It's Bad Enough To Lose To The Pistons Once This Season But Twice? Come on Celtics, Wake Up!

 

    May I ask a simple question: what the hell is wrong with the Celtics (13-12 overall, 6-4 home)? Coming off a promising win over the Raptors (12-14) last night, they fell flat on their face tonight at TD Garden as they lost 108-102 to the tanking Pistons (7-19 overall, 2-11 away). Detroit has already played Boston three times this season and they've won two of those games so they are 2-1 vs. the C's and 5-18 against the rest of the NBA. Wait what? As if this result needed any more of a kick to the nuts, they watched rookie swingman Saddiq Bey-who was taken five picks (19th overall) after Celts rookie Aaron Nesmith who rarely ever plays-dominate them to the tune of a team-high 30 points, a game-high 12 rebounds and a perfect 7-for-7 on 3-pointers in 27 ultra productive minutes off the bench. Ouch babe!

    Point guard Kemba Walker sat out for the second game of a back-to-back which is his custom for this season, guard Marcus Smart (left calf tear) remains sidelined for awhile longer and center Robert Williams (left hip soreness) has missed these past two games with a bizarre injury for such a young guy but none of this should matter in terms of winning or losing against Detroit. Anyone that they throw out there should be capable of beating a wretched team like the Pistons. Rookie guard Payton Pritchard got his first career start and after dropping 20 points against Toronto (for the 2nd time), he no-showed with just two points. Even more worrisome, swingman Semi Ojeleye (who scored a career-high 24 points in Thursday's win) was rewarded with a spot in the starting lineup as well but he left early and never returned with a right knee injury. Fingers crossed, we don't know the severity of that issue yet but geez. 

    Trailing by 13 in the fourth quarter, Boston cut it down to a two-point Pistons lead but then Bey hit some clutch 3-pointers to end any hopes of an improbable rally. Shooting guard Delon Wright (22 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds) also played well for Detroit while small forward Jeremi Grant (15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals) and power forward Blake Griffin (12 points, 6 assists) also scored in double-figures and shooting guard Josh Jackson (5 rebounds, 2 blocks) added 14 points off the bench. For the Celtics, swingman Jayson Tatum (33 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists) and shooting guard Jaylen Brown (27 points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals) combined for 60 points but none of their teammates really did anything notable. In fact, center Daniel Theis (11 points, 9 rebounds) was the only other Celtic to reach double-digits in scoring which is crazy against such a terrible opponent. 

    I don't want to overreact to a single game but this is a bigger issue that's been building lately since the C's fell to 3-6 in their last nine games. The Pistons were up 27-23 after the first quarter and 54-52 at halftime. Whatever head coach Brad Stevens said at halftime didn't work as Detroit outscored Boston 28-20 in the third quarter. The C's took the fourth quarter (30-26) but not by enough so it didn't matter one bit. Thanks to Bey's sharp-shooting, the Pistons hit seven more 3-pointers (15-8) than the Celtics, they had 10 more assists (25-15), they blocked three times as many shots (6-2) and their bench obliterated Boston's (49-20). 

    All that the C's can do now is to dust themselves off and take out their collective anger on another doormat-the Wizards (6-17) who they visit on Sunday afternoon (1, NBC Sports Boston) at the Capital One Arena. They beat Washington 116-107 on January 8th, the night before Tatum tested positive for Covid-19 which started an outbreak on the team that caused their next three games to be postponed. Poor Bradley Beal is still stuck on that miserable team which has the worst record in the Eastern Conference and second worst in the NBA with only Minnesota (6-20) owning an even more pathetic record. Sunday is Valentine's Day so I'd recommend focusing on that (if you can), because Celtics-Wizards is going to be one gross game that really cannot bring us any joy, only further anger and frustration. Good times!

Despite A 122-120 Win, Squeaking Out A Split In Detroit Is No Reason For The Celtics To Celebrate

    This afternoon in Detroit while you were probably watching the NFL, the Celtics (4-3 overall, 2-2 road) picked up one of those rare wins in sports that felt more like a loss as they just sneaked by the lowly Pistons (1-5 overall, 1-3 home) 122-120 at Little Caesars Gross Pizza Arena. Don't misconstrue the overarching point here: any kind of win is always better than a loss, especially when the C's fell 96-93 to the Pistons on Friday night at the same empty place. Unlike in that setback, shooting guard Jaylen Brown (game-high 31 points) and forward Jayson Tatum (24 points, career-high 12 assists, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks) each hit clutch shots late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. However, it should not have to come to that against what will undoubtedly be one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference and probably the entire league when the 2020-21 regular season concludes. 

    Washed up power forward Blake Griffin (13 points) returned from a concussion but he played like he was still in a fog, shooting 4-for-14 from the field including 3-for-10 on three-pointers. Forward Jerami Grant (team-high 22 points, 6 rebounds) once again was Detroit's best player vs. Boston so it was strange to see him give up the last shot to Griffin who shot-putted an air-ball on a desperation 3-pointer at the final buzzer. Center Mason Plumlee (13 points, 8 rebounds) scored a little more today than in the first matchup but at least this time, the Celts did a better job containing him on the glass while small forward Josh Jackson was off to a hot start with 13 points in 14 minutes before an ankle injury ended his day prematurely. Detroit's bench owned Boston's to the tune of 54-23, mercy. Former MVP Derrick Rose had 13 points and eight assists while shooting guard Svi Mykhailiuk added 15 points in 15 minutes. 

