So Apparently The Bucks Own The Celtics This Season

A wise man (former NFL head coach Bill Parcells) once said that "you are what your record says you are." At 13-13 after tonight's 99-94 overtime loss to the Bucks (14-11, 7-6 away) at TD Garden, Boston (9-5 home) is the epitome of a .500 basketball team.

Every promising win seems to be followed by a depressing loss and vice versa. We are almost a third into the 2012-13 season and the Celtics thus far have no real identity and they have yet to play with any consistency from game to game. Paul Pierce (35 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals) tried his best to carry the team on his shoulders but unlike on Wednesday vs. Cleveland when he had 40 points, it wasn't enough. His 3-pointer with two seconds left in regulation tied it and ultimately sent it to overtime.

Would you believe Milwaukee finished the season series with Boston 3-1? I guess the C's don't want to see them in the playoffs-something I don't think has ever been written in the last 20 years. Monta Ellis had 27 points, seven rebounds and five assists, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute added 20 points and six rebounds, Larry Sanders had 17 points and 20 rebounds while Brandon Jennings put up 12 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.

Kevin Garnett (12 points, 7 rebounds) was the only other Celtics starter in double figures. Jason Terry (1 of 15 from the field, 1 for 9 on 3-pointers) finished with four points in what had to be one of if not the worst game of the his excellent career. Rajon Rondo dished out 11 assists with four steals while Jeff Green (14 points, 4 steals, 2 blocks) and Courtney Lee (11 points) played well off the bench.

I guess the good news for Boston is that they don't play again until Christmas afternoon. They travel to Brooklyn (12 p.m., ESPN) to face the Nets (13-12, 2nd in Atlantic Division), who have already beaten them twice this season. It's the start of a grueling four-game road trip that sends them to California to meet the Clippers, Warriors and Kings.

We'll have to monitor Green's condition since he took a nasty elbow to the cheek late in overtime which chipped some of his teeth. He appeared in serious pain going off the floor to the locker room. That's the last thing the Celtics needed at this point when they are struggling so much to begin with and Green has been the most up and down player on the team.

UPDATE 12/23: Chris Wilcox could miss three or four weeks with a thumb injury and Leandro Barbosa is out on Christmas at Brooklyn but he's expected to play in Los Angeles.

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Celtics Lose A Weird One To The Bucks In Milwaukee

I can't say I have ever seen (or at least can recall) an NBA team beginning a game with a 17-0 lead. Likewise, I don't remember said team blowing it and eventually losing that game. I guess contests like tonight are why I choose to watch an NBA game on December 1.

Boston (9-8, 4-4 away) jumped out to a 17-0 advantage in Milwaukee (8-7, 4-4 home) but the Bucks eventually wore them down and came away with a 91-88 victory at the Bradley Center. I'm not mad though since it was the second game of Rajon Rondo's two-game suspension and all things considered (my favorite NPR program, I'm old!) the Celts played pretty well.

Paul Pierce led Boston with 19 points and six assists, Jeff Green had 18 points (his second solid game in a row, a new personal record for the Celtics), Kevin Garnett put up 17 points and seven rebounds while Jason Terry (15 points, 11 assists, 3 steals) and Courtney Lee (13 points) flourished in the starting lineup.

Brandon Jennings' (13 points, 6 rebounds) 3-pointer with 24 seconds gave the Bucks a 90-88 lead. Terry had a chance to hit a go-ahead 3-pointer on the other end but missed. After Larry Sanders (18 points, 16 rebounds, 5 blocks) made one of two free throws, Pierce then Terry missed 3-pointers. What can you do?

I predict that Milwaukee finally sneaks into the playoffs in the spring, this was their second win in three tries against Boston so far this season. They'll meet once more in the regular season (December 21 at TD Garden). They have a fair amount of talent especially when Sanders plays like that, he had a triple-double in the game before with blocks. Monta Ellis scored 17, Ersan Ilyasova added 15 points off the bench and old friend Marquis Daniels had eight points and five assists.

After three games in four nights, with Rondo absent from the last two, the Celtics get a few days to rest their old bones (I'm looking at you KG and Pierce) before they host the Minnesota Timberwolves (7-8) on Wednesday (7:30 p.m., CSN). I'm not going to pretend like the rest of the Greenteamers that Rajon has suddenly grown up since he clearly hasn't. However, all I hope is this latest suspension has fired him up sufficiently and he plays at the highest level possible.

UPDATE 12/2: Kris Joseph was returned to the Red Claws.

