The Garden Report goes live following the Celtics game vs the Clippers. Catch the Celtics Postgame Show featuring Bobby Manning, Josue Pavon and John Zannis as they offer insights and analysis from Boston's game vs LA.
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This episode of the Garden Report is brought to you by:
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SportsTranscript
00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:05 Can you say hard hats, folks?
00:07 Hard hats, lunch pail, steel tool, boots.
00:09 Anything short of a championship this year is a failure.
00:12 Look at this boomer right here.
00:13 You've just got so much talent here.
00:16 Somebody said we need to apologize for Jalen.
00:18 Can I pull the John?
00:19 What are we apologizing for?
00:21 What did we say?
00:21 What did we do?
00:22 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:25 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:32 Yeah, it's just me.
00:35 What are we apologizing for?
00:37 Nobody on the Garden Report yet.
00:41 Josue Pavone coming up shortly, I have been told.
00:46 Had to relocate.
00:47 There was some rock and roll music going on at the Garden.
00:52 I'll also apologize.
00:53 I'll apologize.
00:54 I'll apologize on behalf of the Celtics tonight, who also
00:57 chose not to show up tonight.
00:58 Yeah, it's a solo John Zanis show.
01:00 Let's go.
01:01 How long can I take this?
01:02 I bet I can--
01:03 I don't know.
01:04 I'm sick of listening to myself already.
01:10 Josue, once I get a thumbs up from you, I'll bring you in.
01:13 But here we are.
01:14 Here he is.
01:15 He's ready.
01:16 Bobby Manning is there.
01:17 Jimmy's off.
01:18 Sherrod is off.
01:20 Chris "Def" Forzingas is off.
01:21 And the entire Celtics starting lineup was off tonight.
01:25 They chose to sit this one out for the second time.
01:28 And I can't remember when the Bucs game was.
01:30 But no show against a real like, oh,
01:35 let's see what these guys got.
01:37 Can't wait to see the Celtics versus the Bucs.
01:39 Nah, forget it.
01:40 I'm not going to play tonight.
01:41 They did it again.
01:43 But this one was weird because there was no excuse, right?
01:47 There's no back to back.
01:48 Granted, Forzingas doesn't play, and Forzingas is valuable.
01:51 But man, the Celtics got punked tonight.
01:55 This is as bad as they've looked.
01:58 And this is the worst beat down they've had.
02:00 It's the first time they looked legitimately overmatched,
02:03 like they played a better team.
02:04 The Milwaukee one I thought was fluky.
02:06 This just legit looked like they just got beaten by a far--
02:14 tonight it looked like.
02:16 Tonight, just tonight.
02:17 And I know they played the Clippers earlier in the year,
02:19 and it wasn't the exact same personnel in that game as well.
02:24 But yeah, it's the boomer hour.
02:26 Let's do the boomer hour.
02:27 Josue's here, but I'm getting a kick out
02:30 of watching Josue laughing at me going solo right now.
02:33 So I just decided to keep going.
02:34 But I could bring him on.
02:35 I could end this right now, OK?
02:37 I could end this right now.
02:38 But I won't.
02:40 We can go another minute.
02:41 No, we'll bring on Josue here.
02:42 We'll add him to the stage.
02:43 What's up, my man?
02:44 Yo, that was the most John Zanis apology game
02:48 I've ever seen.
02:49 And I'm sitting here like, wait, wait, wait.
02:50 There's no way.
02:51 There's no way after a blowout loss that he's apologizing.
02:55 I'm like, for what?
02:56 And then, of course, it was, no, you're
02:58 apologizing on behalf of the Celtics.
02:59 Very well done.
03:00 On behalf of you guys not showing up.
03:02 Yeah, no, that's fine.
03:03 And I will apologize here.
03:06 But yes, so look, it's again--
03:10 I get it.
03:11 Everyone shut up.
03:12 Seriously, I get it, OK?
03:15 We know every team has this.
03:16 The Denver Nuggets recently lost by 40 points to someone.
03:19 All this happens.
03:20 It's the NBA.
03:21 You see good teams, no shows all the time.
03:24 It's perfectly normal.
03:25 It doesn't mean anything.
03:26 I get it.
03:27 I get it.
03:27 I get it.
03:28 I get it.
03:28 I get it.
03:28 I get it.
03:29 But if that's the case, then there's no show
03:32 and there's nothing to talk about.
03:33 So what are we going to sit here for an hour
03:35 just be like, it doesn't matter.
03:36 It doesn't matter.
03:37 It doesn't matter.
03:38 OK, I don't know.
03:39 Does it matter?
03:40 I'll ask you first.
03:41 And I'm going to-- yeah.
03:43 It does?
03:43 Yeah.
03:44 I'm screaming into my-- you know what?
03:46 You're going to carry this one solo.
03:47 Go.
03:48 You tell me why it matters.
03:49 OK, this is why it matters, John.
03:50 Because when you perform at this level
03:53 without Christoph Porzingis, that scares me.
03:56 And that's not to say that he's going
03:58 to be out for a long term.
04:00 We're not talking-- at least that's what Joe Mizzou told us.
04:02 But that's not the point.
04:03 I mean, I want to see this other team play at a high level
04:06 with or without Christoph Porzingis.
04:08 I don't want it to ever be a night where it's like,
04:10 oh, this is the version of Soto that's
04:12 going to show up now that Christoph Porzingis isn't around.
04:15 And I think the Clippers fed off of that.
04:18 Listen, this is one of the better teams in the NBA.
04:20 These guys won 12 out of their last 14 games
04:23 since that loss against the Celtics, which of course
04:25 happened without Kawhi Leonard.
04:26 Obviously, they're a different team when he's in the lineup.
04:29 But they presented so many problems for the Celtics
04:31 because of that star power from Kawhi Leonard for starters.
04:34 You also have the athleticism, which I thought defensively.
04:37 They're playing these guys man to man.
04:38 I mean, you had people--
04:40 you had defenders staying in front of Tatum and Brown
04:43 with ease, essentially.
04:45 Putting up a wall, challenging these guys to say,
04:47 look, if you're going to beat us,
04:48 you beat us from the perimeter.
04:49 You're not coming in the paint.
04:50 We're not giving up any high percentage shots.
04:53 And they made it really hard for them.
04:54 And when they did take shots at the rim,
04:56 they weren't great shots.
04:58 A lot of those were off balance flips over their head.
05:00 Tatum got the basket strong.
05:02 Everything-- I mean, Holliday--
05:03 Credit the Clippers, man.
05:04 --had a nice left-handed finish.
05:05 But everything-- Brown threw up there.
05:07 He flipped it up.
05:08 Holliday had some wild shots that really didn't have
05:12 much of a chance of going in.
05:14 They were just flinging it.
05:14 And then just ice, ice cold.
05:16 Look, you want to talk about-- the Clippers beat them.