    As you'd figure, Boston had more balanced scoring from its starters which made up just enough for how badly their bench was outplayed. Center Tristan Thompson had another double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds), point guard Marcus Smart (17 points, 10 assists) had his best game of the season and his first double-double along the way while power forward Daniel Theis added 15 points. Head coach Brad Stevens gave forward Semi Ojeleye his most minutes of the season (22) and he responded by scoring 11 points including hitting a trio of three-pointers which is the equivalent of found money for the C's. Like Jackson, Celtics point guard Jeff Teague left with an ankle injury that is troubling with their second back-to-back of the season on the horizon.

    The miserable start in the first quarter that plagued Boston on Friday was nowhere to be seen as the two teams were close all game long. Detroit led 33-31 after the first quarter but the Celtics found themselves ahead 61-57 at halftime. The home team narrowed Boston's advantage by one point with a solid third quarter (31-30) and the C's barely survived (getting outscored 32-31) in the fourth quarter. Boston shot the ball great (56.3% to 47.7%) from the field which was much-needed since they barely got to the free throw line (25-13 in attempts and 22-9 in makes in favor of Detroit). The Celtics also controlled the glass with eight more rebounds (41-33) including four more offensive boards (12-8). Thanks to Tatum they had six more assists (35-29) which made up for twice as many steals by the Pistons (8-4) on Boston's eight more turnovers (17-9). 

    The C's were lucky they were playing the Pistons today and not a higher quality opponent since a better team would have punished them for being so sloppy. Following the end of this two-game set, Boston finally got out of Motown and headed directly to Covid-19 central, I mean Tampa Bay which is the temporary home of the Raptors (1-4). Tomorrow night (7:30, NBC Sports Boston) will be the first meeting between the two Atlantic Division rivals since they went seven games in the Eastern Conference semifinals in the bubble. The Celtics won that battle and hopefully they take advantage of a struggling team that thus far is one of the most disappointing clubs in the league less than two weeks into the regular season. The C's seemed to never win in Toronto so maybe playing the Raptors on what is essentially a neutral court will help mitigate that hex.

All It Took Was A Horrendous 1st Quarter (27-12) To Doom The Celtics Against The Wretched Pistons

 

    Other than a major injury to one of their top players, it's tough to picture a much worse start to 2021 than the one experienced by the Celtics (3-3 overall, 1-2 away) tonight as they fell 96-93 to the previously winless Pistons (1-4 overall, 1-2 home) at Little Caesars Arena. Side topic: who knew a crappy pizza chain from the 90s had enough money to buy a professional sports arena? On the other hand, it's Detroit. The Pistons' best player power forward Blake Griffin was out with a concussion (and the fact that he's any NBA team's top star in 2021 is mind-blowing) so the Detroit starting five and bench were littered with a bunch of nobodies, has-beens, never-weres and never-will bes. Boston must have underestimated Detroit since they decided to skip the first quarter as they were outscored 27-12 in the opening 12 minutes. The C's fought their way back from a 21-point deficit (35-14) early in the second quarter but they predictably unraveled at the end, getting outscored 8-0 in the final 4:14 as they bricked shot after shot (0-for-11 from the field in that woeful span). 

    It's one thing to lose to the Nets (3-3) or the Pacers (4-1)-two quality teams in the Eastern Conference who will be in the playoffs this season-but the Pistons are clearly tanking to get the highest lottery pick imaginable in the 2021 NBA Draft. They must not have gotten that memo in time for tonight's game though since power forward Jerami Grant had a team-high 24 points (including a dunk on poor Daniel Theis) while rookie shooting guard Saddiq Bey added 17 points, seven rebounds and two steals, center Mason Plumlee had 17 rebounds which is absurd, small forward/noted bust Josh Jackson notched 11 points and even the ghost of Derrick Rose (17 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals) was at his 2021 best in 24 minutes off the bench. 

    The Celtics are nearly unbeatable when power forward Jayson Tatum (game-high 28 points, 6 rebounds) and shooting guard Jaylen Brown (25 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks) each score 25+ points in the same contest but this bucked that trend since the rest of their teammates combined for only 40 points. Tatum and Brown aren't immune from criticism though since both missed what would have been tying three-pointers late in the fourth quarter. Point guard Marcus Smart (13 points, 9 assists, 3 steals) missed a pair of three-pointers of his own and a runner during that icy stretch for Boston. Six guys played off Boston's bench but only point guard Jeff Teague (12 points, 2 steals) and power forward Grant Williams (8 points, 5 rebounds) managed to score a single point from that group. Detroit's terrible bench outscored them 36-20 which makes me want to cry. 

    Last time I checked, this still only counts as one game but it's about more than that: every team has down nights in the NBA but the truly elite clubs almost never perform like this against an opponent that should be way below them. The C's came in 3-2 so I don't know how they could have been so full of themselves but it feels like the only explanation for that New Year's hangover in the first quarter. Without such a mess of a start, they would have rolled (as Vegas expected them to since they were favored by 8 points coming into the game which is a huge line for a road team) to an easy win. Both teams scored 28 points in the second quarter then Boston outscored Detroit 33-24 in the third quarter and 20-17 in the fourth quarter but it wasn't enough. The Pistons hit three more three-pointers (11-8), six more free throws (13-7) and they grabbed three more rebounds (48-45) including six more offensive boards (13-7) than the Celtics. 

    Just like last week when they lost their first game in Indiana, had a day to stew on it then recovered with a victory in the rematch, Celtics head coach Brad Stevens better hope that the same formula applies this time as well. Getting swept by the Pistons and falling back under .500 would be very depressing. Only five people might watch it live but just so you know, the Celts play again at Detroit on Sunday afternoon (3, NBC Sports Boston) right smack dab in the middle of the final day of the 2020 NFL regular season. Patriots (6-9) vs. Jets (2-13) is unwatchable so hopefully you have NFL Red Zone, that is no doubt your best sporting option on Sunday afternoon.