Boston Celtics Blow Lead to Grizzlies
Isaiah Thomas was firing on all cylinders, the Boston Celtics simply destroyed the Memphis Grizzlies‘ small ball lineup and they had 34 points by the end of the first quarter. Then, slowly but surely, things gradually fell apart for the Celtics and they blew a 20 point lead. Once again, the Celtics looked as good as ever and took a commanding lead, only to fail miserably on both ends and look like a borderline lottery team.
The Celtics continue to prove that they cannot play at a high level or win on a consistent basis. The Celtics continue to find themselves in positions to win games only to fall just short. They are finding ways to stay competitive but they are finding themselves on the losing end far too often. Once again the Celtics are on the brink of .500 and continue to fall in the eastern conference standings.
The Celtics missed many free throws late in the game and there were multiple times when the Grizzles had three or four shot attempts on one possession. They fell apart by blowing the lead and could not put things back together when they had a chance to win late in the game.
The Celtics were absolutely blown away on the boards and were not even close at the free throw line. The Celtics are use to not getting as many free throws as their opponents but missing 6 out of 23, most of which came in the fourth quarter, is unacceptable. The Celtics are falling into the trap of finding ways to lose games and they need to figure out a way to close out games if they want to be a factor in the eastern conference.
The Celtics were actually quite good on the defensive end. They had 17 steals and limited the Grizzles to just 25% from three point range. These are the kinds of things that need to lead to wins for the Celtics but they are falling far too short in other areas.
The good news is that the Celtics are the healthiest they have been all year. The Celtics have had far too few games with Marcus Smart and Avery Bradley playing together but the injuries have left their rotation the most chaotic it has been all year. David Lee, who appeared to be completely out of the rotation, received 16 minutes while Zeller and Jerebko did not see the floor. They are going to have a very tough time figuring out which guards are going to be starting because Thomas, Smart and Bradley all deserve to be on the starting unit.
The Celtics continue to prove they have a lot of different things to figure out while remaining competitive in games. There is no doubting that the Celtics’ inconsistent play is a result of the inconsistent minutes but it is a necessary part of the process for them. They have too many undefined pieces on this team to settle into a consistent rotation and that is not even including Jordan Mickey who continues to crush everything in the D League.
The Celtics continue to be one of the most frustrating teams in the league and this game against the Grizzles is a perfect example. They do everything to be convincing as a contending team. They use ball movement to be successful on offense and they terrorize the opponent on defense. They create what should be insurmountable leads but then it all disappears.
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Figuring out how to hold these leads and how to win these games is going to be a part of the process and it is an area that the Celtics need to be much improved in if they want to be a contending team in the eastern conference.