The Celtics just… honestly, I don’t even know what that was.
That was one of the least enjoyable basketball games I have ever had the displeasure of experiencing. I wish I could say that I “watched” it transpire, but that 48 minute disasterclass felt more like I was coming down with smallpox than watching a basketball game, slowly dying inside as the Los Angeles Clippers—a team that the Celtics clobbered by 37 on the road in December—continued their onslaught.
When our wonderful Adam Taylor had to call me off the bench for tonight’s 10 Takeaways for the second time this season, I was excited. This is a good team coming to Boston for what should be a competitive game, with lots of interesting and useful takeaways to speak of. Instead, that happened.
It was wall-to-wall failure, complete with all the trappings of a disastrous Celtics loss. Horrible three point shooting? Check. Poor decision-making and discipline? You got it. Worst percentage from the field all season? Book it.
Only once the Clippers removed their starters could the Celtics bench do their darnedest to make the final score look as respectable as possible, shaving it down to a bad-but-not-comically-bad 115-96 defeat. But this one should go in the record books as a 50 point loss, as if both teams played it through, it might have even been worse.
I sincerely hope that you—valued reader of CelticsBlog—were unable to watch last night due to a scheduling conflict, as there was approximately zero fun to be had. But if you’re like me and tuned in all the same, here are 10 painstaking takeaways.
1. The Celtics are not a Finals team without Kristaps Porzingis
Tonight exposed by far the Celtics’ biggest weakness: Kristaps Porzingis’ left ankle. Or knee. Or Lisfranc joint, whatever that even is.
Without Porzingis, the Celtics are liable to get blown off the face of the Earth by great teams, something the Clippers just announced themselves as. A bad defensive matchup suddenly has no curveball, and an unlucky shooting night can snowball into a bona fide catastrophe.
2. Deep breath
Ok, that was the main takeaway, so we’ll be using the second slot here to take a collective mental health break. Whoever you are, please stop reading and take four deep breaths, I’ll do the same.
3. The snowball effect
The Celtics were pretty clearly stuck in a bad matchup from the jump without Porzingis, as while noble backups Al Horford and Luke Kornet can provide on-paper size, they don’t complement it with any imposing force down low. But let’s get one thing straight: it did not have to be that bad.
4. Schedule losses don’t exist, they can’t hurt you
Let’s paint a picture. Team A is captained by three 30+ year-old stars, all with a history of missing tons of games and resting constantly, often to the detriment of the team. It is the second night of a back to back, with Team A traveling all the way from Canada overnight.
