14-20: All Star Weekend
Feb 27-28: Coming back from Houston capping a 4 game road trip thru the Midwest and West Coast.
March 1-2: Bookended by home games.
March 16-17: Coming back from Chicago, but just after a 3-in-4 stretch.
March 30-31: Surrounded by home contests.
April 6-7: Last break before playoffs. They will be home.
That's only 8 real chances for having practices, and one of those is the All Star break.
Nov 23/24. They'll be traveling back from Denver at the start of this stretch.
Dec 2/3. They play in NY on the 1st and are home on the 4th.
Dec 7/8: Sandwiched by two home games.
Dec 13th thru 17th: Home before and in Dallas after. Probably their best chance to have multiple practices.
Dec 23/24: They play in Toronto Christmas afternoon.
Dec 29/30: This break is after a back-to-back and a 3-in-4 stretch. They play in Charlotte on New Year's Eve.
Jan 1/2: This is the last multi-day break until the All Star weekend.
Feb 14-20: All Star Weekend
Feb 27-28: Coming back from Houston capping a 4 game road trip thru the Midwest and West Coast.
March 1-2: Bookended by home games.
March 16-17: Coming back from Chicago, but just after a 3-in-4 stretch.
March 30-31: Surrounded by home contests.
April 6-7: Last break before playoffs. They will be home.
That's only 8 real chances for having practices, and one of those is the All Star break.
I think they will take the time when they can. They can get in some strength training, get reps on skills, maybe Brad can drill some concepts with new guys.
One thing that should not be allowed to slide under the radar with Hayward getting all the attention is this: Carsen Edwards shot 5-6, 3-4 from 3, and scored 13 in 14 minutes. They need someone off the bench who can do stuff like that.
Brad’s giving a ton of minutes to the B- (or C-) team. Made things kind of tight but my guess is he thinks these games—against the Knicks and Cavs—are worth it.
they play 10 games ( 8 on the road) over the next 17 days.
Brad will aggressively spread the minutes out to the bench
Arsen could start heating up at the right time, unless it's strictly a Quicken Arena thing
With Kanter and Brown out, Brad is determined to keep the starters' minutes to the mid-30's. Not the worst strategy, and it's important for them to see what Williams, Williams, and Edwards can do with the opportunity.
You and VE are on to something. Stevens wants to build his bench's confidence and get them run, he doesn't want to run his starters into the ground, especially during November and its the Cavs. They are near the bottom of the list in terms of point differential so the plan was entirely defensible.
Edwards also handled the ball well, bringing the ball up under pressure and initiating the offense smoothly. He may get more minutes in place of Wanamaker if he can repeat that performance.
Yup, exactly. I think Stevens also feels that regular season wins have a way of evening themselves out if you play the right way.
We've seen in Toronto how important it is to get your late first/2nd round guys a lot of run if they show any promise. Developing them is critical to building a deep roster around your stars.
This is pretty amazing. Here is Tatum's shot chart:
And on that page you can watch a video of every single one of them. And they're all broken down by type. For instance, on shots the NBA classifies as "fadeaway" he's 2 for 9. And you can watch them. You shouldn't. But you can.
https://stats.nba.com/events/?flag=3&CFID=33&CFPARAMS=2019-20&PlayerID=1628369&ContextMeasure=FGA&Season=2019-20§ion=player&sct=plot
Also, James Harden's shot chart is awesome.
And on that page you can watch a video of every single one of them. And they're all broken down by type. For instance, on shots the NBA classifies as "fadeaway" he's 2 for 9. And you can watch them. You shouldn't. But you can.
https://stats.nba.com/events/?flag=3&CFID=33&CFPARAMS=2019-20&PlayerID=1628369&ContextMeasure=FGA&Season=2019-20§ion=player&sct=plot
Also, James Harden's shot chart is awesome.
Last edited:
Good article on some of the different training tactics the Cs are using: https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2019/11/tacko-falls-slant-routes-grant-williams-air-balls-and-more-boston-celtics-coaches-keep-players-engaged-with-odd-drills.html
This is an awesome time-waster at work. I just watched a long reel of Harden step-back threes.
Tom Brady could use a guy with Tacko Fall's height in the red zone, but he won't be running any slant routes. Strictly fades.
If Renaldo Nehemiah and Willie Gault can go from Track & Field to the NFL...….why couldn't Tacko create havoc as a wide out in the NFL?
Unfortunately, I thought he looked awful on the defensive end, however. I hadn't noticed that in his earlier games, but it was very apparent in this game.
Still early days but just taking a drive by of the differentials of the C's opponents to date - the Cs entered this evening at sixth with a differential of +5.6 points
Philly: Seventh (+5.4)
Toronto: Fifth (+5.8)
New York: 30th (-10.5)
Milwaukee: First (+10.2)
Cleveland: 26th (-6.0)
Charlotte: 25th (-5.7)
So four wins against teams they should beat fairly easily - and for the most part they did - and two other wins against the top team in the league and another top ten team. The next three weeks or so will be interesting because they start to play some better teams and/or are playing a lot of road games.