05:18 The Law of Average has beat them as well.
05:20 You shoot 55% one game, you know the bill is going to come due.
05:26 And it came due.
05:28 It came due tonight.
05:29 And but again, John, this is the Clippers
05:31 playing them straight up.
05:32 I mean, let's face it.
05:33 They didn't force a bunch of turnovers.
05:34 What, so they finished with eight in this one?
05:36 There wasn't a whole lot of, oh, trap Tatum and trap Brown.
05:39 No.
05:39 It was just straight up, man to man, take away their space
05:42 or stay in front of them.
05:44 And guys did that.
05:45 You know, without poor zing, it's just--
05:47 they're a different team.
05:48 I feel like the Clippers, they knew the game plan.
05:51 They knew how to make the Celtics look vulnerable.
05:54 And they did throughout the entire night.
05:55 They made them look so-- again, I
05:57 know you see this too.
05:58 When the Celtics look bad, they can look really bad.
06:00 And again, I understand this applies
06:02 to a lot of other teams too.
06:04 It's that live by the three, die by the three approach.
06:06 And I'm not going to sit here--
06:08 99% of the comments, Josue, while I'm in here,
06:10 is Missoula, Missoula, Missoula, Missoula.
06:12 They're not going to win as long as Missoula's a coach.
06:14 Missoula ball is going to be the end of them.
06:16 It works in the regular season.
06:17 It doesn't work in the playoffs.
06:19 You know, what happens when you go cold?
06:20 We get it.
06:21 We get it.
06:22 The entire league plays this way.
06:24 OK, they do.
06:25 But you're right.
06:26 The Celtics are a little bit--
06:28 in the past, have been too reliant.
06:30 Poor Zingas is the great game changer, the equation changer
06:33 for the Celtics.
06:34 It gives them an inside presence,
06:35 gives them an element that's really difficult to defend,
06:38 and makes it so it's not that same predictable offense
06:41 that they've run back the past couple of years, which is,
06:42 if the threes fall, they win.
06:44 I mean, last year was ridiculous.
06:46 Plus 40% they win, under 40% they lose, like automatic.
06:49 It was just-- or not lose all of them,
06:51 but the percentage was crazy.
06:53 It's not the same team this year,
06:55 so this really does heighten how much they need Chris steps.
06:58 But there is concern of like, how sustainable is this
07:02 in the playoffs when the defense ratchets up and x, y, z.
07:05 And every time you have games like this,
07:07 it'll be like, well, this is what robot Missoula
07:10 wants them to do.
07:11 So again, I'll ask you, fair or not fair?
07:16 And I'm not making excuses.
07:17 The rest of them-- this is how the league plays.
07:19 The league loves driving kick, love the corner breaks,
07:23 and this is--
07:24 [INTERPOSING VOICES]
07:26 But the Celtics, again, I always feel better about them,
07:29 Josue, when they're able to generate their own easy baskets,
07:31 right?
07:32 [INTERPOSING VOICES]
07:35 Excuse me, only on the three, it's much, much harder.
07:39 On night like this, it makes it almost impossible.
07:41 Right, it does, especially when the ball
07:43 isn't moving the way it does, when the Celtics are really--
07:46 what is that equal opportunity offense that we've been seeing,
07:49 where guys are getting those open looks,
07:51 you're looking for that open shot.
07:53 I just think they didn't do it as much as the Clippers.
07:55 I thought the Clippers took that away from them.
07:57 And maybe that's, again, credit the Clippers for their defense,
08:00 but you wonder, in terms of executing
08:02 on the offensive end of the floor, what kind of schemes
08:05 and different tactics that Joe Muzuru can input when
08:10 Christopher Zingas is not in the lineup.
08:12 I wanted to see more adjustments in that second half,
08:14 especially, but when you have a team just straight out
08:17 taking the Celtics' lunch money the way
08:18 they did in that third quarter, coming out of halftime,
08:20 you're like, well, I don't think these guys have enough.
08:22 I mean, clearly they didn't.
08:23 I mean, before it got out to a 30-point deficit,
08:26 but even before that, you just didn't see--
08:29 you didn't see that switch, that change
08:32 in their offensive approach.
08:34 And the closest thing to it was Tatum
08:37 going straight to the hoop right out of the gate
08:40 to start the second half.
08:42 He makes a contested three.
08:43 Not a terrible shot, but a good take.
08:45 And the Clippers just went right back into their run.
08:47 And I thought this defense was just heading back.
08:50 Transition D was awful.
08:51 I thought the Clippers did a really good job pushing the ball,
08:54 controlling the pace.
08:55 All the stuff that Muzuru is usually
08:58 works in his team's favor.
08:59 It just wasn't the case, especially in that second half,
09:00 coming out of halftime.
09:02 Yeah, and I don't know if this number is good, but 10 and 2,
09:06 I would believe that.
09:07 I would say-- and again, Josue, I
09:09 don't know what's going on behind you,
09:10 but it sounds like you're at the mess hall
09:12 and everybody just came in to eat or something.
09:14 No, it's like the whole--
09:15 half the beach is all wants to have a conversation.
09:18 But yeah, they usually don't do this.
09:21 OK, anyway, so we'll hang on there
09:23 and we'll hope that it thins out a little bit.
09:25 And I'll just filibuster and we'll go back
09:27 to the Solos and a show.
09:30 But yeah, I mean, I don't know.
09:33 Like I said, we can go a lot of different directions with this.
09:36 But they have won without KP.
09:37 And I mentioned this--
09:39 I put it out in a tweet and I got yelled at a little bit.
09:43 But last four games against the other teams
09:46 with the best records in the NBA,
09:49 blowout losses to the Clippers and the Bucs,
09:51 and a close home loss to Denver, and an overtime win
09:55 where they came back without Porzingis against Minnesota.
09:58 Two of those three games, two of those three losses,
10:00 Chris Tapp's Porzingis did play.
10:01 And again, it's a small sample size.
10:03 But these are the teams, right?
10:05 These are the teams that you're going to play.
10:07 It's also wrapped around a couple of Pacers losses too.
10:10 And you're seeing, again, some better competition
10:13 that they've kind of run into--
10:15 run into-- I wouldn't say a wall,
10:21 but they're running into some resistance.
10:24 Especially the team on the second half of back-to-back.
10:26 Yeah.
10:27 It's impressive.
10:28 Yeah.
10:28 So I mean, again, so you didn't--
10:31 there was no excuse for them to come out and suck
10:33 the way they suck tonight.
10:34 But they sucked.
10:36 And everybody's mad.
10:37 Everyone's really upset.
10:39 I'm not going into where frauds--
10:41 I'm not going into this team as soft.
10:42 I'm not doing any of that stuff.
10:45 But you see where you can--
10:48 you see where you can be vulnerable sometimes.
10:50 And the Clippers made you look like exposed
10:54 some weaknesses tonight.
