Toronto game

[Alex Wang <awang@mit.edu>]

I think it's great that we are getting multiple game reports now. 
NBA.com now has an accurate boxscore at 
  http://www.nba.com/games9900/991102/bostor/boxscore.html

I have to say that the way this game went was very different from
what I expected. The Raptors really did not have inside dominance
at all. Potapenko did a good job despite his poor stats; he drew
some fouls on rebounds so didn't get credited for as many as he
could have. 

The Celtics really kept Vince Carter from doing anything. They 
denied him the ball and he reacted with frustration, heaving up
five bad three-pointers. He really didn't even deserve the 12 
points he got because he took a big walk on a dunk and got some 
very questionable calls in his favor. He looked like he stopped
trying after a while and wasn't moving his feet on defense. 

McGrady is quite an athlete and blocked quite a few Celtic shots
but was a weak man-to-man defender. One time, Antoine got fouled by
another player and McGrady blocked the continuation, then went
right up to Antoine and was jabbering in his ear for while.
Who knows, the guy may end up getting his $80M contract and 
becoming a star, but for now he shouldn't be trash-talking about 
a play that doesn't even count when he was being abused inside.

You have to admire little Muggsy Bogues for what he does despite
being 5'3". The Raptors ran a halfcourt trap that the Celtics
generally handled well. Walker really helps the Celtics here 
because he gives them essentially a second point guard. Bogues
really showed how much Turner has to improve to be a first-rate
point guard in this league. Kenny didn't have a particularly 
good offensive game and wasn't running the break well but I think
the "shot-first" accusations are off base. He only took 8 shots
in 30 minutes which is a low number. He took outside shots when 
he was open and took it to the hole a few times. And he handled
Bogues without incident.

Pierce has developed the ability to score at will from anywhere
in the court. He used a move after he picked up the dribble and
the defender relaxed where he would pivot in and throw up a sort
of set shot and got some baskets and some trips to the line this
way. He and Antoine worked well together this game passing to 
each other.

Walker deserves a lot of credit for letting the game come to him.
He had a quite first half as Pierce was on fire but stayed active
and didn't force anything. When his chance came in the second 
half, he looked great, staying under control, using ball-fakes 
effectively, passing out of double teams or spinning away from them
instead of towards them. A very productive 33 minutes.

When you look at Griffin's game today, you believe that, as Pitino
asserted, he will have a 10 year career in the NBA. He and Pierce
were responsible for the Celtics' strong start. He took Carter 
to the hole and also delivered a shocking dunk on Antonio Davis.
He could have scored more but gave up his own shot for his teammates,
and you get the impression that he is a great team player that 
doesn't care about his scoring stats. He showed the ability to hit
the open jumper out to about 18 feet and seems willing to take the
occasional open three pointer. I love how he takes it to the hole
but stays on the ground and in control. He's a player that's better
than his stat line will indicate. The coaching staff and scouts 
deserve credit for making a great pickup here. He really did
fit in well with the starters too, making several assists to Pierce
and at least one to give Antoine an uncontested dunk, and just 
being mistake-free.

Not much to say about McCarty except that his jump shot looks really
good. His teammates were rotating the ball to him and in the post
game interview, he said that Pitino would yell "bust it!" when he
had an opportunity, and he did. I think that we'll see McCarty taking
that open three-pointer when it's available, and it's a decent shot
for the second unit.

Pitino moved away from substituting entire units and had a more
sensible rotation tonight. There were usually at least two starters
in the game at any point which kept the offense from dying at any
given time. The starters were on the floor even after the outcome
of the game was decided.

The Celtics did not press at all and I wonder if that is going to
be the rule. My guess is that they will press when they fall 
significantly behind (I don't think they ever trailed this game),
and against teams that have been tired out by their schedules.
They did manage quite a few steals in the halfcourt defense.
It just looked like the Celtics came in with a smart gameplan and
executed it well, shutting down Carter, hitting the defensive 
boards, and taking advantage of the Raptors defensive schemes.
They rotated the ball well in general and scored a lot of points
in the paint. It's only one game, but a very promising looking
one, and a nice road victory against a supposed playoff contender.

Alex