I HATE the Celtics

[ASUCHRIS]

We need to do some of that ourselves and like Wade did, our retaliation needs to be immediate but controlled. Messages have to be sent but they need to be done in a way that doesn't hurt the team.

Steve

Yeah, after Pierce dunked on Channing and did his usual fugazi tough guy routine, someone needed to get in his face. You can't let your teammates get punked like that. Would have liked to see a little more fight out of the team.

 

[elindholm]

Yeah, after Pierce dunked on Channing and did his usual fugazi tough guy routine, someone needed to get in his face.

Eh, the refs T'ed Pierce up for that, and that was enough. If the Suns weren't already losing by a zillion, the point on the scoreboard would have been a better retaliation than any amount of macho posturing.

 

[Bert]

From the start of that game Garnett was in Fry's face trying to get a rise out of him because he knew they were in Boston and would get every call in the Celtics favor. I liked some of the old Celtic teams but this version of them (aka the Garnett era) are just a bunch of little punks.

How immature and pathetic can Garnett be, and why is he mad at Frye anyways? Did Fry's nuts bruise his knuckles?

 

[boisesuns]

The Celtics are punks, but i'd still rather see them win that the Lakers or Heat.

 

[Covert Rain]

AFAIC it's NBA thugs --1 Celtics... 2 Nobody even close to Boston.

Steve

I have lost so much respect for KG and the Celtics past couple seasons. Not because they are good but for the same reason that Chap pointed out. They don't need all this extra crap because they are already good enough to send a message with their play.

I will say though if Horry, Bowen, Manu, and Duncan (for his cry baby antics) were all still playing for the Spurs they would still be the #1 team in my book in terms of dirty play and overall douchebaggery IMO.

I didn't notice Garnett confronting Gortat once during the game?

Nor would he. I have not seen anybody confront him yet. In fact I have seen Gortat get in between players or step in front and obviously opposing players must respect his presence because I have yet to see anybody step up to him yet.

Not really, he just needs to dunk it more--he misses a lot of layups.

Gortat is no Shaq in his prime around the rim. Did anybody think we were going to get that? I sure didn't. He is competent around the rim. Not spectacular but competent. Gortat was not brought in here to be a dunk machine anyway. We wanted more of a paint presence and someone who would rebound more constantly.

He is a double double machine. Even though we tend to remember all the missed layups, he is really is not that bad at all. He makes 73% of all the shots he takes around the rim. That is not bad for a guy getting more playing time than ever in his career. It beats 62% that Robin makes around the rim. If he either dunks more or develops a better jump shot, that would be icing on the cake.

Food for thought. Gortat is his short time here continues to climb the center statistics ladder. This is where he ranks:

Efficiency - 12th
Scoring - 12th
Rebounding - 11th
Steals - 11th
Blocks - 13th

The encouraging thing about this is he has shown steady improvement in almost every category since the trade. We don't really know his ceiling yet IMO. If you can't get the next "Star" center in the NBA...I will take this any day of the week.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Food for thought. Gortat is his short time here continues to climb the center statistics ladder. This is where he ranks:

Efficiency - 12th
Scoring - 12th
Rebounding - 11th
Steals - 11th
Blocks - 13th

The encouraging thing about this is he has shown steady improvement in almost every category since the trade. We don't really know his ceiling yet IMO.

Not just that, he looks so much more comfortable out there. I don't know how anybody can not like the guy, he just seems so genuine. I love his effort and I'm confident a lot of the other things that he's currently weak in will continue to improve. He has quickly become one of my favorite players.

Steve

 

[chickenhead]

Three years ago I actually cheered for the Lakers against the Celtics. It seems inexplicable, but I just thought the Celtics team had come together too easily and the fans had wasted no time in feeling superior. Though I've cheered for Boston against the Heat this year for similar reasons, it's starting to be a toss-up. I just really don't like their style: it's more dirty than tough. And Garnett is all negatives these days.

 

[jagu]

Remember the Celtics' fans "Beat LA" crap? Man I hate Boston, I wouldn't go to that state if I was offered free airfare.

My ranking of teams I hate

1. Boston - Arrogant, and deserve nothing but epic failure.
2. Tie between Fakers and Miami - Kobe is the greatest show on Earth but I'm tired of Phil Jackson, Artest, Fisher... They still have more respect from me than the Celtics. And the Heat, most of the Heat games in Miami feature empty seats and horrific basketball. You'd think a team with that many superstars would have some kind of offensive plays other than pass the ball to superstar X and wait for X to do something. Ego driven Lebron doesn't help their image one bit. They aren't winning anything this year.
3. Spurs - I don't hate them as much as I used to , maybe because we wiped them off the court last year in the playoffs. Boring basketball, a whole lot of flopping and whining, and the memories of Horry clotheslining Nash still lingers.
3. Thuggets - Holy tattoos, birdman needs to choke on the plastic rings that hold beer cans together. Gallo makes the Nuggets a lot cleaner, but they just look like a bunch of street corner thugs whenever I get a chance to see them.

 

[BC867]

Gortat was not brought in here to be a dunk machine anyway. We wanted more of a paint presence and someone who would rebound more constantly ... He is a double double machine.

I wonder if Marcin doesn't want to be seen in the same way as Blake Griffin -- a public relations showboat and is holding back on dunks. If so, more power to him.

As Steve's stamina diminishes, Gortat is establishing himself as the heart and soul of the Suns in so many ways. It's good to see a big man playing that role in Phoenix.

