(Photo by Keith Allison)
The Celtics have been shockingly mediocre in the last few weeks.
The proclaimed beasts of the East have had difficulty sparking consistent offensive performance, something that was masked by their excellent defensive play earlier in the season. This is not to say that their defense has been bad; in fact, it's remained as arguably the top unit in the NBA. However, Brad Stevens's squad has been playing down to its opponents on a nightly basis, and it's costing them in the win column. Once sitting comfortably atop the Eastern Conference and vying with the Warriors for the best record in the NBA, the Celtics are now below the Raptors and were recently blown out by the third place Cavaliers who are suddenly looking dangerous.
Here are some stats from the last 15 games:
- 7-8 record - almost 6 more points allowed per game than their season average - blown out by the two next-best teams in the East by a combined 42 points - fell to the Magic, Lakers, and Pacers - excluding the 30 pt blowout against the Knicks, have won their games by an average of just 4.67 points
I'm not trying to hit the panic button by any means. In fact, I'm continually impressed by the play of the young Celtics studs. However, Sunday's loss should wake some fans up to the shocking mediocrity that the C's have played with in the last several weeks. Boston is desperately in need of a win against a decent Clippers team in the last game before the all-star break.
"I have a lot to learn. You know, us as a team, we do as well..." (Kyrie Irving following Sunday's loss to the Cavaliers)
It's easy to write off their midseason sluggishness as just that, but this stretch begs the question: Are these young Celtics truly ready to compete for an NBA championship, or were the flashes of brilliance a premature showing of what's to come? Nevertheless, it's up to Brad Stevens to answer that question and hopefully have the Celtics playing into the month of June.
(Photo courtesy of celticslife.com)
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