Anti-Depressants! Get yer anti-depressants!

[Ryan, Patrick S Maj RES USAFR 439 MSG]

So what's different?

 

That's the question I posed myself after watching two absolute destructions
by LA and Utah on our home town team (the games were never close I don't
care what the scores were when). 

 

While we were still four games under .500 and we were moderately (I almost
said "fully" - we haven't been fully healthy all year) healthy early this
season; the games were almost exclusively tight affairs of the "heatbreak"
variety - losing late after keeping within 4-8 points the entire game (even
leading). Now the games are lost before they even begin. Double digit first
quarter leads are not just unsafe, but a veritable invitation for teams to
calmly put on 10 even 20 point runs to take leads they (now) never
relinquish.

 

The "Doc is the Devil" camp is, and has been since day one, fully engaged as
exhibited A, but that is something that hasn't changed. His ability (read:
lack thereof) has been constant throughout - so if something is rotten on
day one, it's not going to suddenly rebloom into beauty on day eighty-seven.


 

The "what about Wally" or "if we only had Theo (or whoever else) healthy"
are also hollow arguments. Wally was the second (after Ratliff) one to go
down - well before Pierce was injured and even when he was healthy, he
wasn't lighting up either the scoreboard or the defensive stat sheet so
neither was he the missing ingredient that rendered us (while still a bad
team) at least respectable enough to not get blown out by 30 every night.

 

The NBA doesn't allow for much mid-season course correction, so while I
suppose we could have pinned this all on Ainge in either way (his actions
prior to the streak in assembling this team or his inactions during the
streak to not make trades), the GM is probably the least likely IN SEASON
(the GM is most influential pre-and post season to team direction so yes,
I'll grant he assembled the team that now sucks, but I'm looking at during
season change here) to effect the course of the way a team plays so that
doesn't explain the total meltdown.

 

So, it seems that I'm left with two withering conclusions.  One, they are
tanking on purpose.  ML Carr Redux. Active decision making in the negative
vein.  Or two, they have lost so much momentum (and in team sports momentum
is a critical piece of the puzzle as it strengthens and reinforces
confidence) that no matter what they do they will never regain it through
this season.

 

Not exactly pure scientific method, but it's the best I can do on short rest
and with a bad day looming. I know I have no confidence in this team now,
not one shred. Pierce or no Pierce. Any other hypotheses out there that
might explain?