Philly: Seventh (+5.4)
Toronto: Fifth (+5.8)
New York: 30th (-10.5)
Milwaukee: First (+10.2)
Cleveland: 26th (-6.0)
Charlotte: 25th (-5.7)
So four wins against teams they should beat fairly easily - and for the most part they did - and two other wins against the top team in the league and another top ten team. The next three weeks or so will be interesting because they start to play some better teams and/or are playing a lot of road games.
For me, they've shown that they're going to rack up a lot of wins with a combination of pressure defense and bad teams in the East. The emergence of Händediziplin Theis has also massively mitigated the loss of Horford on defense. In a league that only has a few elite centers, the Celtics just won't be exposed often there defensively.
The big question mark is how their offense handles big, elite defenses. I foresee some ugly scoring droughts in those games.
High-quality posting like this should be put in ALL of them
The final act in the Baynes tragedy will be when Ayton comes back, AB is relegated to the bench, PHX regresses back to a non-playoff team, and Baynes gets dealt to a contender that stands in the way of banner #18.
It’s ironic that the reason the Celtics don’t have Baynes is that they both liked each other, and the team had him opt into his deal. Without that, they probably renounce his rights and then sign him instead of Kanter. Instead they had to move him to sign Kemba.High-quality posting like this should be put in ALL of them
The final act in the Baynes tragedy will be when Ayton comes back, AB is relegated to the bench, PHX regresses back to a non-playoff team, and Baynes gets dealt to a contender that stands in the way of banner #18.
With SSS caveat, Baynes’ counting stats show that he is having a fantastic start to the season and he is putting up career highs in points, rebounds, shooting %, assists, steals and blocks. He is also playing almost 25 minutes per game and has two games where he put up more than 17 shots. Seems unlikely he would get the same number of minutes and scoring opportunities if he stayed with the Celtics. I love All of Australia but I also think Theis is having a strong start to the season and is a fine replacement at < 30% of the salary.
I'm curious to see how his body holds up at 25 mpg, given his age and style of play.
View: https://twitter.com/MicahAdams13/status/1192641743847600129
And Hayward has actually done it twice.
And Hayward has actually done it twice.
Let's Make $140M Great Again!$140m for 4-12 shooting and 6 assists.
Easy....I'm only playin.
Baynes $5.45MM
Theis $5MM
MaMo $15MM
Just for clarity, it was never Baynes vs Theis. BOTH were, are, and continue to be very efficient players. They both suffer from the same NBA weakness, foreign player-itis, a bias that Pop has exploited for two decades.
Baynes AND Theis should have played more minutes at the 5, along with Horford at the 4. MaMo, by far the Celtics worst defensive player for 2 seasons running, should have never started. He should have played fewer mpg, as a score-first bench piece where he thrived to open last season.
lovegtm noted the irony, of Baynes doing the Celtics a favor by opting-in, was the reason he had to be dealt. A 3 headed monster of Baynes/Theis/TL would have made a very efficient 5 combined with the return of Utah Gordon, JB's leap, and Tatum's shot selection efficiency.
Last edited:
One thing the Celtics hypothetically have going for them come buyout season is that they theoretically have minutes available for a big who might be out there looking to squeeze some extra dollars out of a next contract.
But for now I am more than happy to let Williams keep learning on the job. Right now you can see the times where his brain is moving faster than his body and he ends up a step ahead—making the right pass too soon, or conversely the times where he is a step behind on a rotation. I'm fairly impressed with where he is overall though. He has been a deflection monster so far and is racking up 2 APG in limited minutes as the 5th ball handler on the floor at all times. Not just token assists either—he is a legit passer.
I'm not sure he is the most instinctual rebounder but his athleticism gets him there anyway, and he has pretty good hands. He is ahead of where I expected, I think. Just needs time. Last season he'd grab a bunch of blocks but the team would lose 10 points while he was out there, and I'm not seeing that so far this year. Of course, the defensive effort in general has been better all around. Could also use some better lob passing, of course.
But for now I am more than happy to let Williams keep learning on the job. Right now you can see the times where his brain is moving faster than his body and he ends up a step ahead—making the right pass too soon, or conversely the times where he is a step behind on a rotation. I'm fairly impressed with where he is overall though. He has been a deflection monster so far and is racking up 2 APG in limited minutes as the 5th ball handler on the floor at all times. Not just token assists either—he is a legit passer.
I'm not sure he is the most instinctual rebounder but his athleticism gets him there anyway, and he has pretty good hands. He is ahead of where I expected, I think. Just needs time. Last season he'd grab a bunch of blocks but the team would lose 10 points while he was out there, and I'm not seeing that so far this year. Of course, the defensive effort in general has been better all around. Could also use some better lob passing, of course.