10:56 Yeah.
10:56 Yeah, they did in a big way.
10:58 And again, especially with that poor Zingas.
11:01 And just to let you know what's going on,
11:05 Tatum spoke already.
11:06 I mean, that's how fast this thing is.
11:07 That's why half the media is already back,
11:09 which is surprising.
11:10 That's the quickest postgame I've ever seen.
11:13 Bobby will give us the latest.
11:14 I'm sure you're still finishing things up in the locker room.
11:16 But I've never seen anything like-- have you?
11:18 I mean, that was--
11:19 No, I know.
11:20 Ahmed had told me.
11:21 Oh, he told you?
11:22 Yeah.
11:23 I was like-- that's why I was so confused.
11:24 I'm like, why is everyone here right now?
11:26 But yeah, they spoke already.
11:27 So I'm sure they just want to put this in the rear view,
11:29 obviously, considering the longest
11:31 homestand of the season just kicked off.
11:33 So it's off to a rough start.
11:35 But you look at how this team's going to bounce back Monday,
11:39 Tuesday.
11:40 I'm almost hoping that poor Zingas isn't active,
11:43 to be honest with you, John.
11:44 Because I want to see this team get-- figure
11:46 this thing out without him.
11:47 Yeah, exactly.
11:48 Fix it.
11:48 And then obviously, down the road,
11:50 you've got a big matchup against the Lakers Thursday
11:52 night.
11:52 No, as Bill Belichick would say, onto the Pelicans,
11:56 which is Monday, the first half of a back-to-back.
11:58 I want to see something that's going to go for these games.
12:01 The response from this type of performance,
12:04 I think it's going to speak volumes as to where
12:05 they're at mentally right now.
12:07 And what I mean by that is not that they're, quote unquote,
12:09 "checked out" or whatever, but that I just
12:12 finished doing an episode with Max today saying that these guys
12:14 have just reached their stride.
12:16 I want to chalk this up as a one-off.
12:19 But again, as other teams kind of get that second time
12:23 to face the Celtics team, and without Chris Dasport saying
12:26 it, it's going to be interesting to see how they respond.
12:27 Because obviously, this isn't the first time
12:30 the Clippers faced the Celtics.
12:32 They clearly fixed a lot compared
12:34 to what we saw on December 23rd against the Celtics.
12:37 Again, of course, no Kawhi Leonard
12:39 is a big part of that one.
12:40 But still, the Clippers--
12:41 No, they stomped them.
12:42 They stomped them.
12:44 And again, the streak that they were on heading into this one,
12:48 on the second night of a back-to-back on the road,
12:50 that's impressive.
12:52 Yeah, look out for the Clippers for sure.
12:54 I don't know if they can win the West, which is obviously
12:57 the only way that these two teams would meet in the playoffs.
12:59 But man, they just gave us a lot of issues, a lot of fits.
13:05 And again, it's the star power, it's the athleticism,
13:07 it's the defense, it's that tough physicality
13:11 that I think really did the Celtics in.
13:14 Yeah.
13:15 Yeah, so let's go down the line.
13:17 I don't want to go player by player,
13:18 because they all were bad.
13:20 But I will just say, if I'm following only the chat,
13:23 in terms of who the chat, most of their ire
13:26 is directed towards.
13:28 Missoula won, we kind of talked about it.
13:30 And I think the Missoula ball thing,
13:32 while interesting and potentially relevant,
13:35 is also kind of a tired conversation.
13:38 We've had it a bunch of times.
13:39 And I think every time they have cold shooting nights,
13:42 we bring it up again.
13:43 And I think we're just kind of saying the same thing
13:44 over and over again.
13:46 If you're deeply concerned by it, I get it.
13:48 I know there are a lot of people who are,
13:50 when it comes to playoff time for sure,
13:52 that it could be a thing that could be their undoing.
13:55 And you see them go cold, like in a series against the Heat.
13:58 And you lose to an inferior team.
14:00 And then all of this talent and all of whatever you were doing
14:02 was wasted, because you play one way,
14:05 and that way didn't work for this small sample size
14:08 of games.
14:08 And that's that.
14:09 Your season's over.
14:10 But I don't think we've seen that from them this year.
14:13 I think we've seen them win multiple ways,
14:17 though I still would like to see more easy baskets.
14:20 I always, always, always want to see that.
14:22 But the next guy on the list, Josue,
14:24 that's catching a lot of heat right now, well, Luke.
14:27 But Luke just gets--
14:28 that's not fair.
14:29 Luke's just getting--
14:30 He should be catching strays.
14:32 He shouldn't be catching directs.
14:33 Exactly, exactly.
14:34 It's more strays.
14:36 He's catching strays, people.
14:37 I don't know why.
14:38 Just because, whatever, they did.
14:40 But it's--
14:41 Because he's not porzingis?
14:42 OK, clearly he's not, guys.
14:44 Sorry.
14:44 It's Al, where people are kind of--
14:48 because, again, you see him start.
14:50 You see him be totally ineffective.
14:52 Kind of makes you realize and remember and appreciate,
14:55 obviously, what porzingis brings.
14:57 And then nights like this, the entire chat is Al is cooked,
15:03 Al is cooked, Al is cooked.
15:04 I'm not ready to go there either.
15:05 But I do definitely think Bench is perfect.
15:10 And I don't want to bring Bobby out here and say,
15:12 like, why did you do Bobby for him to start?
15:14 He's so perfectly suited to be coming off the bench here.
15:17 But it does-- a game like this kind of highlights where,
15:20 like, whoa, thank goodness you've got porzingis.
15:23 Because Al really is meant to come off the bench
15:26 and do his thing and play defense and play smart.
15:30 But tonight was a rough one.
15:31 Yeah, man.
15:32 It's one of those nights where he's not
15:34 facing the secondary defenses.
15:37 You're in there with the starters.
15:39 And this is a team that was hungry.
15:41 I feel like going into this one again,
15:42 with the streak that they've been on,
15:44 considering what happened in LA the last time
15:46 these two teams met, it was a tough matchup for them,
15:48 especially up front, man.
15:50 Credit to-- between Plumlee and Daniel Tysman,
15:55 they didn't make anything easy for the Celtics in terms
15:57 of the screening, freeing up their guys, rebounding.
16:00 I just felt like, especially in transition, Al was,
16:03 at some points, huffing and puffing, it seemed like.
16:05 Just couldn't find his offense.
16:06 And even in the attempts that he took,
16:08 they just-- they didn't look great.
16:10 What was it, four three-pointers?
16:11 Yeah, zero for four.
16:13 Another missed shot from inside the arc.
16:16 Just couldn't find his rhythm at all.
16:18 It just goes to show you, man, some certain particular
16:20 matchups, man, when he's in the starting lineup,
16:22 it really thins out what you have coming off the bench.
