Game 11: Celtics (6-4) @ Suns (2-8), 7:00pm

[Years90Suns]

I really believe the difference that makes this team better has a name: TJ Warren. Since he gest his first touch of the ball, he has the rim as his goal. He gets the ball, dribbles and goes for the lay-up, the runner, the jumper and, last night, even passing to Ayton or shooring contested threes.
He is the difference that makes everybody else play freely. Anderson is just a block standing open and waiting for a shot after his 2X2. Warren makes all the defence to move and try to adjust, so spaces are created for Booker, Ayton and Ariza.

[thamadkant]

Joke of a quarter and Overtime... lol

And people blaming the rookie Center who had Jaylen Brown or Marcus Morris on him inside the paint asking for the ball but we saw hero ball today... 3pt shooting when there were ways to score inside.

And just a note, I've been watching a few Celtics games and their "stars" from last season Tatum, Rozier and Brown has had a mediocre start to this season as well, yet their fans dont throw those players under the bus... I see plenty of suns fans or so, just go crucify Ayton, Jackson etc. The losing has made a lot of people blind.

Anyways this game was a farce, it was hero ball during the crunch time, it was 1 vs 5

[Damkac]

F you Marcus Morris!

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

Joke of a quarter and Overtime... lol

And people blaming the rookie Center who had Jaylen Brown or Marcus Morris on him inside the paint asking for the ball but we saw hero ball today... 3pt shooting when there were ways to score inside.

And just a note, I've been watching a few Celtics games and their "stars" from last season Tatum, Rozier and Brown has had a mediocre start to this season as well, yet their fans dont throw those players under the bus... I see plenty of suns fans or so, just go crucify Ayton, Jackson etc. The losing has made a lot of people blind.

Anyways this game was a farce, it was hero ball during the crunch time, it was 1 vs 5

This is what I don't understand. Pages of discussion about Canaan's failure to switch on the last play, not much discussion of the fact that we played the right way for one half and then.... stopped. And what stopped was mostly Booker, who had almost all of his assists in the first half, when he and the whole team let the game come to them.

The only explanation I have for this is that these players are lazy and don't want to run the offense. They'd rather just make one move - iso or screen and roll. Ridiculous. I can't even Nashty/Cactus this game because of the animosity I feel towards Iso Booker. So stupid. He could have 15 assists had he just kept up the play that got us the lead in the first.

We can get mad at Igor about his rotations, but those changes take time, and you need stability, and Anderson gave up a ton of money for the opportunity to show what he's got (not much, it seems). Bridges probably should have been in for Canaan down the stretch as Canaan was getting roasted by Kyrie.

We're so used to ooohing and aaahing over Booker, and maybe he's used to getting that praise, but we're also both used to losing at this point because he won't stop lazy heroing it out there.

[kuclas]

I still don’t understand why teams don’t foul when up by 3 with less than 6 seconds left. It just makes no sense to me.

Houston fouled Phoenix in the last 40 seconds of the 1994 or 1995 western conference semis so the suns couldn’t get off a 3 point shot. And it worked and suns lost the game 7.

Forget 6 seconds. I just foul the worst free throw shooter in Celtics (brown) even if I were up by 3 with 40 seconds led. It’s like fouling Lebron James in the last 20 seconds. Even if he gets off the 3 point shot and is Awarded 3 free throw. Chances are a 70% free throw shooter of less will not be able to make all 3 free throws. Like. 80% chance they cannot make 3 straight free throws.

U play the percentage.

[Fo-Real]

"LOUD NOISES"!!!

[Fo-Real]

Played good for 3 quarters then forgot everything that worked during the 4th. Team ball went away, all the good defense was washed away by the nervous energy of them raising their energy level. Hero ball took over on a night when it probably was not needed. Lots of good things clicked in the first three quarters and renewed my belief that we have the ability to look like an actual basketball team in stretches. Found some chemistry and hopefully can re-tap into it for future games, not all teams are gonna be as good as the Celtics.

[RaisingArizona]

[_79_]

The worst game from Bridges this year > the best game from Ryan Anderson yet Little Igor gave more minutes to Anderson once again. Worst coach in the league.

[bigfoot]

Would have liked the win but I am happy the team played well. It shows what they are capable of doing on a nightly basis and we should not expect anything less than full effort from these guys from now on.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

Would have liked the win but I am happy the team played well. It shows what they are capable of doing on a nightly basis and we should not expect anything less than full effort from these guys from now on.

I was encouraged by Igor's comment about how we must have gotten tired down the stretch because we failed to run the offense.

Buncha kids too lazy to run the offense... I guess that's certainly more encouraging than "these kids suck." So yeah, best game of the season. I guess I'm just pissed about that W that was stolen from me and I'm concerned that our BEST PLAYER won't figure it out because there isn't another superstar for him to lean on.

