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Boston isn't getting enough praise this year IMO. Brad is Pop 2.0 to me. Brilliant strategist who really gets every little bit out of players who on 28 other teams (besides Celtics and Spurs) wouldn't be nearly as productive. Brad should get coach of the year based on what he's achieved with no clear cut Superstar and a few players that other good coaches couldn't get as much out of. Isiah Thomas is killing it under Brad!

The Celtics are sitting 10 games over .500 with the 11th ranked offense, 1st ranked defense. They kinda remind me of the 01 Sixers in that they are led by an undersized, explosive scoring guard who practically carries the offense, surrounded by a ton of elite defenders. This team epitomizes toughness.

Celtics fans should be proud. This team is literally 1 or 2 moves from NBA championship talks and taking over the eastern conference for the foreseeable future. Even now I truly believe they could push the Cavs to a 6 or 7 game series.

If they could get the number one pick and use it (along with another asset, if needed) to obtain Demarcus Cousins, they would instantly be in Finals contention, in my opinion; as stated, Bread Stevens is a top three coach, easily.

Hmmm. I'd be a little more cautious and hesitant with discussion of Boston as a contender. Also, they're actually 2nd-ranked on defense, though that's not the most important observation ever.

So they are a fairly unimpressive offense, +0.4 compared to league average. That's not surprising. They blow from 3, they don't have major talent on that end (though yes, IT and Crowder have been quality) and Olynyk has a nice spacing effect. They're pretty clearly behind Toronto and Cleveland in the East at the moment. I'm trying to think of what moves that aren't static, NBA2K-whatever kind of moves which would launch these guys over the top.

D-first teams with bleh offense don't USUALLY win titles. There's a Detroit example every 20 years or so in the 3pt era, but that's not the usual way things happen (and the 04 Pistons were a lot better on O than their seasonal ranking indicates as a result of the mid-year trade for Sheed). They'd need a fairly significant upgrade in terms of offensive talent to win, most likely. Doing that would cost them somewhere; it probably won't come as a FA acquisition and they are clearly too good to be thinking about lightning striking in the draft with the way they're performing. They strike me more as a defensive version of the Hawks: high-quality RS team that'll give a good fight for a round or two and that's about it, for now. Maybe they turn around and package a couple of things for something bigger, but that could be capably said of many teams.



Having said that, they really have come a long way. They fell off sharply in 2013 from their Big Three level, had one year way under .500, then a 40-win season and are now on pace for 48 wins or so with a radically different team. That takes some doing.

almost every team is one or two moves away from being a contender.

Let's not forget the cavs whooped them in the playoffs with pretty much the same team.

ClipsFanSince98 wrote:1st ranked defense

That's not true. They are 2nd behind Spurs, with a DRtg difference of almost 0.7.

Nvm, somebody already said it. I just thought this is a glaring untrue fact that need to be pointed out, as not only #1 #2 are different, they are also a big gap behind SAS in defense.

I don't consider my team as a contender or even as a 2nd tier team. But I'm confident that they're near it. As of now, many fans outside of Celtics fans are underestimating our team. And I'm fine with that and I'm sure the players are too. What I'm watching isn't just a team. I'm watching a family play for each other and play hard and tough for the sake of winning. So proud of this team. Keep in mind that they're supposed to be a "rebuilding" team. If this is what a rebuilding team is, then I hope every year is a rebuilding year for us.

Let's go Celtics!

Well, they're sitting at 3rd in the East right now, so based on that alone, your point is valid. The biggest thing to consider is that the argument can be made for virtually every team that they're just one All-star away from being a "contender". Next, you have to consider the question, "Can team A beat Cleveland, GS, San Antonio in a 7-game series?".

The answer to that question for virtually every team outside of those 3 is probably "No".

Not trying to discredit Boston at all. I think that they have an amazing coach that gets his players to go out and want to win, I just personally believe that all of the "parity" that we have now is false hope for who can be a legitimate 4th best team in the league.

FrontPageNews wrote:almost every team is one or two moves away from being a contender.

Let's not forget the cavs whooped them in the playoffs with pretty much the same team.

Let's not forget that was last year when our team was 40-42. If you can't see that this team vastly improved from last year, then idk what to tell you.

Domejandro wrote:If they could get the number one pick and use it (along with another asset, if needed) to obtain Demarcus Cousins, they would instantly be in Finals contention, in my opinion; as stated, Bread Stevens is a top three coach, easily.

The Celtics have gotten this far because they have a team of players who play together. Cousins would ruin that. And any trade that would be needed to get him would strip Boston of all their role players to put around him.