16:25 And this is a perfect example of that.
16:27 Well, there's no interior presence.
16:28 There's no interior presence when he's not
16:29 knocking down the shot.
16:30 Because he's forced to be that guy, right?
16:32 Yeah, that's a good point as well.
16:33 Yeah.
16:34 Yeah, you're right.
16:34 I mean, and look, people can say what they want on Mo' Cornette,
16:38 but this is one of his better performances
16:40 if you ask me.
16:41 He was instrumental in just trying to disrupt those lobs.
16:47 When Clippers got really comfortable with just--
16:50 there was someone just readily available to catch an alley-oop.
16:54 I thought he disrupted a couple of those.
16:56 He finished down low as well.
16:57 He had 12 points in this one, or 11 points, five rebounds.
17:00 I mean, it's pretty solid coming off the bench.
17:02 But when you're missing so much up front in the starting five,
17:07 when Al's having such a rough night, Clippers took advantage.
17:09 They took advantage for sure.
17:11 And that's part of the reason why I think Cornette got stuck
17:15 in the paint where he shouldn't have been when he got dunked
17:18 on in that fourth quarter, which at that point,
17:20 the game was already done.
17:21 But yeah.
17:22 Yeah.
17:23 Yeah.
17:23 Yeah.
17:24 Cornette's 7-2 going on 6-2 sometimes
17:27 when he's down there by himself in the paint.
17:29 But--
17:30 These guys can fly, man.
17:31 You saw what Terrence Bant did to Drew Holiday, man.
17:33 He dunked on him like it was nothing.
17:35 Yeah.
17:36 I didn't get the Al hatred because he's 137 years old.
17:43 And I just don't think it's fair.
17:44 Minus 100.
17:46 Joe Lewis-- Joe Lewis, 143 years old.
17:52 Sorry.
17:52 But look, Tatum was OK.
18:03 Brown was brutal.
18:04 I mean, again, you're going to pin it on the guys
18:07 who got to get you there.
18:08 White definitely has cooled down since everyone was like,
18:11 this guy's an all-star.
18:12 I know.
18:13 He's not helping his case right now.
18:15 He's great.
18:16 But he's definitely cooled down a little bit.
18:19 Holiday's been great in terms of knocking down the three.
18:22 But he had a bad game tonight too.
18:25 And Brown was terrible.
18:26 So I mean, they were terrible.
18:29 They were terrible.
18:30 I hate that version of Brown too, man.
18:32 Ugh.
18:32 Terrible.
18:33 It wasn't even like--
18:34 I'm not allowed to go there.
18:35 When I do, it's an agenda.
18:36 But he was terrible tonight.
18:38 Oh my goodness.
18:39 They were all terrible, but he was one of them.
18:42 Yeah, he was.
18:44 He was.
18:45 You know, this--
18:46 Because Tatum, all that it was, ended up with a minus 32.
18:49 You know, I mean, he was kind of stuck in there
18:51 when the game got ridiculous.
18:53 You know, when the game really got stupid.
18:55 Yeah, I thought he was trying to get himself ejected, man.
18:57 But I think that was just a pure reaction.
18:59 Just like, he was like, what?
19:00 What now?
19:00 Like, can I get--
19:02 I mean, granted, the reason why he got it
19:05 was just the classic hands in the air.
19:07 I mean, referees are now--
19:09 if they're feeling a certain type of way,
19:10 they're just going to slap him with a technical foul.
19:13 The way he was arguing, I thought
19:14 he might get himself tossed.
19:15 But yeah, it's one of those games, man.
19:17 I just feel like when you needed just at least that one run that
19:23 could give this team some life in that third quarter,
19:26 it just never came.
19:27 And then you start thinking to yourself,
19:29 are the Souths going to score 40 points before the end of this?
19:31 Or no, in the second quarter, rather.
19:34 And then going into the third, again,
19:35 Tatum gets out that quick five--
19:37 those five points in like two minutes.
19:39 And that was the only sign of life,
19:42 I feel like, we saw from the Souths in that third quarter.
19:44 Yeah.
19:45 Yeah, I don't know.
19:47 Awful.
19:48 Awful.
19:49 Awful all the way around.
19:50 Man, but these Clippers, they look so--
19:52 they were happy, man.
19:53 I think it was one of their favorite wins
19:54 of the season for sure.
19:55 Like, I've never seen these guys.
19:56 And I'm thinking about what Ty Lou said,
19:59 because I asked him about this terrific run
20:01 that they've had ever since they lost against the Celtics.
20:04 And he's like, man, it's those guys, the stars,
20:06 figuring out how to play with one another
20:08 and figuring out what works best and exploring
20:11 particular matchups.
20:12 And then an hour later, that's exactly how
20:15 they executed offensively, exploring
20:16 matchups that they knew would work in their favor
20:18 and just playing really smart basketball
20:20 and taking care of the ball as well.
20:22 And then the defense, to me, was really the difference.
20:26 The way they defended.
20:27 And Kawhi Leonard hit him some tough shots.
20:29 But it wasn't just him.
20:30 It was a lot of these guys.
20:32 Yeah, we might have some post-game sound.
20:37 Do we have it?
20:38 No, we're going to hear from Joe Mazzullo in a little bit here.
20:42 Yeah, Amit's working on it now.
20:43 As the Celtics, oh yeah, you got eyes on Amit?
20:46 Yeah, I got eyes on Amit right now.
20:47 I got eyes on Amit.
20:49 In the meantime--
20:50 I don't know what he did, but I just gave him one of these,
20:52 and this room is quieted down tremendously.
20:55 So good looks, Amit.
20:57 Yeah, respect, yeah.
20:59 So just let you guys know, FanDuel NFL weekend conference
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21:07 I'll tell you what I think is going to happen,
21:09 but I actually don't know.
21:09 I got to think about it first.
21:10 But--
21:11 You trying to influence some bets right now, John?
21:13 Trying to influence people's bets?
21:13 While I'm thinking about it, you guys
21:15 run over and sign up at fanduel.com/boston.
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21:47 Josue, who do you like?
21:49 Man, you mean like for the Super Bowl
21:53 or just talking about the AFC?
21:56 There's two games tomorrow.
21:57 No, I know.
21:58 But I'm saying, like, you're asking for one matchup,
21:59 or you're just saying, like--
22:00 Which-- who do you like?
22:02 What do you like?
22:02 Chiefs, Ravens, who do you like there?
22:04 I'm going Chiefs, and then I'm going to go--
22:09 God, I want to give it to the Lions, but we'll see.
22:12 I love it.
22:13 Chiefs, Lions, Super Bowl.
22:15 That's what I'm thinking is going to happen.
22:17 But I could definitely be wrong.
22:19 OK, I like that.
22:20 I support that.
22:21 I would say I thought all year long
22:23 that the Niners were so far and away the best team in the NFL.