TJ could have had 40 last night. If TJ had balls, he'd tell Booker to get him the damn ball. But then again, if TJ had balls, he wouldn't have been available at #14 in the draft, so... silver lining?

... say we did acquire a superstar like Durant or Lebron or Curry. Would Devin be tempted for even a moment by the idea that he isn't the best player on his team?? How did this guy manage to come off the bench in college??? Someone sign up Calipari as ambassador to the middle east!

[Saberestar]

Kokoskov is so terrible. The worst Suns coach since Lindsey Hunter. Offensive and defensive schemes, motivation, substitutions, time-outs, in-game adjustments. He's terrible at all of these.

This is starting to look like another cop out cheap hire by Sarver. Hire the cheapest alternative inexperienced coach, fire them, repeat.

We played a solid game, and we just needed to play more up tempo in the last six minutes.

What I wanted to hear from Kokoskov is a BIG TIME shout to Booker asking him to foul Morris in the last play.

Morris was with the ball in his hands waiting for Irving, it was so easy to foul him at that moment. That was the game.

Obviously there were miscomunication and Booker made a mistake not fouling him, but I would be more comfortable with Kokoskov knowing that he was shouting like crazy from the bench.

Hopefully we learn from this **** moment.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

I really believe the difference that makes this team better has a name: TJ Warren. Since he gest his first touch of the ball, he has the rim as his goal. He gets the ball, dribbles and goes for the lay-up, the runner, the jumper and, last night, even passing to Ayton or shooring contested threes.
He is the difference that makes everybody else play freely. Anderson is just a block standing open and waiting for a shot after his 2X2. Warren makes all the defence to move and try to adjust, so spaces are created for Booker, Ayton and Ariza.

+100

If the Rockets continue their death spiral, I'd inquire as to whether Houston might be interested in dumping Chris Paul's contract for Ryan Anderson, cap space and a future first. Dude's an **** but I bet Deandre and TJ would take to him and maybe Devin and JJ would settle down and play the game right.

[Saberestar]

Would have liked the win but I am happy the team played well. It shows what they are capable of doing on a nightly basis and we should not expect anything less than full effort from these guys from now on.

I was encouraged by Igor's comment about how we must have gotten tired down the stretch because we failed to run the offense.

Buncha kids too lazy to run the offense... I guess that's certainly more encouraging than "these kids suck." So yeah, best game of the season. I guess I'm just pissed about that W that was stolen from me and I'm concerned that our BEST PLAYER won't figure it out because there isn't another superstar for him to lean on.

TJ could have had 40 last night. If TJ had balls, he'd tell Booker to get him the damn ball. But then again, if TJ had balls, he wouldn't have been available at #14 in the draft, so... silver lining?

... say we did acquire a superstar like Devin or Lebron or Curry. Would Devin be tempted for even a moment by the idea that he isn't the best player on his team?? How did this guy manage to come off the bench in college??? Someone sign up Calipari as ambassador to the middle east!

There is a thin line about controlling a close game and taking over for the good of the team AND to be a ball hog and not helping your team to win.

Booker did not pass to Warren in a few transition plays when we were around 8-10 points above. We stopped running sets.

But we were so close to winning the game, just a one play away.

[_79_]

Warren and Booker should share the ball at the end of games to keep each other from getting gassed. Booker clearly got too tired at the end last night.

And Warren is hands down our 2nd best player. If we trade him I will lose my sanity.

[TeamTragic]

Jazz fan here.

Watched this game and really pissed you guys didn't get the W.

No mistake, tho, you guys whupped some ass and took these green chumps to overtime. That means sumpin'.

Won't forget.

[RaisingArizona]

Gambo is 100 percent on the money. IGOR crapped the bed big time. Epic fail all around.

[sunsbg]

Entertaining game, Booker was dominant until the last minute and a half. I'll take that.

[_79_]

Which one looks like they could command the respect of guys like Booker and Ayton and push them to play defense? Which one looks like they have enough testosterone to lead a group of men (not counting Bender obviously)? It matters.

[oddity]

This game was of course Booker's fault for forcing shots for the entire overtime, with Ayton not even touching the ball once if I remember correctly. I was shouting to feed Ayton all overtime - all 4th quarter actually, and it was frustrating watching Booker continue to deny him in the pick and roll. Which leads me to not having a point guard. It isn't that Canaan's missed those threes. That isn't what lost the game for us. But imagine a Kyrie level point guard instead of him. Imagine how much more the ball would have moved, and how much pressure would be off Booker's shoulders.
As of now, Book is an all star. He's shown glimpses of being a real superstar but he still has major holes in his game. He isn't a playmaker like lebron, or even Kyrie, or even Kemba Walker, and we need that to run that deadly as advertised Ayton pick and roll. So for now, we need something as close to that as we can to get the ball moving.
If Sarver could hypothetically make anything great happen that is.