Boston Sports Then and Now

The Boston Celtics’ Kevin Garnett (left) and the New York Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony (right) will build on the physicality from their first meeting this year.

The Boston Celtics have overcome adversity this year to find themselves in the NBA postseason for the sixth consecutive season. The Celtics lost their All-Star point guard, Rajon Rondo, to a season-ending torn right ACL in a January 25^th double overtime loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Rookie forward Jared Sullinger was forced to undergo surgery on his back in February that ended his season. Reserve guard Leandro Barbosa suffered a torn ACL in his left knee in the third quarter of the 94-91 loss against the Charlotte Bobcats on February 11^th. In a matter 17 days, the Celtics lost three key players in their rotation.

This season has been split into the team with Rondo and the team without Rondo. Prior to Rondo’s injury, the Celtics were 20-23 and they had lost six consecutive games. Then the team improved their play and appeared to rally around people calling for their demise. They won their next seven contests, including a 100-98 overtime victory over the top team in the NBA, the Miami Heat, and were 14-4 in their initial 18 games without their floor leader. The team played well defensively and they spread the ball around. Jeff Green became the player that Danny Ainge hoped he was getting when he sent Kendrick Perkins to the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2011. Green was more aggressive on the offensive end and his speed and length provided fits for the opposition. At one point the team was down to nine active players because of all the injuries. Ainge traded Jason Collins to the Washington Wizards for Jordan Crawford before the trade deadline ended on February 21^st. He signed TerrPence Williams, Shavlik Randolph, and D.J. White. All three of these players came from the Chinese Basketball Association and had been unable to stick with a team in the NBA.

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Kevin Garnett (left) cannot bear to watch his team’s lackluster play while Paul Pierce (right) looks on.

The Boston Celtics are in the midst of a four game losing streak and just came off a winless road trip through New Orleans, Dallas, and Memphis. The news got worse today when Celtics President of Basketball Operations Danny Ainge announced that Kevin Garnett will be out for at least the next two weeks with inflammation in his left ankle.

Garnett missed the 105-88 win over the Charlotte Bobcats on March 16^th with a left abductor strain and the 105-103 loss to the Miami Heat on March 18^th with the flu. He returned last Wednesday when the Celtics traveled to New Orleans to take on the Hornets. Doc Rivers said Garnett aggravated the injury in the 104-94 defeat at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks on Friday. Garnett did not suit up in the loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night. Then Garnett went for an MRI on Sunday.

With a hobbling Garnett, the Celtics suffered too many breakdowns against the Mavericks with Brandan Wright exploding for 23 points and eight rebounds. After the Celtics got off to a hot start, the Mavericks were able to control the paint and get important rebounds from Wright and Vince Carter when the Celtics pushed the Mavericks’ advantage into single digits. The Celtics’ pick-and-roll defense also suffered without Garnett on the floor.

The Celtics were also without guard Courtney Lee against the Grizzlies. Lionel Hollins and the Grizzlies coaching staff took advantage by inserting Jerryd Bayless with Mike Conley in the backcourt whenever Avery Bradley was on the floor. Bradley is more of an on-ball defender while Lee can cover the other guard. With two weak defenders in Jason Terry and Jordan Crawford, Bayless erupted for a career-high 30 points to lead the Grizzlies to a 110-106 victory over the Celtics. Rivers was forced to empty the bench with the Celtics facing a double digit deficit in the fourth quarter. The reserves got the Celtics back in the game, but the deficit was too much to overcome.

The Celtics are fighting for potential home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs while to trying to avoid getting the 8^th seed in the Eastern Conference to face the  Heat.They are four and a half games behind the fourth place Brooklyn Nets while only two games ahead of the eighth place Milwaukee Bucks. There is a crucial home game against the New York Knicks on Tuesday night. The only good news is that Lee is expected to be back on the floor against the Knicks.

While the team is already depleted by injuries, the last thing the Celtics needed was to hear that they will be without Garnett, who is their emotional leader and best defender while there is only 14 games left in the regular season.

The Boston Celtics like Terrence Williams’ court vision.

The Boston Celtics have continued to make roster moves after the trade deadline ended on February 21^st. They signed Terrence Williams to a deal for the rest of this season with a conditional option for the 2013-’14 season and they brought in forwards D.J. White and Shavlik Randolph on 10-day contracts.

