Three Leaf Clover: it’s starting to feel a little bit like ‘08

The Celtics have developed past the necessity for Phil Jackson’s 40-20 rule, the place a real contender ought to have 40 wins earlier than 20 losses. 55 wins earlier than 15 losses is the brand new, frankly absurd, customary and places this staff on tempo to be one of many winningest in probably the most winningest franchise within the NBA. I’d additionally add that winningest is a foolish phrase. It is a particular common season; one we haven’t seen for about 15 years or so. On this episode, we’ll do a fast comparability between this 12 months’s common season and the 2007-08 staff, discuss concerning the bench’s rising chemistry, and finish with the grueling expertise of blowing leads.

Stat of the Week: 10.8 internet score

The 2007-08 Boston Celtics occupy a really particular place in my coronary heart. It’s, at the least for now, the one Celtics championship throughout my lifetime. The season additionally ran by means of my junior 12 months at UMass throughout which I turned 21. Boy, I used to be younger then. It was, for a lot of, many causes, an especially enjoyable 12 months.

A giant cause why it was so enjoyable was as a result of the ‘08 Celtics weren’t simply good, they have been dominant. Their 10.8 internet score didn’t simply lead the league, it jumped on the subway and blew previous all the opposite opponents like Rosie Ruiz. They have been a full 2.5 factors per 100 possessions higher than the second place Pistons. For comparability, the 2022-23 Celtics led the league in internet score by 1.1 and the 21-22 Suns led by 0.1. Anytime you’re over 2 factors per 100 higher anybody else within the NBA, you’ve bought one thing particular brewing.

Effectively, this season the Celtics’ 11.8 internet score is 4.2 factors per 100 higher than the second place Thunder. 4.2! Their dominance has shades of ‘08, however what’s fascinating is how they’re doing it in comparison with the ‘08 staff.

The Huge 3 Celtics weren’t only a good defensive staff, they weren’t simply elite, they have been all-time ranges of dominant. Their 98.1 defensive score was 2.4 factors per 100 higher than the following finest protection, however their offense was truly pretty middling, particularly given the offensive expertise. They ranked eleventh in offensive score that season and have been a catastrophe within the clutch with the twenty fifth finest clutch offense.

This 12 months’s Celtics staff is a two-way monster. In contrast to the ‘08 staff, their offense is the shining star. It’s 2.3 factors per 100 higher than the following finest staff, which is similar to the ‘08 staff’s defensive dominance. However whereas the ‘08 protection lined the comparatively benign offense, this 12 months’s staff ranks second within the league on protection. The #1 offense mixed with the quantity 2 protection is a recipe for a historic season.

However having a historic repeatedly season means nearly nothing if it doesn’t finish the identical means as 07-08. Wanting again, that championship felt inevitable, however the journey was something however. I keep in mind the anxious terror going into Sport 7 in opposition to the lowly Atlanta Hawks. I count on this playoff run to be no totally different, however this staff has proven they’re able to remind us all of 2008.

Xs and Oooohhhhhhhhs: the indelible chemistry of Jayson Tatum and the bench

There’s simply one thing joyful about the best way the Celtics, and particularly the bench, are taking part in basketball proper now. It’s a harmful cocktail of confidence and execution, one which has been blowing groups off the courtroom. The three-man combo of Kornet-Hauser-Pritchard are +10.0 per 100 possessions, which might simply lead the league. However, when you toss Tatum into that blend, the online score jumps all the best way to +23.8 in a not insignificant 167 minutes.

Principally, any combo of Tatum and two of the Bus One Boys trio are killing groups. They’re utterly locked in on taking part in the correct means on the offensive finish. Shifting the ball, transferring themselves, and discovering Kornet on lobs and within the dunker spot when the protection helps off him.

Their explicit mix of expertise complement Tatum completely. Kornet is a prepared passer that’s drastically improved studying defenses and units screens that shiver defenders and create a great deal of area. The capturing menace of Hauser and Pritchard maximizes spacing and at any time when defenders assist off of them, the opposite 3 discover them instantly.

It’s an exhilarating show of basketball distilled to its essence — 4 gamers that perceive one another’s video games completely and are maximizing their potential due to it. These 4 deserve a number of credit score, however so does Joe Mazzulla. He’s not solely placing these gamers into place to succeed, however he’s empowered them to be themselves, stretch their video games a bit, and allowed them to make the occasional mistake. The result’s a bench unit that isn’t simply good, it’d simply be the very best within the league.

Non-basketball Stuff of the Week: did they only change the principles?

It appears fairly clear that Adam Silver, while sitting on the O’Brien Throne, picked up the telephone and instructed the refs to start out calling the sport in a different way. Defenses are getting away with extra contact, capable of play bodily whereas the refs swallow their whistles. From the beginning of the season to February fifteenth, the fifteenth ranked offensive score was 116.2. From February fifteenth till at this time, it’s all the way down to 113.4. That may simply be pattern measurement noise, however the eye check tells a distinct story.

Right here’s the factor, I truly just like the change, nevertheless it’s fairly loopy that it occurred. Assuming that is actual and I’m not connecting dots like Charlie Kelly in search of Pepe Silvia, a late season change to a foundational means the sport known as is an extremely daring selection. It will be like in the event that they switched balls mid-season or one thing. A constructive of the change, aside from the apparent defensive advantages, is that video games are being known as a lot nearer to the best way the NBA Playoffs are known as. It’s preparatory, and with a few dozen video games left on the schedule and the Celtics taking a look at a (hopefully) lengthy playoff run, the Cs have loads of time to arrange.