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Celtics Notes: Walker, Tatum, Playoff Seeding

March 21st, 2020 at 5:19pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics may get a hidden benefit from the league-wide shutdown because it gives Kemba Walker more time to recover from his left knee issue, writes Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald. Walker played in the last three games before the hiatus, but was limited to about 30-32 minutes per night. He had missed six of the previous seven games due to persistent knee soreness.

Bulpett talked to president of basketball operations Danny Ainge about the importance of having Walker fully healthy for the rest of the season.

“I think managing all of our players is important, but, yeah, managing Kemba is very important because Kemba has the ability, as we saw in November and December, to be very, very special,” Ainge said. “And he was doing a lot of the same things that we see Jayson (Tatum) doing now. It’s important that we have those guys playing their best to give us the best chance in the playoffs.”

Ainge admits the “wear and tear” of playing for Team USA during the World Cup last summer may be having an effect on Walker, but he doesn’t believe the organization should have handled the situation any differently.

Ainge addresses a few other topics in the interview:

Without mentioning Kyrie Irving by name, Ainge acknowledges that the switch from Irving to Walker has been good for team morale. The reports of locker room turmoil that surfaced frequently last season have virtually disappeared. “I think that all of the guys’ attitudes this year have been pleasant, great, and there’s been more on the same page,” he said. “Last year, we just had more mouths to feed, and it just didn’t work. It wasn’t anyone’s fault. And this year we have less mouths to feed, so to speak, and it’s been better. But it would be nice to have everybody healthy, because I think we’re going to need everybody in order to reach where we want to be.”
Ainge is optimistic about the young core the team has in place, led by Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart. “I think (Tatum’s) getting a lot of opportunities, a lot of chances,” Ainge said of the third-year forward, who is coming off his first All-Star appearance. “He’s been playing really well. I don’t want to jinx any of that. I’m excited about his development and Jaylen’s development and Marcus’. I think that they’re all getting better right before our eyes.”
The second seed in the East may be out of reach if the NBA only plays a few games before the playoffs begin, but Ainge doesn’t believe seeding is the most important factor heading into the postseason. “It’s something that we would like, of course, but it’s not more important than being healthy,” he said. “And it never is. Listen, I think home court is important in the playoffs. I don’t think it’s an end all-be all, but I do think it’s important.”

Marcus Smart Tests Positive For Coronavirus

March 19th, 2020 at 7:04pm CST by Dana Gauruder

7:04pm: Smart said he was tested five days ago and received the result on Thursday night, he tweets. He currently has no symptoms, feels “great” and is thankful he has self-quarantined since the test.

6:52pm: A Celtics player has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a team press release (Twitter link). Guard Marcus Smart has announced he is the player who tested positive, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

According to the statement, “The Boston Celtics learned today that a player has tested positive for COVID-19. Testing was initiated because of exposure to a known positive case. The Celtics player, who is not exhibiting symptoms, has been in isolation for several days and will continue to do so while being monitored by team medical staff.

The team is awaiting further testing results and will communicate them as appropriate. Taking steps to maintain the health and safety of everyone in our organization and across the NBA remains our top priority, and we will continue to work closely with health officials and the league in addressing this situation.”

This bring the total of NBA players and personnel who have tested positive to 14. That group includes at least 10 players: The Jazz duo of Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, Pistons big man Christian Wood, former MVP Kevin Durant and three other unidentified Nets players, two unnamed Lakers players and Smart. In addition, three members of the Sixers organization and a member of the Nuggets organization have tested positive.

During the month of March, Boston faced Brooklyn, Cleveland, Utah, Oklahoma City and Indiana.

USA Basketball Announces 44 Finalists For 2020 Olympic Roster

February 10th, 2020 at 10:21am CST by Luke Adams

USA Basketball has formally announced a preliminary group of 44 players who are candidates to be part of the program’s roster for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

The final roster will only consist of 12 players, so most of these finalists won’t actually play for Team USA at the Olympics. Some will likely withdraw from consideration, while others simply won’t make the final cut. However, these players have all expressed interest in being involved in the process.

“This is the first step in USA Basketball identifying the 12 players who will represent the United States as members of the 2020 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team in Tokyo,” said USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo.