22:28 But then you just see those games
22:29 when Purdy just doesn't have it.
22:31 And when that happens, they can really come down to earth.
22:36 But I'm still going.
22:37 I'm going with the boring picks.
22:38 I'm going with the Niners and the Ravens,
22:42 even though I hate betting against Mahomes.
22:44 I'm a massive Mahomes fan.
22:47 So, you know, but I don't think so.
22:50 I think it's going to happen.
22:51 And honestly, everyone wants to see it.
22:53 Lions shocking the world, absolutely.
22:54 Let's bring in Bobby.
22:57 You think he'll have that dynasty like Brady did?
23:00 I don't know.
23:00 Like I said on the last show, I think
23:02 he's already the second best quarterback in NFL history.
23:06 And he's only going to add to that resume.
23:07 But I've never seen anybody like him
23:10 in my life in terms of just how he plays.
23:12 It's just amazing to me.
23:14 Bobby, tell us something.
23:16 You know, anything.
23:18 Yeah, especially the press conference
23:20 going on. Yeah.
23:22 Yeah, they went missed shots, as you expected them to.
23:25 And we got good looks.
23:26 Did we get good looks?
23:27 Yeah. In the first half.
23:30 The third quarter was a problem, there's no doubt about it.
23:34 And even Joe acknowledged that turnovers missed shots, missed layups.
23:39 I think they shot like 40 at the number 14 to 32
23:43 around the rim through three quarters, 44 percent.
23:48 Why don't you ask me about layups, Bobby?
23:50 Yeah. So layups were a big, big, big problem in this one.
23:54 They call them layups, but I thought a lot of them were not great shots.
23:57 They got close to the rim and really weren't all the way.
23:59 Just force them up.
24:01 Weird force ups, flip ups.
24:03 Really not. It'll say within five feet.
24:06 But a lot of those were not quality shots.
24:08 Yeah, for sure.
24:09 And well contested, too, by the Clippers defense.
24:11 Clippers, I think this does qualify as a game where you can say
24:15 a really good team on the other side played incredible
24:17 and just completely destroyed you in this one.
24:20 Now, just like, you know, as we talked about after Thursday, John,
24:23 the shooting was ridiculous, but it still would have been a really good,
24:27 convincing win, even without the historic shooting in that game.
24:29 This still would have been a pretty bad loss, even with a little better
24:33 shooting that would have made it closer in the end.
24:36 So, you know, you still take away several things from it.
24:39 The switching still bothers this team.
24:41 They've gotten better against it in spots, but against a team like this,
24:45 where you have size at every position, Jason said to me
24:47 that it wasn't quite clear where to attack on this defense.
24:51 And you saw it like, were you going to go after Terrence Mann?
24:53 That was probably the most likely candidate there.
24:56 But especially if you're trying to post up, even Harden's not a mismatch
24:59 in that sense.
25:00 He's pretty strong if you're trying to attack him on the block.
25:02 Probably could have put him in some actions,
25:04 but the Clippers were doubling on the ball, bringing a guy down to that,
25:07 you know, role man, whether it was Horford or Cornette.
25:11 And they toss it to the corners and they miss those shots a lot.
25:15 I thought Holiday especially got some really good looks in the first half there.
25:18 So, you know, decent passing overall, the turnovers,
25:21 they're still a little too high for the team right now.
25:24 And then, of course, you got to finish better at the basket
25:26 and get to the free throw line more often than we went to the line
25:29 ten times in three quarters there.
25:31 So, you know, you can hold them to a high standard, John.
25:34 This is the kind of team you're going to see late in the playoffs
25:36 that's able to be disruptive against you.
25:39 That's able to do some weird things defensively that don't allow you
25:42 to get the shots you would ideally want.
25:44 And we've talked about this, you know, especially the I think it was ball.
25:48 I don't stop John.
25:50 The Twitter account there,
25:51 they kind of went on a tirade against what this team's going to look like
25:53 in the playoffs, a little strong, obviously, given how well they've played.
25:56 And again, you're ignoring the Porzingis factor,
25:59 which changes that dynamic a little bit from years past, right?
26:02 For sure. And if they're well, if they're fully healthy in this one,
26:06 they're a lot more competitive.
26:08 You know, there's going to be some mismatches down low,
26:10 even against strong post defenders that he's just able to shoot right over.
26:13 And Horford doesn't give you that.
26:15 Cornett tried to go to the post up a couple of times.
26:18 Didn't go great.
26:20 So you just didn't have that dynamic in this game and that along
26:24 with offensive rebounds, which they got a lot of in this game,
26:27 but couldn't turn them in the points ever.
26:30 Those two factors have kind of balanced them out on some bad shooting nights.
26:33 And in this game, they weren't able to find points in any other manner.
26:37 Yeah, they couldn't get out on the run either, really.
26:40 Nope, not at all.
26:42 And I know Joe said it.
26:43 One of the things that he said that I saw you and a bunch of the other reporters
26:46 tweeting that the bad offense really impacted their defense tremendously
26:52 because it was just hard to recover because they're just missing so many shots.
26:55 And for for what it's worth, the Clippers weren't really hitting that many early
26:58 either. No, it was six, five, like late into the third quarter in terms of threes.
27:02 They were both horrible from three in the first half.
27:05 So, you know, it really was, as you said, the third quarter there,
27:08 which is frustrating because you kind of got a pass playing that badly
27:11 in the first half and still being within striking distance.
27:14 And then you just you just went dead silent.
27:17 I forget what the stretch was, but it was about 540.
27:20 Almost six minutes without a basket on a 20 nothing run and lights out.
27:24 So here's Joe talking about getting their asses kicked
27:28 by a good team on their home floor, the character of team.
27:30 I think, like I said, it's more about balance. Right.
27:32 And so to me, there's no coincidence that the two extremes happened
27:36 one after another.
27:37 And I think those can be gifts when you look at them properly and
27:40 keep you balanced and keep you humble and just keep you in check.
27:43 You know, you're never as good as you think you are.
27:45 You're never as bad as you think you are. And I think it's important.
27:47 And, you know, we always talk about like adversity,
27:51 but it's adversity is always looked at as a like something negative happens to you.
27:56 But to me, one of the hardest things to do is like win consistently, right?
28:00 All the time and handle success.
28:02 And that's just as hard as handling losing is being able to handle success. Right.
28:06 So I think regardless, you just you focus on the character of your team
28:10 and our guys will be they'll bounce back.
28:13 OK, so here's the thing, I don't disagree, right?
28:19 Yeah, especially that adversity take.
28:22 Yeah, you can absolutely learn from it.
28:24 I don't disagree at all.
28:27 But yeah, I've also heard them say, like, we don't even think about it.
28:31 We just flush it.
28:32 So I think whatever kind of plays here is fine.
28:34 But I mean, that's that's that's reasonable, you know,
28:37 you know, reasonable from Joe.