SanDavid wrote:

FrontPageNews wrote:almost every team is one or two moves away from being a contender.

Let's not forget the cavs whooped them in the playoffs with pretty much the same team.

Let's not forget that was last year when our team was 40-42. If you can't see that this team vastly improved from last year, then idk what to tell you.

Yeah. Because of an Isaiah Thomas mid season trade. It's still the same team that they had in the playoffs that got swept.

Not a true contender. We need a star player.

ClipsFanSince98 wrote:Brad should get coach of the year based on what he's achieved with no clear cut Superstar and a few players that other good coaches couldn't get as much out of. Isiah Thomas is killing it under Brad!

His stats his last year in Sacramento were nearly identical to his stats this year:

Sacramento
20.3 ppg
2.9 rpg
6.3 apg
3 tpg
1.3 spg
45/35/85

Boston
21.4 ppg
3 rpg
6.6 apg
2.7 tpg
1.2 spg
42/35/89

He's actually shooting a career low TS% this year (.556), though it's not far off from his other years. IT's been doing this for awhile, but got jerked around in Phoenix and is just finally getting some recognition.

ken6199 wrote:

ClipsFanSince98 wrote:1st ranked defense

That's not true. They are 2nd behind Spurs, with a DRtg difference of almost 0.7.

Nvm, somebody already said it. I just thought this is a glaring untrue fact that need to be pointed out, as not only #1 #2 are different, they are also a big gap behind SAS in defense.

Eh... it was an honest mistake and .7 isn't as significant as you're making it out to be. Doesn't detract from my point whatsoever honestly.

Well, in general a serious contender has a top 5 NBA player on their team. And without a superstar, you are just a pretender. Good news for the Celtics is that they have a lot of high picks that are coming their way courtesy of the Nets so they still have a chance of picking up a top-notch player. But even with that I would still rate the chances of the Pelicans (Davis) or the Timberwolves (Townes) having a better chance of winning a championship in the next 10 years because a true superstar supersedes everything in this game.

I still don't understand how Stevens has them 2nd on defense. Other than Crowder, Bradley and Smart I don't even see many exceptional defenders on their roster and they have a huge size liability at PG with IT.

David Locke, the Utah Jazz announcer, has talked about the Celtics being one of the worst teams in set plays after time outs. Is this something that is a big issue to Celtics fans?

ClipsFanSince98 wrote:

ken6199 wrote:

ClipsFanSince98 wrote:1st ranked defense

That's not true. They are 2nd behind Spurs, with a DRtg difference of almost 0.7.

Nvm, somebody already said it. I just thought this is a glaring untrue fact that need to be pointed out, as not only #1 #2 are different, they are also a big gap behind SAS in defense.

Eh... it was an honest mistake and .7 isn't as significant as you're making it out to be. Doesn't detract from my point whatsoever honestly.

You made a lot of good points, but #1 #2 is a big difference like I said, especially considering the gap between #1 and the rest, it's an obvious 2nd tier.
SAS 97.71
BOS 102.09
IND 102.25
GSW 102.94
ATL 103.28

Wasn't trying to picking a bone or sound like a jerk, you know.

However like Slava pointed out, I also don't have a clue or never foresaw how Stevens got that team to the league #2 defense without a top 5 DPOY candidate from last year, not even remotely. If you say this at the beginning of the season Boston will be a #2 defense, most people would laugh at you. What Angie and coaching has done over there is really impressive.

Boston just seems to have a lot of "stuff." Stuff meaning, a lot of guys but they don't have a core. Pretty much everyone on that team is tradeable so it's hard to peg where Boston is on the totem pole. I've said this countless times, package the pick and young players get DMC or SOMEONE that can push them from being good enough to legit contender.

Slava wrote:I still don't understand how Stevens has them 2nd on defense. Other than Crowder, Bradley and Smart I don't even see many exceptional defenders on their roster and they have a huge size liability at PG with IT.

Other than? most teams don't have 3 exceptional defenders on the perimeter.

Moose10Fan wrote:

Slava wrote:I still don't understand how Stevens has them 2nd on defense. Other than Crowder, Bradley and Smart I don't even see many exceptional defenders on their roster and they have a huge size liability at PG with IT.

Other than? most teams don't have 3 exceptional defenders on the perimeter.

It's not just the personnel. Memphis with Conley, C Lee, T Allen, all excellent perimeter defenders, plus a former DPOY candidate, a defense-oriented team, yet they have a below average defense this year, ranked #17.