“… Over the course of the remainder of the NBA season we’ll continue to monitor all of the athletes. Selecting the 12-man USA roster will obviously be an extremely challenging and difficult process, and we will again attempt to select the very best team possible to represent our country and who we hope will be successful in our difficult mission of repeating as Olympic champions for a fourth consecutive Olympics.”

Although the U.S. men’s team has won three consecutive Olympic gold medals, the program had a disappointing showing at last year’s World Cup, finishing in seventh place. Team USA will be looking for a bounce-back performance in Tokyo this summer, with many players from that World Cup squad among the 44 finalists announced today.

Here’s the full list of players who are candidates to play for Team USA at the 2020 Olympics:

Bam Adebayo (Heat)
LaMarcus Aldridge (Spurs)
Harrison Barnes (Kings)
Bradley Beal (Wizards)
Devin Booker (Suns)
Malcolm Brogdon (Pacers)
Jaylen Brown (Celtics)
Jimmy Butler (Heat)
Mike Conley (Jazz)
Stephen Curry (Warriors)
Anthony Davis (Lakers)
DeMar DeRozan (Spurs)
Andre Drummond (Cavaliers)
Kevin Durant (Nets)
Paul George (Clippers)
Draymond Green (Warriors)
James Harden (Rockets)
Montrezl Harrell (Clippers)
Joe Harris (Nets)
Tobias Harris (76ers)
Gordon Hayward (Celtics)
Dwight Howard (Lakers)
Brandon Ingram (Pelicans)
Kyrie Irving (Nets)
LeBron James (Lakers)
Kyle Kuzma (Lakers)
Kawhi Leonard (Clippers)
Damian Lillard (Blazers)
Brook Lopez (Bucks)
Kevin Love (Cavaliers)
Kyle Lowry (Raptors)
JaVale McGee (Lakers)
Khris Middleton (Bucks)
Donovan Mitchell (Jazz)
Victor Oladipo (Pacers)
Chris Paul (Thunder)
Mason Plumlee (Nuggets)
Marcus Smart (Celtics)
Jayson Tatum (Celtics)
Klay Thompson (Warriors)
Myles Turner (Pacers)
Kemba Walker (Celtics)
Russell Westbrook (Rockets)
Derrick White (Spurs)

Injury Updates: Russell, Bagley, Bledsoe, Smart

December 28th, 2019 at 10:14pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors got a scare tonight involving D’Angelo Russell, who remained on the ground for about five minutes after colliding with the Mavericks‘ Luka Doncic while chasing a loose ball, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic (video link).

A stretcher was brought out, but Russell was eventually able to walk off under his own power. After being checked in the locker room, he was diagnosed with a right shoulder contusion, according to Kerith Burke of NBC Sports (Twitter link), and eventually re-entered the game.

There’s more injury news to pass along:

Kings forward Marvin Bagley III has a mid-foot sprain and will miss the “next few games,” according to Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Bagley left Thursday’s game in the third quarter after suffering the injury. He had an MRI on Friday and met with a foot specialist today before details of his condition were announced.
Bucks guard Eric Bledsoe continues to recover from a fibula avulsion fracture and is nearing a return to the court, coach Mike Budenholzer told reporters before tonight’s game (video link from the team). Bledsoe may go through contact drills tomorrow in hopes of playing next week. “He’s making progress and getting close,” Budenholzer said.
The Celtics got Marcus Smart back tonight after an eight-game absence caused by an infection in both of his eyes, tweets A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston.
Celtics center Robert Williams will undergo another MRI in about a week to monitor the healing of a bone edema in his left hip, Blakely adds (Twitter link). He hasn’t been able to do any basketball-related activities since the injury was discovered nearly two weeks ago.

Celtics Notes: Smart, Brown, Tatum, Kanter

December 25th, 2019 at 12:33pm CST by Luke Adams

Celtics guard Marcus Smart is on the upswing after a brutal case of viral conjunctivitis caused an infection in both of his eyes, sidelining him for much of December, writes ESPN’s Tim Bontemps. Smart isn’t playing today in Toronto, but thinks he’s at “about 80 percent” and is focused on getting his conditioning back to its usual level. Mostly, he’s relieved that the worst of his eye issues appear to be behind him.