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Celtics Exact Some Revenge On The Bucks, Left Over From Last Week

Do the Celtics play any teams from the Western Conference this season? They do? Just wondering because after six games (all against mostly average Eastern Conference teams) including two apiece against the Wizards and Bucks, I'm ready to see something new.

Tonight, Boston (3-3, 2-1 away) won 96-92 over Milwaukee (3-2, 1-2 home) at BMO Harris Bradley Center in the second night of a back-to-back (after losing at home to Philadelphia on Friday). The Bucks had ruined the Celtics' home opener with a 99-88 win on November 2 so tonight was a fitting way to pay them back for being so inconsiderate.

Paul Pierce led the Celtics with 25 points and nine rebounds, Kevin Garnett had 18 points and six rebounds, Jason Terry scored 15 in a rare start and Rajon Rondo kept his double-digit assist streak going (at 30 games) with 10 points and 10 assists. The most valuable part of the win for me was Jeff Green's 12 points off the bench. For once, he was aggressive and went to the basket (6 of 8 on free throws).

Monta Ellis was unstoppable, he led Milwaukee with a game-high 32 points and eight assists. Samuel Dalembert had 14 points and eight rebounds and Ersan Ilyasova added 10 points and six rebounds. The Bucks probably lost since their best player-Brandon Jennings-was held to four points on 1 of 11 shooting. Former Celtics great Marquis Daniels had 12 points off the bench and Larry Sanders added 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Milwaukee outscored Boston in the first three quarters: 22-20 after one, 42-39 at halftime and 68-64 after three. It's not like it was a big deficit but it was nice to see the C's rally with a superb fourth: 32-24.

Shooting better (44.4%-39.8%) from the field, on 3-pointers (5-3) and from the foul line (27-19) allowed the Celtics to overcome another awful performance in the paint: they were outscored 48-32 by the Bucks, who also had four more rebounds (44-40) and three more steals (7-4).

Boston receives a day off tomorrow but they conclude this busy stretch with a game in Chicago (8 p.m., CSN) against the Bulls (4-2), their third game in four days. They are not the same without Derrick Rose-duh!-but former Celts assistant Tom Thibodeau's teams are always tough and play great defense. That's why these games are usually close and similar to playoff contests.

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I Guess Nobody Told The Celtics They Had A Game Tonight

Well I was all pumped up for the Celtics' (0-2) 2012-13 home opener tonight but that excitement quickly disappeared as they got trampled 99-88 by the Bucks (1-0) at TD Garden. Milwaukee led from start to finish and they easily should have won by 20+ if not for some garbage-time heroics.

After getting humbled by the Heat on Tuesday in Miami, I think we all assumed that with a couple days between games, the Celts would regroup and beat the Bucks. Unfortunately, Boston saw its five-game win streak in home openers get flushed down the toilet. It's also the first time since 2005-06 and 2006-07 aka before the new Big 3 era that the C's have started 0-2 in consecutive seasons. If it makes you feel any better, they began last season 0-3.

Brandon Jennings burned the Celtics for 21 points, 13 assists (a career-high) and six steals. His new backcourt mate Monta Ellis (14 points) was relatively quiet but Tobias Harris (18 points) and Ersan Ilyasova (7 points, 11 rebounds) not to mention the bench trio of Beno Udrih (10 points), Larry Sanders (10 points, 7 rebounds) and Ekpe Udoh (10 points) were all there to give Milwaukee the victory in its season opener.

Kevin Garnett led the C's with a very quiet 15 points. Rajon Rondo had 14 points, 11 assists (26th straight game with 10+ assists) and three steals and he was the only other Celtic starter that really did anything. Anybody seen Paul Pierce (11 points, 6 rebounds on 3 of 11 shooting) or Brandon Bass (10 points, 6 rebounds)?

The only positives to take out of this no-show for the home team were the glimpses of hope provided by Jeff Green (11 points), Jason Terry (10 points) and rookie Jared Sullinger (6 points, 7 rebounds). Don't ask me why Leandro Barbosa played seven minutes (2 points) after he took over in the 4th quarter against Miami?

It's easy to be sarcastic but however, there is no reason to panic with this team. Hey it could be worse-the Lakers are 0-3 after losing tonight to the Clippers. Still, with their first back-to-back tomorrow night in DC at the Verizon Center against the Wizards (7 p.m., CSN), Boston needs to find a way to beat Washington (0-1) and come home with a win. In a scheduling quirk, the two teams are off until Wednesday when the Wizards are in Boston. All the Celtics need is a win to build up their confidence and chemistry on the court that so far in two games, has been severely lacking.

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