NBA steals leader Ben Simmons gets 4.5 steals per 48 mins. He's one place above sneaky thief Robert Williams who averages 4.3 steals per 48. The dunks and the blocks will get the views, but I really like how active he is in the passing lanes.
Just saw that the salaries I was looking at were from last year with Baynes at $5.2M and Theis at $1.4M.
With the way events played out in the offseason perhaps there was no practical way to hold onto Baynes however to start this season I have liked what I have seen from Theis. He appears to be executing at a much higher level than last year including setting screens, rotating on help defense, blocking shots, rebounding on both the offensive and defensive sides and contesting shots without fouling. Perhaps his improvement is a function of considerably more playing time to start the season however it also looks like he has made considerable strides in overall development.
Even at equivalent salaries I am coming around to the view that Theis is a better fit than Baynes with this season’s version of the Celtics due to his higher level of athleticism. Boston will likely miss Baynes in matchups with the 76ers though.
I agree that Morris got too much play last year. I am glad he moved on
A lot to like so far. In no particular order:
- Being 6-1 and on top of the east. Always a good thing to get off to a good start.
- Having beaten Milwaukee, Toronto, and Charlotte. Without their losses to the Celtics, those teams are 6-1, 5-2, and 4-3, respectively. Those are quality wins for this crew.
- Getting it done on the defensive end. 5th in the NBA in points per game allowed at 102.1. 9th in turnovers caused at 17.4. 6th in blocks at 6.3. 10th in steals at 8.1. 6th in opponents' FG% at 42.1%.
- Hayward looks healthy, finally, and is playing free and easy. Looks like a completely different player than last year.
2018-19: 46.6% FG, 33.3% 3FG, 4.5 reb, 3.4 ast, 11.5 pts
2019-20: 56.4% FG, 44.4% 3FG, 7.9 reb, 4.6 ast, 20.3 pts
- The big four are playing like it:
Kemba: 24.3 pts, 5.1 reb, 4.0 ast, 1.0 stl
Tatum: 21.6 pts, 7.7 reb, 1.9 ast, 1.6 stl
Hayward: 20.3 pts, 7.9 reb, 4.6 ast, 0.7 stl
Brown: 16.0 pts, 6.3 reb, 1.8 ast, 0.8 stl
Kemba and Tatum's FG% aren't good yet, but Brown and Hayward are killing it. That's a very difficult foursome to match up with, as any of them could go off for 30 in any given night. This is what we envisioned last year looking like, but with Kyrie doing what Kemba's doing. Well, it didn't turn out that way sadly. Now we're getting to see it.
- Marcus Smart is an absolute beast. Still can't shoot but man is he one tough MoFo.
- Grant Williams. His individual stats aren't impressive, but it's so clear that he makes a big difference for this team on both ends of the floor. Really adds a lot and is contributing in so many ways.
There's more, but this is a good start.
- Being 6-1 and on top of the east. Always a good thing to get off to a good start.
- Having beaten Milwaukee, Toronto, and Charlotte. Without their losses to the Celtics, those teams are 6-1, 5-2, and 4-3, respectively. Those are quality wins for this crew.
- Getting it done on the defensive end. 5th in the NBA in points per game allowed at 102.1. 9th in turnovers caused at 17.4. 6th in blocks at 6.3. 10th in steals at 8.1. 6th in opponents' FG% at 42.1%.
- Hayward looks healthy, finally, and is playing free and easy. Looks like a completely different player than last year.
2018-19: 46.6% FG, 33.3% 3FG, 4.5 reb, 3.4 ast, 11.5 pts
2019-20: 56.4% FG, 44.4% 3FG, 7.9 reb, 4.6 ast, 20.3 pts
- The big four are playing like it:
Kemba: 24.3 pts, 5.1 reb, 4.0 ast, 1.0 stl
Tatum: 21.6 pts, 7.7 reb, 1.9 ast, 1.6 stl
Hayward: 20.3 pts, 7.9 reb, 4.6 ast, 0.7 stl
Brown: 16.0 pts, 6.3 reb, 1.8 ast, 0.8 stl
Kemba and Tatum's FG% aren't good yet, but Brown and Hayward are killing it. That's a very difficult foursome to match up with, as any of them could go off for 30 in any given night. This is what we envisioned last year looking like, but with Kyrie doing what Kemba's doing. Well, it didn't turn out that way sadly. Now we're getting to see it.
- Marcus Smart is an absolute beast. Still can't shoot but man is he one tough MoFo.
- Grant Williams. His individual stats aren't impressive, but it's so clear that he makes a big difference for this team on both ends of the floor. Really adds a lot and is contributing in so many ways.
There's more, but this is a good start.