“I thought I was going to go blind for a while. I think it was the worst case of viral conjunctivitis that they’ve seen,” Smart said. “… I couldn’t see. I had outdoor sunglasses everywhere. Even in the dark I was wearing sunglasses. It was that bad. Just every morning I would wake up just having sticky discharge coming out of my eyes, sealing my eyes shut. It was really just gross.”

With Gordon Hayward back in their lineup today, the Celtics appear to be getting close to getting fully healthy. In the meantime, let’s round up a few more notes out of Boston:

Although the Celtics look capable of vying for a spot in the NBA Finals, finding the one last piece to cement their place as a contender will be difficult, according to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe, who outlines why the club may not be able to make a significant trade this winter. We touched on a similar topic last week.
Terry Rozier is impressed with how his former teammates Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum has looked this season, suggesting that the two young wings are “superstars in the making,” as Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald details. “I’m not just saying it. Them guys put the work in,” Rozier said. “They really care. They want to learn the game, and them boys can really play.”
Celtics big man Enes Kanter isn’t taking today’s game in Toronto for granted. Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston explains why Kanter’s safety may be at risk when he travels outside the United States.

Atlantic Notes: Sixers, Thomas, Burke, Smart

December 22nd, 2019 at 9:04pm CST by JD Shaw

Sixers center Joel Embiid called on his team to play a tougher brand of basketball after a recent tough stretch, one that saw the team lose two straight home games in three days. Before these losses, Philadelphia led the NBA with a 14-0 record at home.

“I feel like, especially tonight, we were playing scared,” Embiid said of the team’s loss against Dallas on Friday, as relayed by Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “Basketball is easy. You just shoot it, pass it, move it. If you don’t got a shot just pass it.

“But tonight, like I said, we didn’t make shots, and defensively we were pretty bad.”

Philadelphia also lost to Miami at home before Friday’s game against Dallas, with both opponents challenging the club by playing a rare brand of zone defense.

Embiid finished with 22 points and 19 rebounds against Miami, following it up with a 33-point, 17-rebound performance against Dallas. The Sixers did manage to defend home court against the Wizards on Saturday, however, winning that game 125-108.

“I think that the influence that our inability lately, to, like, be put on our back heels against the zone has crept into our defense, our psyche, our spirit,” coach Brett Brown said. “And I can’t stand it.

“This is not who we are. It’s not who we are. … I love coaching these guys, because I respect them. And I feel like our competitive spirit has taken a dent because of our inability to score, and I think that any time you get into a mood swing that affects your defense because your offense is doing something, it needs to be addressed.”

The Sixers have a 21-10 record and are six games out of first place in the East, trailing the Bucks, Celtics, Heat and Raptors as of Sunday night. They have upcoming games scheduled against the Pistons on Monday and Bucks on Christmas Day.

Here are some other notes from the Atlantic Division:

The two Sixers fans who played a role in the confrontation with Wizards guard Isaiah Thomas on Saturday night have received a one-year ban from Wells Fargo Center, according to ESPN. A 76ers spokesperson said the fans admitted to using explicit language and gestures toward Thomas, who walked into the spectator stands and approached the duo before being ejected. “I said: ‘Don’t be disrespectful. I’m a man before anything. Be a fan.’ His response was, ‘I’m sorry, I just wanted a Frosty,'” Thomas said. The Sixers held a promotion where fans would be awarded a free Frosty in the event that an opposing player missed two straight free throws.
Celtics coach Brad Stevens said that Marcus Smart (eye infection) is improving, but the 25-year-old is still unlikely to play on Christmas Day against Toronto, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston tweets. “Marcus Smart is doing better. He was … going to the facility tonight to get on the floor and shoot a little bit.” Smart hasn’t done much work since the month started, with the team planning on ramping up his activities in the coming days.
Sixers guard Trey Burke is continuing to thrive in limited opportunities, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Burke finished with 12 points and five rebounds in 15 minutes of work against Washington, shooting 5-of-6 from the floor.

Celtics Notes: Kemba, Stevens, Injuries, Tacko

December 21st, 2019 at 9:43am CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

New Celtics point guard Kemba Walker is excited to see what his team can achieve on the court when they reach full health. Currently, injuries to Gordon Hayward, Marcus Smart, Robert Williams and Vincent Poirier are precluding Walker — and fans — from bearing witness to what that could look like.

