Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big storyline. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
To see the Boston Celtics at or near the bottom of the standings when it comes to rebounds isn’t all that surprising.
After all, it’s not like it’s anything Celtics fans haven’t seen in recent years.
But what’s disturbing about things right now is that as bad as the C’s have been in recent years, there are signs that they are getting worse.
CSNNE: Celtics rebounding problem as bad as it gets
As A. Sherrod Blakely correctly points out, that the Celtics are an abysmal rebounding squad should come as no surprise to any fan of the team that has watched them with any regularity in the previous three regular seasons. Crashing the boards is just not a part of their gameplan. The reason for this is often debated amongst fans, but most likely this is because the Celtics would rather get back and set their defense rather than leaving the team vulnerable to a fast break. Regardless, as Blakely points out in the article, the Celtics are just getting much worse on the glass as they get older.
The Celtics currently rank dead last in rebounding and have a differential of -5.3 rebounds per game according to the article. Personally, I see more of an issue in the Celtics rebounding technique as opposed to the gameplan. How many times have we seen Kevin Garnett go up for the one handed rebound and lose the battle to a far inferior player because his opponent went at it with two hands? This has been a problem for a few seasons now, there is very little technique being taught to the Celtics bigs for rebounding, as these issues were evident in Kendrick Perkins, Jermaine O’Neal and Semih Erden. It is incredibly frustrating for me to watch the Celtics attempt to grab rebounds (when they actually attempt to) and give up a softie rebound like the one handed lazy rebound.
Instead of giving the Celtics the out year in and year out that it is just a part of the scheme, its about time that their coaching staff takes this one on the chin. Clifford Ray did fantastic work with the bigs when he was in town, but a messy breakup just a few seasons ago saw Ray leave town and the Celtics are yet to replace him with a competent bigs coach.
The rest of the links:
ESPN Boston: Doc on Darko, Rondo’s Assist Streak | Spurs a model of consistency | NESN: Jared Sullinger Sees Extending Rondo’s Assist Streak Payback for Making Teammates Job’s Easier | Herald: Doc Rivers feels for Darko Milicic’s plight | Darko Milicic’s Time with Celtics “Most likely” Done, Team in No Rush to Add Big
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