28:42 That's kind of the point. Right.
28:43 But you do hope it's a little bit humbling. Right.
28:45 And you know what?
28:46 We're victims. We do it all the time.
28:49 I mean, geez, you know, we the last game, we're like,
28:53 this team is the greatest thing, you know, and fans do, too.
28:56 And then, you know, they lose this one.
28:58 And it's you know, this team's never going to win as long as Joe's the coach.
29:01 And Alice Cookton Brown is a 300 million dollar mistake.
29:05 So, I mean, we flip fast, you know, on these things.
29:09 And you're right, getting high and low.
29:10 And again, it's what Boston sports fans do overreact to everything positive
29:14 and negative.
29:15 But you wonder how the players process these things.
29:17 Do they just self-doubt creep in?
29:20 Are they able to kind of wipe it?
29:22 And then wiping it?
29:23 I think they're able to wipe it. Yeah.
29:25 Where I feel like last year or even the year before that,
29:28 it would carry over, you know, that that demeanor, you know,
29:31 or or the maybe one one or two runs on the post on the wrong end.
29:36 It lost. Yeah.
29:38 I'm out of orbit for 30. Yeah, exactly.
29:40 That's a perfect example.
29:42 And that was the Christmas game, right?
29:43 Around that time. So, yeah, I just I don't think that's the case.
29:46 That's the case with these guys.
29:48 However, how they respond in the next two, I think is going to be interesting
29:52 because, again, it'll be without Porzingis.
29:53 And I want to see how they how they do, especially against a team
29:56 like the Pacers, who've obviously, you know, made a trade to kind of
30:00 up their chances and the standings and all that.
30:04 And again, it's just a character thing for me.
30:06 I want to see how they respond.
30:07 And historically, at least this season, they've
30:10 usually responded in a good way, in a big way.
30:13 Yeah. One thing you've heard last year to go back to what you said
30:16 that to after certain games would be doubts about the game plan. Right, John?
30:21 Remember that next game last year?
30:22 Jaylen said, yeah, we shot way too many threes in this one.
30:25 And I think Malcolm at different points called in some of the things they did.
30:28 You heard a lot of that throughout the course of the regular season this year.
30:32 And I think the messaging and the stance by players and coaches
30:37 alike has been pretty collective after losses this year.
30:39 And I think that's a big reason I've been confident in Joe this year
30:44 is that he's been able to maintain such an aligned locker room.
30:46 You know, there'd be spots certainly this season, especially early,
30:52 maybe after that Hornets game where guys could have been like, yeah, you know,
30:54 I don't know how I'm being used right now.
30:56 I don't really know my role.
30:58 That hasn't happened at all this season.
31:00 So I think that's a big reason they haven't had extended balls.
31:03 Well, I mean, it hasn't happened because it was established early,
31:07 despite the protestations of Bobby Manning, who kept wanting to insert
31:10 Al Horford into the starting lineup.
31:12 It was just called it was called Top Six.
31:14 We call it Top Six.
31:15 From the moment our six starters are six start
31:19 from the moment they traded for holiday, you knew what this was going to look like.
31:23 Almost everybody knew.
31:26 And then it's locked. Right.
31:28 And then it was Horford.
31:29 And even I mean, Joe went as far as to say it like we got friggin,
31:33 you know, our top six and Peyton and Luke and and Sam.
31:38 And that's pretty much our guys.
31:40 So, I mean, there's been no change to that all year.
31:43 All we is the get ready crew has been running open auditions all year,
31:47 you know, for who could be the 10th guy or step.
31:49 They stay ready, John. They don't get ready, though.
31:51 They stay ready. They stay ready.
31:53 SRC, man. Don't get it twisted.
31:55 Stay ready, crew.
31:57 The SRC. They stay ready. Right.
32:00 But other than that, there's nothing to mess around.
32:03 Last year, you did have the who's I mean, you had the three guards
32:07 and you're closing with the wrong lineups all the time.
32:09 Sometimes Rob comes back double big, no double big. What are we doing?
32:13 It was a little bit more confusing.
32:14 I felt like they were. Joe was feeling it out.
32:17 He actually didn't have it based on just the personnel this year.
32:20 They actually don't have the ability.
32:22 So I don't know how much I'm putting it on Joe.
32:24 When Joe had a bit of a more complicated situation,
32:27 he kind of made a mess out of it last year.
32:29 This year, it's so basic.
32:30 Any one of us could coach the team, at least through the first couple quarters,
32:34 you know, like just do you guys play and then I'll see you later, you know, like.
32:39 So, again, it's why I don't give coaches tons of blame.
32:43 And I don't give because I don't get the messaging to especially
32:46 steering them out of some of the losses and different things they need to emphasize.
32:50 This game interests me in particular, because after that Warriors game
32:54 that you mentioned, John,
32:55 they admitted they had to revamp the offense a little bit, change some things,
33:00 pick up their pace, especially to avoid some of the switching defenses
33:04 they were going to go against.
33:05 And one of them was the Clippers, who they beat
33:08 for one hundred forty five points in that game right before Christmas there.
33:12 So they have figured out that.
33:14 I'd say biggest issue they have are in teams that are able to switch
33:20 one through five against them and, you know, be a little bit more disruptive
33:24 on the defensive side of the ball, slow them down, grind them into a hall,
33:27 really flatten out their offense.
33:29 Those are the teams and the Warriors have done a great job with it.
33:32 Try to think of some other teams.
33:33 Timberwolves did it well, I felt like,
33:35 especially with some of the stuff they did with their big men.
33:39 Joe thought they pulled up the big and, you know, were able to get
33:43 in some passing lanes here in ways that really just made the Celtics
33:46 very uncertain of what they were doing offensively.
33:49 And I think you saw it most in those possessions
33:51 Horford had in the high post.
33:53 He's such a decisive, smart passer, John.
33:56 In this game, he just looked like a mess.
33:58 This was one of the worst games I've ever seen him play.
34:00 Obviously, he didn't score, missed all his shots,
34:04 but he also didn't make good plays with the ball in his hands here.
34:07 And he's a guy you rely on for that, especially with Porzingis down.
34:10 So they were tough on him.
34:12 They forced turnovers on him, Tatum, all the primary ball handers.
34:16 And, you know, I didn't get a chance to look at it,
34:17 but I feel like this is probably the first game ever where White and Horford
34:21 didn't make a shot in a game, which is a pretty big part of their
34:25 lackluster offensive performance here.
34:27 So it was definitely a missed shots game, but it was also a schematic
34:31 win for the Clippers who were able to do some things defensively
34:34 that really threw the Celtics off.
34:36 Yeah, really threw them off.
34:38 And again, I hate the missed shots thing.
34:41 I really do. I do, too.