Since the Celtics were down to 10 players on the roster, including Fab Melo, they were relegated to taking players who were competing overseas or in the NBA Development League. Randolph, White, and Williams all played in the Chinese Basketball Association.

Williams was a lottery pick (11^th overall in 2009) for the then-New Jersey Nets out of Louisville. The 6-foot-6-inch forward dealt with maturity issues and was sent to the NBADL by ex-Nets coach Avery Johnson. He was eventually released by the Nets in 2011 and he played sparingly for the Houston Rockets. Then the Sacramento Kings claimed Williams off waivers and he played in just 13 games for the Kings. The Celtics like Williams’ size at the guard position and playmaking skills. Williams has seen the court in five games for the Celtics since he was initially signed to a 10-day contract on February 18^th. He has also missed two games because of a Coach’s Decision. Williams is averaging 2.6 points per game with 1.6 assists.

White saw four minutes of action in the 83-81 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night. He contributed with two blocks and he attempted just one shot. The 6-10 forward out of Indiana University was also a first round selection (29^th overall) by the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2008. White has played four years in the league. After his minutes dropped off in his second and third seasons with the Thunder, he was let go. The Charlotte Bobcats scooped White off the waiver wire. He played in 24 games in 2010-’11 for the Bobcats where he averaged 19.4 minutes per game and 8.5 points to go with 4.4 rebounds. In 2011-’12, White played in 58 of the 66-game shortened season and he started 11 of those games. His numbers decreased across the board. The veteran can be a solid depth player with his athleticism and he can help the Celtics inside the paint. He played for the Shanghai Sharks after he was unsigned by an NBA team.

Randolph came from Duke University and he was undrafted. He has bounced around the league for five seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers, and Miami Heat.  The 6-foot-10-inch forward has not played in the NBA since 2009-’10. Randolph averaged 32 points and 14.5 rebounds in 28 games for the Foshan Long Lions of the CBA. Randolph has yet to enter a game for the Celtics because he was signed last Friday.

Williams could have an expanded role as he learns the Celtics’ schemes. He also practiced for the Celtics last summer. Meanwhile White’s mid-range jump shot could help the Celtics if Kevin Garnett or Chris Wilcox is out of the game. Randolph is another player whose size could be useful in case the Celtics need him. Both White and Randolph are trying out with the team.

With all of the recent injuries, the Celtics could use additional scoring from Courtney Lee.

Before the season, the Boston Celtics were expected to use Courtney Lee as the replacement for Avery Bradley until Bradley returned from having surgery on both of his shoulders in the summer. Since Bradley returned on January 2^nd against the Memphis Grizzlies, Lee’s minutes were lowered until Rajon Rondo tore his right ACL.

Throughout this season, Lee has struggled with his shot. Doc Rivers was mentioning Lee as one of the better corner three-point shooters in the league in training camp. He is shooting just 32.7% from beyond the arc.

Lee helped the Celtics improve defensively after point guard Rondo suffered his injury  in the double overtime defeat to the Atlanta Hawks on January 25^th. He was inserted into the starting lineup with Bradley and they had immediate success with their ability to create turnovers and score in the open court.

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The Boston Celtics continue to get bit by the injury bug as Leandro Barbosa tore his left ACL.

The Boston Celtics roster continues to be decimated by injuries. Leandro Barbosa injured his knee as he was attempting to drive to the basket on Charlotte Bobcats guard Ramon Sessions. The play occurred late in the third quarter of the Celtics’ 94-91 loss to the Bobcats on Monday night. Barbosa had to be carried off the court by trainer Ed Lacerte and Fab Melo.

Barbosa was officially declared out for the season with a torn left ACL earlier today. While Barbosa’s minutes had been sporadic, his role expanded after Rajon Rondo suffered a torn right ACL in the January 25^th loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

In the previous five games, Barbosa was averaging 9 points and 2.6 assists. He came up with a big effort in the Celtics’ 99-95 victory over the Toronto Raptors as he poured in 12 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter to help the Celtics come back from a 10-point deficit.

The 30-year-old likes to use his speed to get past initial defenders when he penetrates to the basket. His scoring was integral off the bench for the Celtics. The coaching staff was utilizing Barbosa’s speed on the defensive end. He was shooting 43% from the floor, including 38.3% from beyond the arc.

