No, I'm not writing this because of the Celtics' loss to the Nets last night. The buzz around the League has been that Boston has two paths to get back to solid contention for Banner #18. Either The Green have to land a third star to complement Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, admittedly a long shot - or the Jay Team needs to "assist" a current teammate into that role. From NbaAnalysis.net:
This team will go as far as Brown and Jayson Tatum take it. To get to that next level, they need to step up their game, and according to one NBA executive, they are just not doing it right now.
“Jaylen and Jayson aren’t making anyone better,” a Western Conference scout said. “I put that on them.”
Note the emphasis on "assist" above! Jayson Tatum's assist numbers have dropped from 4.3 APG last season to 3.5 APG for 2021-22. Brown's numbers have dropped even more - from 3.4 APG in 2.0 APG this season.
The two Boston stars have also seen their potential assists drop from last season. The definition of "potential assist" is so nebulous, I doubt even the author of the term understands what such a statistic actually means. Just use the stat as another sign that the Celtics need to make an adjustment.
And before my readers suspect I am picking on two Celtics players I love, let's look at last night's loss to Brooklyn. Tatum took 15 shots and Brown took 14. Jayson had three assists. Jaylen had zero. Their accuracy? Tatum as 4-of-16 from the field and 1-of-9 on treys. Brown? 5-of-15 on field goals and 0-of-8 on 3-pointers.
You see my point. How about Marcus Smart - the guy that publicly broached that the Jay Team was remiss in their passing proclivity. He was 6-of-14 from the field and 3-of-8 from beyond the arc - along with eight (8) assists. It is obvious that Brown's hamstring issue still remains an issue, but his ZERO assists and the combined Jay Team's 1-of-17 from 3-point land are inexcusable.
These are the two guys that Brian Scalabrine told me "have their heads on straight". Time to show it!
Comments
Post a Comment