34:43 Yeah, but it's one of those things where it's like
34:46 you made it so hard for them that I felt like the Celtics,
34:49 like some of the not layups, but some of the takes of the rim
34:52 could have should have come easy, you know, but it didn't.
34:56 But because there were the few that did come easy,
34:59 it would miss them because I thought they were so used to it.
35:01 And I think that's what they were missing.
35:03 And that's just a sign of a great defense, just handling you mentally
35:06 throughout the first two and a half quarters, you know,
35:08 especially in that third where they really broke things open.
35:11 And that was the game.
35:12 You know, I hate you know, I hate it, John.
35:14 They're not going into the film room tomorrow and throwing up their hands
35:18 and saying, we just missed shots. Let's go home.
35:21 Like it's not that simple.
35:23 A lot of the times to me, like I think it almost especially, you know,
35:27 when they've said in different spots is trying to put the team
35:30 in a position where they can't take a shot.
35:33 And I think that's a big part of it.
35:34 And I think that's a big part of what they're doing.
35:35 And I think that's a big part of what they're doing.
35:36 And I think that's a big part of what they're doing.
35:37 And again, like, you know, I'm asking certain things.
35:38 The Clippers did well after this game.
35:40 Clearly, they came into this game with an approach that was
35:44 effective and disruptive and highlighted a weakness for Boston.
35:49 I think that's human nature.
35:51 You know, nobody wants to admit like, oh, geez,
35:54 they just did stuff we can't deal with.
35:57 You know, like if it happens over a seven game series,
36:00 you're you're forced to acknowledge, OK, they did it.
36:03 But as a one off, it is very easy to say like, you know,
36:06 we do one or two things differently.
36:07 We could have turned this game around.
36:08 A couple of those shots fall.
36:10 And you really do think that.
36:11 And I think a lot of people think that was the case.
36:13 It might not be the case, but it's easy for a player to think it
36:18 because it's just, you know, the last they've got egos.
36:22 And rightfully so.
36:24 They're you know, they have every reason to believe that they're there.
36:27 They're you know, they're the shit.
36:29 So I don't think they walk away from this thing and go, man,
36:33 we face those guys where we've got some problems
36:35 because they really did some things to us.
36:36 I think they're thinking, OK, next time, not going to be
36:40 not going to be like this. I'll tell you that.
36:42 So I don't think they I don't think they
36:45 I don't think they look at it that way.
36:46 But we do. I mean, Scott said it 100 times during the broadcast.
36:50 This is the this might be the most complete team they've played.
36:53 You know, like this team really gave them fits, you know.
36:57 I think it's the most I think it's the most compatible
37:01 top to bottom team or comparable rather to Boston spreading out.
37:06 And, you know, just like an idea of pregame video.
37:08 Joe Sway was pretty convinced that they were going to lose this game.
37:12 And you look at what you're facing on the other side,
37:15 especially when Kawhi's in there, and he was so efficient in this game again.
37:18 So it is. You can't speed him up.
37:21 You can't scheme to really stop him because he has so much around him.
37:24 And he's really not the point of attack as a pastor now
37:27 because they have hardened.
37:28 They're able to do a lot on both ends of the board
37:31 that if this was the finals and it very well could be
37:33 hard and aside.
37:37 And that's a conversation for another day.
37:40 You'd be very worried about this team in a playoff series, I think.
37:43 You know, they definitely don't have a
37:46 they don't have a very intimidating road environment.
37:49 You know, like maybe some other teams would, but
37:52 this team's for real.
37:56 They look like they're for real.
37:57 They have a lot, especially at the big man position, too.
37:59 I mean, you're down to batch and you put only out there who's being disruptive.
38:03 And then Tice comes off the bench with 16 and three blocks.
38:06 They got a lot. They're deep.
38:08 They have scores and creators at so many different positions.
38:11 And again, they weren't great offensively in this one.
38:13 They were pretty flat, too.
38:14 But defensively, they did some stuff that really impressed me.
38:18 Yeah, no question, man.
38:20 You can't forget who's who's leading this team, right?
38:22 Tyloo is coaching staff, obviously, so this background,
38:25 but also just experienced guys who could weave their team through a best
38:30 of seven series and give them a shot in that game seven.
38:33 If you ask me, it's a coin flip.
38:35 Hypothetically, right.
38:36 These two teams were to meet each other.
38:38 Say it's a coin flip, honestly, in the best of seven series.
38:40 It's going to be if you ask me, probably going to be a lot harder
38:44 for the Clippers to get there compared to the Celtics.
38:46 But if that were to happen, if that were to happen hypothetically, man,
38:50 that would be one heck of an NBA final series. Absolutely.
38:54 Yeah. And again, I just don't I don't get caught up in
38:57 like finals preview stuff because you just got to get there.
39:03 Yeah. And then at that point, you're facing a pretty damn good team.
39:06 You could say good things about anybody who's going to possibly be there.
39:09 And the Clippers are one of them.
39:11 Denver's one of them.
39:11 Denver's the other one I was going to say.
39:13 And you talk about OKC in Minnesota.
39:15 Everyone thinks they might be upstarts and it's a little too soon.
39:17 A year too soon. They're too young.
39:19 So I'm sorry. I like that.
39:20 Yeah, I think you look at those two teams the most
39:23 and say, you know, OK, we've seen them in a year.
39:27 Got it. OK.
39:31 So you're not really.
39:34 Oh, well, there you go.
39:37 Yeah, that was weird for a second.
39:39 Yeah. Oh, yeah.
39:40 We're not really concerned with the finals matchup
39:42 because once you get there, you're like, great.
39:44 You know, we made it. So
39:45 right. Right.
39:47 The momentum is complete.
39:48 The momentum is completely different. Right.
39:50 Is Luke OK, though? That's the thing.
39:52 That's what we're really got to get to.
39:54 Probably long term, but he's definitely going to miss a little time here,
39:59 I would think, if he came up with him with a hamstring.
40:02 So, you know, not a huge deal, but simultaneously with Porzingis,
40:06 it's not ideal, especially coming in the Monday's game against Zion.
40:10 Back to back on Monday, right?
40:13 Yeah, it gives us a chance to follow the time all over again.
40:16 Kata time. Yeah, it could be a game there where Kata has to start.
40:21 I think that's the move for Monday, for sure, because on the second half of that
40:23 second, I think it's you want one of those guys back in the mix.
40:27 Oh, that's a good point, because it's an East matchup, but matchup wise,
40:31 it's tough because all those front lines are pretty.
40:34 Because Al's not going to play.
40:36 I won't play Tuesday unless you set him for Monday, which I'd be surprised.
40:40 Well, I thought you just said the opposite, you want to play him against Indy.
40:44 Right. Well, that's what I'm saying, though.
40:46 Like, I, I would like them to line it up that way so that,
40:50 you know, you don't have to worry about bringing bringing back.
40:53 Before you hopped on, Bobby, I don't I don't like the idea of bringing him back
40:57 throughout this back to back stretch.
