Image C/O: NBA.com
Celtics continue to struggle as Ainge takes blame for it all. In their last five games, the Celtics escape going 2-3 against some of the worst competition in the league.
After defeating the Raptors with a promising 120-106 win along with great play off of the bench, the Celtics looked to continue their dominance going into a back-to-back against the Pistons. As expected, PG Kemba Walker was sidelined to preserve his knee, but the Celtics were still the better team on paper. Unfortunately, the Celtics had no answer for Piston’s SF Saddiq Bey who finished the night with 30 points on 10/12 shooting. The Pistons, the worst team in the East, ended the C’s night with a 108-102 win.
The crew traveled to Washington to play the Wizards on a one game trip where PG Kemba Walker rejoined the team to face the thirteenth ranked team in the East. In another heartbreak, the Celtics fall to the Wizards with the final score of 104-91 as All-Star SF Jayson Tatum only had 6pts. Kemba led the Celtics with 25pts but was unable to stop Wizard’s SG Bradley Beal who ended with 35pts.
In a much needed bounce-back game, the Denver Nuggets came to TD Garden and the Celtics actually capitalized. Nikola Jokic, a top 3 center in the NBA ended the game with 43pts but the Nuggets take a hard loss to the Celtics with a final score of 112-99. Tatum and Brown led the Celtics with a combined 48 points to close out Denver.
On another back-to-back, the Celtics hosted the Hawks who currently sit at the tenth spot of the East. This high scoring affair got out of control for the Celtics in the 2nd Quarter, and they could not find the spark to dig them out of the hole. They lose on the parquet once again with the final score of 122-114 with All-Star PG Trae Young dropping 40pts as Celtics scoring leader goes to SF Tatum with 35pts.
Following the loss to the Hawks, the Celtics GM and former player Danny Ainge was asked about the struggles that the team is currently facing on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher and Rich. Ainge responded saying…
“Our roster obviously is not good. I mean, we are a 14-14 team…There’s no if’s, and’s or but’s about it. That’s who we are. This team, where we are, 14-14, if there’s somebody to blame, this is Danny Ainge to blame. This is not Brad Stevens. It’s not Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown. It’s not good enough right now. And we all know that. And, you know, we need to get better.”
Looking ahead, the trade deadline is on March 25th and Celtics fans are eager to see if Danny will actually make a move this year. Meanwhile, the Celtics resume play tonight against the Hawks once again at the Garden.