PG: Scottie overwhelms Celtics

[Indeed]

But GTJ's steals man! Dont you check box scores!!!!

GTJ was also a +3 in 26.5 minutes against the Wizards. His shot was off in that game and early to start tonight, but he is having a big impact because of his defensive effort and hustle. Love to see it.

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I think we were watching different games here.
Pretty much he got schooled again by Schrodar. Nurse has him hide against Horford, and we double team Horford on that, so I am not sure in which part you saw him stayed in front of his man and make you feel he has been impressive on defense.

I give credit to him on offense, but he is what he is on defense, gamble on flashy steal.
I give Nurse credit on hiding him on defense.

Meanwhile, the reason we win because we had Barnes at SF. I don't think Boucher should start, but once Siakam comes back, the lineup of Achiuwa/Birch - Siakam - OG - VanVleet - Barnes could be very promising.

As for Dragic, I think we are show casing him today, but even then, he could be better coming off the bench. If we trade Dragic (hopefully for a big C finisher), Banton can be behind Barnes, but he needs to improve his shooting to be the full time backup PG.

[ItsDanger]

If Scottie can hit mid range shots consistently like last night, he needs to start when Siakam returns. I knew he could hit the high post jumpers but he's scoring in the paint on floaters/hooks also with left hand sometimes. Nurse could just bring him off the bench still for 1st half maybe until Dragic is dumped.

[Indeed]

Nothing more needs to be said about Barnes. The league is put on notice.

I'm a Trent critic but he definitely showed that there is more to his game tonight. On offense, he is reeling in his tendency to be a black hole and making some better decisions with and without the ball. The last few games he has been very active cutting to the basket and his teammates are finding him. That is going to be a big part of how he needs to expand his offensive game to be a more diverse threat when his shot is not there.

On defense as others have mentioned, his IQ and ability to stick with this man are still quite lacking. But you have to give him credit for his tenacity and activity with his hands to go for the steal, even if it often puts him out of position when he misses. His great stretch in the third was game changing involving big time plays on both offense and defense, showing a lot of different skills. If he can keep this up, he will be making a lot of us eat crow. I hope he keeps it up.

Fred was easily the 3rd best player on the Raptors this game and the steadying veteran presence but you wouldn't know it if you read this forum which obviously is full of box score watchers. Excellent game by Fred doing all the little things to win. He got the entire team going offensively in finding guys in the flow of the offense and on defense was always in the thick of things making big plays. Sure he struggles with finishing near the basket. We have talked about that to death already.

OG is figuring out what works in game situations and what doesn't and I'll give him some slack these first few games. What worked in preseason and practice is not working in NBA regular season game speed. He is still processing his plays on offense too slowly and overthinking and as a result is a step behind or gets blocked. I expect the team to keep going to him even when he struggles because of how important it is for OG to develop this part of his game going forward.

Pretty much what I was thinking.

VanVleet just needs be the 3rd / 4th option, just like his earlier career playing with Wright (now OG role).

And OG is too slow with the ball, I still think he should play those DeRozan sets, curling off screen and make some mid-range. DeRozan wasn't a good ball handler in his early career, and we hide him with those plays. Those mid-range may need more practice though.

[ItsDanger]

We've always been a better team when Fred shoots less. Only 10 FGA and an easy win. Coaches need to restrain him from chucking somehow.

[ATLTimekeeper]

I give credit to him on offense, but he is what he is on defense, gamble on flashy steal.
I give Nurse credit on hiding him on defense.

Meanwhile, the reason we win because we had Barnes at SF. I don't think Boucher should start, but once Siakam comes back, the lineup of Achiuwa/Birch - Siakam - OG - VanVleet - Barnes could be very promising.

As for Dragic, I think we are show casing him today, but even then, he could be better coming off the bench. If we trade Dragic (hopefully for a big C finisher), Banton can be behind Barnes, but he needs to improve his shooting to be the full time backup PG.

Trent, Boucher and Achiuwa are all really undisciplined gamblers. That can work provided the help calculates that in. Personally, I don't think you'll find another "shooter" in the league that is as physical as Trent (maybe Joe Harris, who plays dirty). They all stink defensively (outside of Klay). So, for GTj he just has to keep that tenacity where it is for the whole season.

[dgr81]

from the celtics subreddit

[hyper316]

We've always been a better team when Fred shoots less. Only 10 FGA and an easy win. Coaches need to restrain him from chucking somehow.

similar to lowry shooting less when kawhi came. pg have to think pass first to get others involved. leadership is all about sacrificing individual stats/award for the team success, lets see how FVV take on this leadership role

[lobosloboslobos]

tragically i missed this first great scottie barnes game and epic early season win. oth i was having a wonderful night in Montreal taking my family to a fun and cool Japanese restaurant/bar. (Hanzo Izakaya if anyone is interested - highly recommended.) such is life and i have no complaints. but looking at the stat sheet and having watched the first 2 minutes of the game before splitting, i will only add this:

25 BOSTON TURNOVERS!!!

that's game-winning smothering defense in action right there

[WuTang_CMB]

Still buzzin of how dominant scottie was last night IN ONLY HIS 2nd GAME EVER.

From being so raw pre draft and now dropping 25 and dominanting on defensive end also.

Way to go. Masai is God

[TorontoRapsFan]

Watching Boston stream, something they said stood out: "Feels like Toronto has 6 defenders out there".

Something else that's happened through both games now is how Raps get a high number of offensive boards and still limit opponent fast breaks.

[bboyskinnylegs]

Watching Boston stream, something they said stood out: "Feels like Toronto has 6 defenders out there".

Something else that's happened through both games now is how Raps get a high number of offensive boards and still limit opponent fast breaks.

can't wait till Pascal comes back - the defense should look even better. And at some point we should get to see an infini-switch lineup with Scottie/GTJ/OG/Pascal/Precious and validate how good that can be.

[dgr81]

Read on Twitter

[Clay Davis]

Felt like we were forcing turnovers at will. This team is so dynamic

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[vado]

Barnes' offense inside the 3 point line looks a lot more polished than advertised

[Tha Cynic]

That game was a lot of fun. Our defense really does have so much potential with OG and Barnes. They're the perfect duo to lineup against Tatum and Brown.

Precious is a bit of a love/hate for me right now. He struggles to finish around the basket and does a lot of random ISO plays from the 3 pt line. He just needs a bit more control but the potential is oozing.

Agreed. Precious has the potential to be a very good player. He just needs to stop trying to show off his offensive arsenal every time he has the ball in his hands. He needs to start by going up strong and just trying to dunk on everyone. The rest of his game will come with time.

[LastNameEver]

I dont get too high or low on OG.
To me his fluidity and craftiness is just not at the level it takes to be a premier wing player, he has rehearsed moves but no counters in real-time.

He can however be an integral piece on any contender due to his elite defensive tools and complementary scoring without needing the ball in his hands ala Shawn Marion.

[ash_k]

Barnes' offense inside the 3 point line looks a lot more polished than advertised

or any 20y-something player can improve greatly within 6 months

[ruckus]

Lost in all the well deserved Scottie hype is how well the Montreal connection played together. Birch and Boucher had some real synergy out there.

[Dennis 37]

Read on Twitter

37 points.

There's probably nobody here thinking he would have 37 points after two games.

Nobody.

[PhilBlackson]

As an aside...my lawd Alvin Williams was so painful to listen to it almost made me miss Leo; ALMOST.