AP
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"I was trying to make the shot," said Pierce. "I got the switch on the big man, got to a good place — I just missed the shot.”
Pressed on if he considered driving, or if he expected the Spurs to give a foul, Pierce shrugged off both notions.
"This type of stuff is not really pre-scripted, you don’t have an idea of what’s going to happen in those type of situations," said Pierce. "You get in those pressure situations and sometimes they work and sometimes they don’t, but the thing is I’m not going to second-guess my decision. I thought I got a great shot, created some space right there at the free throw line. It's just some days they fall, some days they don’t."
ESPN Boston: Pierce won't second guess final shot
I'm not a huge fan of Pierce dribbling out the clock on an iso, but that shot last night wasn't too bad. Doc sums up my feelings
"We wanted him to go a little quicker because I thought [Pierce] could’ve beat [Duncan] off the dribble and he would’ve reached the foul line and you know Paul has a knack of getting the ball up. But his step-back is what he wants. I just thought we waited a little too late in the clock.”
I know a buzzer beater to win the game is more dramatic, but I'll take my chances with leaving a second on the clock. Leaving some time to tip in a miss SHOULD be standard practice.
Related links: CSNNE: Pierce: I thought I got a great shot | WEEI: Pierce: Sometimes they fall, sometimes they don't
On Page 2: Avery Bradley was a pain in the ass
“He’s a pain in the ass,” Popovich said. “I mean, the game starts and you know what he’s going to do. He’s going to cut from the corner to the bucket and lay it in. He’s going to cut diagonally from the top. You’ve got to give him credit. He knows his role and he does it very, very well. He killed us all night long.”
WEEI: Popovich: Bradley 'killed us all night'
Avery Bradley was the game's leading scorer. Avery Bradley.
In a game with Duncan, Ginobili, Parker, Pierce, Garnett, and Allen… Avery freakin' Bradley outscored them all.
The Celtics bench was outscored 44-24… and 19 of those points came from Bradley. To be fair, though, Stiemsma, Dooling and Pavlovic played a combined 31 minutes while the Spurs had four guys off the bench playing 20+ minutes each.
Back to Bradley, who has carved out a nice little niche for himself making cuts and scoring. He's been shooting the J with more confidence too, but he had a couple of moments last night where he was left wide open and he hesitated. So as good as he's been, he's still got a ways to go.
I'm sorry, though… I'm still a bit astonished at this whole thing. To sit there and legitimately say "if it wasn't for Avery Bradley, the Celtics wouldn't have had a shot last night" still boggles my mind a bit.
Related links: WEEI: Meet your new 6th man, Avery Bradley | Herald: Avery tasty sub
The rest of the links:
CSNNE: Allen rusty in return | ESPN Boston: C's expecting Rose will play | Allen starts, Bradley stars | Pierce named player of the month | Herald: C's rally fall a point short | Globe: Pierce miss spoils late surge | Cortisone shot allows Allen to return | Allen's presence a welcome sight | MWDN: Comeback falls short for C's
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