“Man, we haven’t had our full roster yet,” Walker lamented, according to NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg. “I can’t wait for it. It’s been unfortunate. But when we do …” Their 19-7 record slots the Celtics at the No. 2 seed in the East, by percentage points over the Heat.

There’s more out of TD Garden:

Former Celtic Kendrick Perkins, the starting center on the squad’s last title team in 2008, has picked Boston head coach Brad Stevens as a frontrunner for 2020 NBA Coach of the Year honors, as NBC Sports Boston’s Justin Leger documents. Perkins singled out Stevens’ “next man up” ethos in the wake of Boston’s myriad injuries thus far. Granted, Perkins achieved his biggest career success in Boston, but he also has three former head coaches elsewhere in the league: Doc Rivers on the Clippers, Alvin Gentry on the Pelicans, and Scott Brooks on the Wizards. Perkins’ former Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue is the lead assistant coach on Rivers’ staff.
7’5″ two-way rookie center Tacko Fall‘s regular season home debut last night offered an interesting look into the team’s dynamic chemistry, NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg notes. Fall is averaging 4.5 points and 2.5 rebounds across his first two NBA games.
The latest injury update on Gordon Hayward is significantly more promising than Marcus Smart‘s current status. Coach Brad Stevens doubts Hayward’s lingering foot injury will be a long-term issue, and an MRI taken Thursday showed no structural damage. Smart, meanwhile, has missed the past four games with an eye infection. Stevens revealed a troubling anecdote from his medical staff. “The last report I got (from the training staff), they didn’t think they’ve seen one this bad,” Stevens said, according to NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg.

Eastern Notes: VanVleet, Smart, Porter, Giannis

December 2nd, 2019 at 11:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Having thrived as the Raptors‘ starting point guard without Kyle Lowry in the lineup for the team’s last 11 contests, Fred VanVleet may be raising the value of his next contract with each game, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. During that Lowry-less stretch, Toronto has a 9-2 record and VanVleet has averaged 21.2 PPG, 7.5 APG, and 2.4 SPG with a .402 3PT%.

VanVleet will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, and Lewenberg speculates that Malcolm Brogdon‘s four-year, $85MM deal from this past offseason could end up being the baseline for the Raptors’ point guard if he keeps up his current pace.

In an appearance on Brian Windhorst’s ESPN podcast (hat tip to RealGM), Bobby Marks said he heard from one team last week that believes VanVleet may even command between $25-30MM next summer, with a handful of rebuilding clubs among the candidates to make a run at the Raptors’ up-and-coming star using cap space. “I almost fell off my chair when they told me that,” Marks admitted.

When I ranked 2020’s free agents last month, I placed VanVleet all the way up at No. 7 and questioned whether that was too high. The way his season is going, he may rank even higher the next time we revisit that list.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Celtics guard Marcus Smart has been banged up all year, a trend that continued on Sunday when he took a shot to his abdomen while drawing an offensive foul. Smart, who missed the rest of the game, has been reluctant to sit out at all this season, but admitted to Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald that he may not be able to return right away from his latest injury, which he believes is an oblique issue. A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston explored what it would mean for the C’s if their hard-nosed guard misses some time.
Otto Porter is the Bulls‘ highest-paid player and the team has badly missed his experience on both ends of the floor during his absence with a foot injury, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “He settles us down a bit, maybe at times we need that,” head coach Jim Boylen said of the veteran forward. “He makes timely shots. He’s one of our better shooters. And he has positional size, which is a huge part of that big wing position. We miss those things.”
Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo has been better this year than he was last year when he won the MVP, Alex Boeder of NBA.com contends. Boeder identifies an improved three-point shot and a lower turnover rate as evidence of the Greek Freak’s leap.

Chris Crouse contributed to this post.

Atlantic Notes: Walker, Embiid, Kanter

November 27th, 2019 at 2:20pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Celtics point guard Kemba Walker will return to the court tonight less than a week after he collided head-to-head with teammate Semi Ojeleye and had to be taken off the court in a stretcher.

“It was a scary moment for myself,” Walker said (via Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com). “When I was in the moment, it was pretty tough to be in, obviously. I know it was scary for everybody…It was tough, but thank God I’m OK.”

Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com (video link) hears that scouts around the league aren’t worried about Joel Embiid. Embiid has struggled this season (by his standards) with a new-look roster around him on the Sixers.
Enes Kanter says he is “disappointed that former Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving won’t be making a return to the court in Boston today, as Justin Leger of NBC Sports Boston relays. “We’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time, and now he’s hurt and not playing? I’m really disappointed. But there’s two games, of course, and he’s going to come back. And… we’re going to welcome him somehow,” Kanter said.
Former Celtics guard Tony Allen said he’s long been a fan of Marcus Smart‘s game and applauds Smart’s improvement from behind the arc, Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald passes along. “I won’t say he’s my protégé, really, but he’s become that 3-and-D player everyone wants,” Allen said. “With what he does defensively, he’s also become a shooter. He’s really transitioned to the new game.”

Marcus Smart Opens Up About Kyrie Irving

November 26th, 2019 at 9:15am CST by Arthur Hill

Kyrie Irving didn’t officially leave the Celtics until July, but he started withdrawing from his teammates long before then, Marcus Smart tells Jay King of The Athletic. Smart offers a look inside what was frequently portrayed as a dysfunctional locker room last season as Boston failed to meet lofty expectations.

“It’s not that we didn’t know how to act (around him),” Smart said. “It’s that we didn’t know how he was going to act. We didn’t know what his moods were and we didn’t know what Kyrie was going through. And that made it tough on us because if somebody’s going through something in their life and you don’t really know what it is, it’s kind of hard to see what’s wrong with him, it’s kind of hard to (provide) some help. It’s not against Kyrie, it’s just a defense mechanism as a human being you have. And he wasn’t here long enough to really be able to open up the way he probably wanted to, and it probably got to him a little bit.”

Smart’s comments come before Irving and the Nets are scheduled to make their first trip of the season to Boston tomorrow night. Irving, who is sidelined with a shoulder impingement, won’t play and may not be in the building, but King notes that the memory of his two years with the Celtics will affect the franchise for years to come.

The toxic atmosphere played a role in Al Horford‘s decision to opt out of his contract and sign with the Sixers. The loss of Irving and Horford cost the Celtics any chance to make a play for Anthony Davis after years of building up assets. Davis can opt out of his current deal next summer and wouldn’t consider re-signing in Boston unless he was surrounded by star power.

The height of Irving’s popularity with Celtics fans came at an event for season ticket holders last October when he promised to re-sign with the team. But he slowly walked back those comments throughout the year as the Celtics underachieved and he was frequently seen as the cause.

Boston entered last season as heavy favorites to win the East based on the strong playoff performance of young players like Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier, who reached the conference finals the previous year while Irving and Gordon Hayward were sidelined with injuries. But there was an uneasy balance as those players weren’t always willing to take a back seat with the two stars returning.

Irving didn’t help matters with comments to the press about the difficulty of managing “the young guys.” He admitted during Brooklyn’s media day in September that he failed the Celtics as a leader and said the death of his grandfather last October affected him emotionally.

“A lot of basketball and the joy I had from it was sucked away from me,” Irving said. “There was a facial expression that I carried around with me throughout the year. Didn’t allow anyone to get close to me in that instance, and it really bothered me.”

A pivotal part of the year came after the Celtics took a 1-0 lead over the Bucks in the Eastern semifinals after sweeping the Pacers in the first round. A witness tells King that Irving “disconnected” from the team at a voluntary practice the next day, sitting by himself in the stands while his teammates worked on the court. He shot 30.1% for the rest of the series as Boston was eliminated in five games.

The Celtics moved on quickly from Irving once he made his free agent decision. They reached a deal with Kemba Walker and started to rebuild the team-first culture that coach Brad Stevens has always emphasized. The result, according to sources inside the organization, is a much more positive and relaxed atmosphere.

“We don’t have to worry about doing stuff on our own,” Smart said. “We don’t have to worry about being in our own minds and just think it. We can actually talk. Last year, everybody didn’t know what to say. They didn’t know if they could speak, if they could speak to anybody, or somebody, or a group, and they didn’t know how the reaction would go. It was just different. This year is different. Everybody’s not holding anything in. If we have anything to say, we’re saying it and we’re moving on from it.”