Currently, the Celtics have just Avery Bradley, Courtney Lee, and Jason Terry in the backcourt. Now, they have just 10 (including Melo) active players on the roster. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports tweeted that Shelvin Mack’s a stopgap possibility, but Delonte West is not. Basketball fans know Mack was the point guard of the Butler University teams that advanced to consecutive National Championship games. Mack has limited experience in the NBA with the Washington Wizards when he played in 64 games in the 2011-’12 season. He also played in 7 games for the Wizards this year before he was waived. Then he was picked up by the Philadelphia 76ers and saw action in just four contests. The 6-foot-3-inch guard is a D-League All-Star with the Maine Red Claws this year. West is not a possibility because of his past issues and the team was not fond of West’s last stint with the team in the 2010-’11 season.

CSNNE’s Jessica Camerato listed a few other guards from the NBDL’s Red Claws. These guards are Micah Downs, Xavier Silas, and Andre Barrett. Celtics fans recognize Downs because he was invited to Celtics training camp. Downs is also a D-League All-Star and he will take part in the Three-Point Shooting Contest as he is hitting 39.5% from beyond the arc. Barrett has also seen time on the court with several NBA teams. Silas spent time with the 76ers last April before he was waived in October.

There are always possibilities for trades, especially with the trade deadline just nine days away. It is unlikely that Keyon Dooling will come back considering the team could’ve brought him in after Rondo was lost for the season. Dooling would need at least two weeks to get into playing condition.

The Celtics have run into a string of bad luck over the past few weeks. They seemed to be handling it well by posting a string of consecutive wins, but now they have to rely on aging veterans  and an increasingly depleted roster.

Boston Celtics forward seemed to be getting to every loose rebound against Luis Scola and the Phoenix Suns on January 9th.

It is no coincidence that the Boston Celtics won six consecutive games (before they fell to the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday) because of their improvements on the defensive end. The Celtics are getting consistent production from their bench and the rebounding of rookie forward Jared Sullinger.

Sullinger posted double digit rebounds in wins over the Phoenix Suns (16) and the Houston Rockets (11). The 6-foot-9-inch forward has accumulated most of his boards on the offensive end and he has helped the Celtics get out of last place in offensive rebounding.

During the winning streak, Sullinger averaged nearly 10 points and nine rebounds per game. He also corralled 21 offensive rebounds in this stretch against players such as Tyson Chandler of the New York Knicks, Atlanta Hawks’ Josh Smith and Al Horford, and the duo of Marcin Gortat and Luis Scola of the Suns.

Despite Sullinger being undersized, he is able to outmuscle bigger players with a big lower mass that is able to push opponents away from the basket. He is also able to do this on the defensive end of the court.

Teammates have praised Sullinger for his basketball intelligence, his interior passing, and the ability to score. Sullinger can also make 15-foot jumpers outside the paint. Most of Sullinger’s scoring has come from within five feet of the basket because he has strong post moves and of his rebounding ability.

At the beginning of the year, the Celtics believed they had strong depth inside with Sullinger or Brandon Bass and Darko Milicic as reserves along with Chris Wilcox. The Celtics lost Milicic because he went back to Serbia to take care of his ailing mother. Bass has struggled with inconsistency. Wilcox suffered a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his thumb and has been out since December 18^th. Bass was just reinserted into the starting lineup and Jason Collins is playing limited minutes due to nagging injuries. This has left Sullinger to be a force and to play a big role in the reserve unit.

The biggest reason why Sullinger has struggled is his propensity to accumulate fouls early. This issue has not gone away since Sullinger fouled out in the final minute in the 103-91 victory over the Rockets last Friday. He committed three fouls in the first half of the 100-89 win over the Charlotte Bobcats on Monday. He also got into early foul trouble against the Hornets. Officials will pick on Sullinger because he is a rookie. Sullinger’s size forces him to be physical when defending taller forwards, which means he will get called if the officials are calling a tight game.

At this time last year, Sullinger was battling injuries while playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes against Big Ten competition. He fell to the 21^st pick in the 2012 NBA Draft in June because teams were worried about his back and conditioning problems.  Now, he is in the running for Rookie of the Year while helping the Celtics climb back into the Eastern Conference race. Currently, the Celtics are in seventh place in the Eastern Conference, but they are just four and a half games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Miami Heat.

Sullinger has provided the Celtics with energy off the bench. If the Celtics continue to win, they will also need continued production from Sullinger.