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.
“It’s different [the 2007-08 season], guys are really anxious to get to
the playoffs,” Perkins said. “You’ve got veteran guys — Rasheed, [Kevin
Garnett] — you can tell the regular season, it really don’t excite
them. Even with Paul [Pierce] and Ray [Allen], but you still gotta go
out there and compete, it’s not an excuse for losing. Guys just really
want to get to crunch time.”
There’s 24 games left in the regular season. It’s safe to say we’re into
crunch time. Yet Celtics players still don’t seem as concerned as those
outside the locker room.“We only have 24 games left, and
to have a lot of uncertainty, that definitely has to raise a couple
flags,” Wallace said. “We gotta knuckle down.”
…“There’s too much heart and drive, we’ll find a way to figure something
out,” Wallace said. “No one in here is giving up. Just because we didn’t
[beat the Nets], that’s not the end of the season. No one in here is
giving up. There’s too much basketball knowledge to let this go away.
ESPN Boston – Bored Celtics better wake up
“It ain’t the system, it’s our
heads,’’ Rivers said. “It’s between our ears. And we’ve got to come out
and play.’’
The players
could do nothing but agree.“Doc
gives us direction,’’ Garnett said. “Guys have to go out there and
follow the plan and execute. That’s all it is.’’
Rasheed Wallace added, “We can’t sit up
here and say, ‘Oh, it’s Doc’s fault that we lost.’ Or ‘Doc’s not doing
this’ or ‘Doc’s not doing that.’
“Doc’s not on the floor. It’s the five
guys that’s out there. So we have to come up with ways to win.’’
Searching for more answers to the same
questions, Ray Allen paused long and hard, staring over the heads of the
media members before coming up with a response.“I’m not concerned,’’ Allen said. “I’m
disappointed.”
Globe: New Low: Nets cut down Celtics
“I don’t know how many wake-up calls we need,” Kendrick
Perkins
said. “We’ve had a few this year. We’ll see how we bounce back against
Detroit (on Tuesday). We’ve got a few days to think about these last two
losses.”
I don’t know if Rajon Rondo is disappointed in his and the team’s performance in that picture… or if he’s just catching a nap.
You know… these guys are pissing me off just as much as they’re pissing the rest of you off. But I’ll tell you what I’m not doing… and that’s writing them off.
Maybe I’m being naive. Maybe I’m being the eternal optimist. But when your team’s problem is mental rather than physical… I see hope. I see the potential for something to snap in these guys and for them to play well.
My point is simply that we’re not watching them play their best and not be good enough. We’re seeing them play their best and dominate… then just take early showers. It’s frustrating as all hell. But I see no reason to dismiss them as being unable to find whatever that thing is.
It would be nice if the Celtics can just go out and prove that point, though. Maybe they did in Portland and we just choose to ignore it. But I’d love to see a beginning-to-end domination just so the C’s could say “see… this is what we’re capable of… now let us coast for a couple more weeks.”
And yeah… I know how I am. I feel like the girl who’s dating a total prick and she’s just looking for that one little sign of something so I can go tell my girlfriends “No really…. he loves me… look at what he did today” while he goes off and screws around some more.
Yep, Celtics… you’re the prick boyfriend. How much more of this can we fans take before we just say screw it and break up with you?
Coming up, Page 2… where Big Baby says he’s getting a bad rap
Associated Press Photo
Davis objected to the suggestion that he was trying to injure O’Neal,
saying the clip was taken before O’Neal hurt his thumb.“I was like, ‘That’s false,’ ” Davis said. “They edited that. That
was before he hurt his hand.”The timeline and replays appear to back Davis’ story.
Davis blocked O’Neal’s shot out of bounds with 7:37 remaining in the
second quarter. The Cavs took the ball out of bounds and Anderson
Varejao scored four seconds later.
On the Celtics ensuing possession the ball went out of bounds and
O’Neal left the game and didn’t return. The injury has been termed
significant, but no timetable has been established for O’Neal’s return.
“I was pulling on his hand before that,” Davis said. “He hurt it and
came right out. Right after I came down on the ball, he came out.”
The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported Friday that some Cavs were upset
with Davis’ actions. Davis said players frequently do little things to
irritate opponents, but his intentions weren’t malicious.
“I was just messing with him,” said Davis, who is friendly with
O’Neal, a fellow LSU alum. “I wasn’t trying to hurt him.”
Herald: Baby: “I’m getting a bad rap”
THAT is what people think is “trying to injure Shaq”? That’s a stretch. If Shaq had sprained his thumb and THEN Baby grabbed it… wouldn’t Shaq have flinched? Something? A little wince. Some kind of sign that “ow, don’t grab that injured thumb”.
The reaction I heard from some people make it seem like he wrenched that thumb.
C’mon, haters. You gotta come stronger than that. Nevermind that the replay came before the actual spraining happened. If this is your proof, you all need help.
The rest of the links:
Herald: Doc’s coaching not an issue | Theater in the roundball | Problems pop up in fits and starts | Globe: Celtics view movie with a message | Warning on this route: Toll ahead | ESPN Boston: No excuses from KG | First impressions | CSNNE: C’s hit rock bottom in loss to lowly Nets | Souza: Answers lacking for Celtics | WEEI: Doc: Those basketball gods are punishing you | Fast Break | Perk: “Sometimes maybe we do get bored” | CelticsBlog: Joke is on Celtics after loss to Nets | Hardwood Houdini: Home isn’t sweet home for Celtics | CelticsHub: Video: How to lose to a 5 win team | Gino’s Jungle: When you are, or are not a bandwagon fan | North Station: The Celtics are not elite, they are not contenders | CSL: Rally around a common enemy
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