A Few Thoughts on Celtics-Pacers

Celtics fans can't be stoked that Allen and Pierce played 39 and 36 minutes, respectively, in a late December game on the first night of a back-to-back. Nate Robinson was largely ineffective all night, and when Nate bumped heads with Mike Dunleavy in the third quarter and left to get his forehead taped up, his forced absence left Boston really shorthanded at guard.

With Rondo injured, Nate struggling and Pierce getting a few minutes of rest, the job of directing the team on offense was up for grabs at the end of the first quarter. Doc subbed in Jermaine O'Neal at the 2:47 mark and for the remainder of the frame, the Celtics went with a lineup of Avery Bradley, Ray Allen, Marquis Daniels, Glen Davis, and Jermaine. Since the rookie Bradley has struggled to adjust to playing point guard this season, Ray Allen brought up the ball and played the point. It was a disaster. Allen gave up two steals that the Pacers turned into layups and the Celtics only scored two points in those three minutes.

The Celtics went back to a similar lineup in order to give (most of) the starters a rest to begin the fourth quarter. Since Nate was out with his head bump, Rivers put in the same lineup, but with Von Wafer replacing Bradley. The more important change: Marquis Daniels took over the point duties. He played the "low-post point guard" spot, backing down his defenders and setting up his teammates in the style of a Mark Jackson or a young Chauncey Billups. This time, the subs played phenomenally. The fivesome of Wafer-Allen-Daniels-Davis-Jermaine O'Neal turned a 67-66 deficit into a 77-67 lead with an 11-0 run. Allen and Daniels, in more comfortable roles, combined for 5 points and 3 assists during the quick scoring outburst. The Celtics half-court defense was stifling and got stronger as the night went on, but if they had not tweaked their way into these offensive improvements, the Pacers would have been able to score much more effectively by pushing the tempo, as they had done to start the game.

The Pacers front line of Danny Granger, Josh McRoberts, and Roy Hibbert shot a combined 10-33 from the floor. Hibbert, in particular, is slumping. In the last eight games, he has shot 31.7% from the floor (34 for 107).

A few other scattered impressions:

• My second thought when Rashard Lewis was traded to the Wizards was that he should not be taking the floor at the same time as Blatche.  (The first thought was, "I never thought I would live to see the day when they could dump Arenas' contract!")  Andray is too inactive on D; Rashard is sloth-like on offense.  Both lack the muscle to have a sustained impact in the paint.  Keeping track on a game-by-game basis, we have

1. Home vs.CHI:  Both players used at the 4-spot.  Blatche and Lewis subbed for each other during game frequently.  However, they were occasionally used together:  11 minutes, +/- rating of -8.
2. Road @ SAS:  Blatche suspended for fighting at club with Javale McGee.  Outstanding.
3. Road @ HOU: Lewis played a season-high 43 minutes, including a starting role at the 3-spot.  They played over 33 minutes together with a +/- rating of -13 when they were on the court together, including an epic fourth quarter collapse.  

• Charlotte played Detroit a couple of nights ago.  The Bobcats won the game, not surprisingly, given that they played at home with a new coach, Paul Silas.  However, they won despite turning the ball over 23 times, including a horrific 15 combined from Stephen Jackson and Ty Thomas.  Point guards D.J. Augustin and Shaun Livingston committed zero of the 23 turnovers in their cumulative 48 minutes of floor time.