40:58 I want to see this team continue without him, at least for the next three days.
41:02 Yeah, no, I think you play Horford against Indy.
41:05 Right. Well, that's what I mean, though, because then you set them.
41:08 You have them for against Indy instead of not having either one.
41:11 Yeah, I mean, Monday, Monday would be the would be the Kata game.
41:15 Listen, we've seen them down a couple of bigs and figure it out.
41:19 Ten and two without posing is our Stevens playing the five.
41:23 They want a game with Amar Steven starting, so they'll figure it out.
41:26 It's not completely.
41:27 Burdened. The Orlando game.
41:29 Yeah. One of the two Orlando games. Yeah.
41:32 Yeah. So they've been here before, namely that mini series,
41:35 and they succeeded in that spot.
41:37 So again, you come away from this one.
41:39 Maybe if they were like five and five, John, or if this was a crunch time loss
41:43 where they've been a little shaky without posing, you should say that's a major
41:46 issue here, but this is unlike any game they've really played so far without
41:50 posing is here.
41:51 I guess the one thing you would look at here, and I know Drew got asked about it
41:54 after is a modest record against the league's best teams,
41:58 the one in one against the box, which obviously you kind of flush that loss.
42:02 The Nuggets loss,
42:04 you know, mixed results against Philly and,
42:07 you know, some of the and that's going to be the case for any team, really
42:11 going up against the top teams in the league.
42:14 But they they're haven't been the best against some of the top competition
42:19 in the league yet that's under one and one against the Wolves.
42:22 So I put that out there their last four games.
42:25 And I tweeted it earlier.
42:27 They're one in three in their last four games against the other top
42:30 among the top five teams, the top four records, five records in basketball.
42:34 Celtics, OKC, Minnesota, the Bucks and the Clippers.
42:38 Their last run through that, that that that, you know, those teams
42:42 to blow out losses, Bucks and Clippers, Bucks was the back to back.
42:46 But again, they played everybody.
42:47 They just didn't show up.
42:48 Clippers again, no poor thing.
42:50 It didn't show up Nuggets.
42:51 They lost you with the full lineup,
42:53 which was a bummer because that was a very winnable game.
42:55 And they did beat Minnesota that come from behind game
42:57 also without poor Zingas.
42:59 And they they were able to win that one in overtime.
43:02 That was a good game there.
43:04 So again, that's your last foray through the top teams in the NBA.
43:08 And again, everyone's going to say, oh, small sample size.
43:11 They beat them last time. And you're right.
43:13 They beat Minnesota.
43:14 They lost to them the time before that.
43:16 You know, they beat in Philly, you know, recently.
43:19 They've lost a couple to Indiana.
43:20 I think two of their last three to Indiana.
43:22 So you're playing better teams.
43:25 Really, that's all that matters, like that's who you're sizing yourself up against.
43:29 There's some really good teams out there.
43:31 And so that's why when you get what we're really learning, John, is that
43:34 they're not my and we said this last year when they had that ridiculous start,
43:38 they're not miles and miles better than anybody.
43:40 And that's obviously the last year we were saying they were,
43:43 because I really do think there is I think you can have off nights at any given time.
43:47 I still think there's a bit of separation between them and the other teams in the east.
43:51 But we've seen like a night the Celtics can look bad
43:56 and other teams can occasionally make them look bad.
43:57 It's just what happens over a seven game series over one game.
44:01 I'm not super worried, you know, and I'm not going to overreact
44:04 necessarily to a win or a loss there.
44:06 But but you're really only sizing yourself up against
44:10 six, seven, eight teams total.
44:12 And so when they come into town, the Denver or the Clippers,
44:16 or you go to Milwaukee, you're kind of like, all right, let's see what we got.
44:19 And when you when you have two incredibly disappointing games
44:23 like they had against Milwaukee and tonight
44:25 and then you have a letdown against Denver, it's a little deflating.
44:28 It deflates that unstoppable kind of balloon that, you know, that
44:32 that you know, that that everyone kind of, you know, the pedestal
44:36 we've kind of put them on.
44:38 Yeah, I thought they thought they found the stride this season,
44:41 honestly, going into this game, I thought this would be a great way
44:44 to start the homestand.
44:45 I mean, I thought this would be a tough one.
44:47 I just didn't expect the gap to be this large between the in the final score.
44:52 But yeah, I want to see this team respond.
44:56 But I also want to see what Tatum and Brown, you know, go back
45:00 to what they were doing, you know, how they got out to the start, especially
45:03 with what happened on the road and coming into this, coming to this homestead.
45:08 So we'll see how they respond.
45:10 OK, so, yeah, we will.
45:12 Bobby, anything else to wrap it?
45:13 We got a bunch of games coming.
45:14 We're going to keep this one a little short tonight,
45:16 but we got a lot coming back with a packed week of games from the guard.
45:21 Anything good matchups to good matchups?
45:24 Yeah, nothing particular from this one.
45:27 Obviously, they just got blown away.
45:29 I did find it interesting that they couldn't get to their post-ups here.
45:34 Couldn't get to the offensive rebound.
45:36 Couldn't get some of those other things that they've used to balance
45:38 themselves out this year.
45:40 Listen, those are things that make you feel good about them,
45:42 that they have some counters to bad shooting nights.
45:44 I actually looked.
45:46 They're over 500 when they shoot below league average for three,
45:49 and that remains the case after this game.
45:52 I think they're like 11 to eight or something like that.
45:54 And they've been much better at that this year.
45:56 Yeah, I think it was like 13 and 19 last year.
45:59 So that's a big point of improvement if you're comparing the seasons.
46:04 Yeah, yeah, no doubt about it.
46:07 So as we said, thank you guys for joining us.
46:09 Sorry we're a little late.
46:10 The entire crew was down at the garden and Josue
46:12 was trying to figure out where to go from loud everywhere he went.
46:15 So we do apologize there.
46:17 Yeah, we have a fan appreciation thing going on.
46:19 So, yeah, a lot of people after the game hanging around.
46:21 Bunch of games. Everybody enjoy your Sunday.
46:24 We've got games coming back Monday and Tuesday.
46:27 And then what, Thursday and again on the weekend?
46:30 Saturday. Lakers Thursday.
46:32 Lakers Thursday.
46:34 So we are jam packed.
46:35 We've got nonstop action here.
46:38 So make sure you check it out.
46:39 We are going to say good night to you all and we'll see you all on Monday.
46:42 Wait, Amit's got an outro for us I think.
46:44 No, he doesn't.
46:46 You said he was going to work on an outro.
46:48 He had a phenomenal game.
46:50 Phenomenal!
46:52 Porfrit's out. I think it's an outro.
46:55 That did not sound like a chair.
47:00 It was a freaking chair.
47:02 It does sound like a chair.
47:03 [Music]