 

[Chaplin]

Gortat is no Shaq in his prime around the rim. Did anybody think we were going to get that? I sure didn't. He is competent around the rim. Not spectacular but competent. Gortat was not brought in here to be a dunk machine anyway. We wanted more of a paint presence and someone who would rebound more constantly.

He is a double double machine. Even though we tend to remember all the missed layups, he is really is not that bad at all. He makes 73% of all the shots he takes around the rim. That is not bad for a guy getting more playing time than ever in his career. It beats 62% that Robin makes around the rim. If he either dunks more or develops a better jump shot, that would be icing on the cake.

Watch all his missed layups (and there's a bunch) and a good 95% of them would have been made if he would have dunked them instead. It's not like he can't get high enough to do it. He does that and Nash will make him an all-star.

 

[mojorizen7]

I don't hate the Celtics.I can appreciate the formula that they bring to the table year in and year out....and of course i'm a fan of Rondo as a PG so....no hatred there. I wish the Suns would adopt some of those traits that Boston chases after in order to win a title and stay in the hunt nearly every year as of late.

However, there is that team from LA that wins championships that i would be dancing in the aisles over if they fell off the face of the Earth. It might just be Kobe hate though....

 

[AfroSuns]

Watch all his missed layups (and there's a bunch) and a good 95% of them would have been made if he would have dunked them instead. It's not like he can't get high enough to do it. He does that and Nash will make him an all-star.

+1
It is really obvious those layups are "dunkable" too.
I really hope he improves in that category because it can propel him to a superstar level.

 

[Mainstreet]

Rondo's shot as the seconds ticked away at the end of the game was chicken$hit.

It's all part of the Kevin Garnett era.

NBA thugs -- San Antonio 1A ... Boston 1B

Rondo's shot would have been inappropriate except the Celtics ran out the time clock on their previous possession prior to their last without taking a shot. The Suns should have reciprocated instead of going down and scoring instead. I dislike the Celtics but the Suns set up this situation.

 

[ASUCHRIS]

Rondo's shot would have been inappropriate except the Celtics ran out the time clock on their previous possession prior to their last. The Suns should have reciprocated instead of going down and scoring instead. I dislike the Celtics but the Suns set up this situation.

Totally disagree. The team that is down almost always attempts to score until the final whistle, no matter what the shot clock situation. Almost never do you see the winning team cranking up shots in the final seconds.

 

[Mainstreet]

Totally disagree. The team that is down almost always attempts to score until the final whistle, no matter what the shot clock situation. Almost never do you see the winning team cranking up shots in the final seconds.

The Celtics had called off the dogs on their previous possession. Therefore it would have been class if the Suns just ran out the last 15 seconds or so. If the Celtics had not made this gesture it would have been different.

 

[ASUCHRIS]

The Celtics had called off the dogs on their previous possession. Therefore it would have been class if the Suns just ran out the last 15 seconds or so. If the Celtics had not made this gesture it would have been different.

Regardless of what the opponent does in the previous posession, my impression is that the team that is down almost always attempts to score until the final whistle, no matter what the shot clock situation.

If the Suns transgression was a minor faux pas, the Celtics was a major no no. (Which is why Dud put Rondo on his ass)

 

[Covert Rain]

Watch all his missed layups (and there's a bunch) and a good 95% of them would have been made if he would have dunked them instead. It's not like he can't get high enough to do it. He does that and Nash will make him an all-star.

Some big men just have lousy instincts for dunking the basketball. I don't always buy the argument it's about aggressiveness. It's a similar argument to why a 7 footer like Lopez can't rebound. Gortat's biggest weakness is he is not very versatile in the type of shots he takes.

His misses are actually proportionate to the amount of layup attempts he has. Gortats 73% around the basket is higher then KG who is 68% around the basket. Both KG and Gortat dunk the ball around the same amount. Nobody ever says KG should dunk more. The difference is Gortat relies on layups (42% of his shots) and KG relies more on jump shots (76% of his shots). No doubt it would be nice for Gortat to bring his around the basket % up around 10% more.

In terms of dunking.....it might be easier for him to "learn" to dunk more but IMO he would be much deadlier if he could develop a better jump shot. At least then he wouldn't suffer from Howard syndrom where when he is outside the paint...nobody cares.

 

[SirStefan32]

Some big men just have lousy instincts for dunking the basketball. I don't always buy the argument it's about aggressiveness. It's a similar argument to why a 7 footer like Lopez can't rebound. Gortat's biggest weakness is he is not very versatile in the type of shots he takes.

His misses are actually proportionate to the amount of layup attempts he has. Gortats 73% around the basket is higher then KG who is 68% around the basket. Both KG and Gortat dunk the ball around the same amount. Nobody ever says KG should dunk more. The difference is Gortat relies on layups (42% of his shots) and KG relies more on jump shots (76% of his shots). No doubt it would be nice for Gortat to bring his around the basket % up around 10% more.

In terms of dunking.....it might be easier for him to "learn" to dunk more but IMO he would be much deadlier if he could develop a better jump shot. At least then he wouldn't suffer from Howard syndrom where when he is outside the paint...nobody cares.

From what I've seen, his jumper is not that bad. It looks kinda ugly, but it's pretty effective for a big man.

 

[chickenhead]

I guess in terms of hatred it's got to be Lakers at #1, because they've always been the #1 nemesis. These days Boston #2 as discussed. Heat #3 although I don't even really feel like giving them that respect. #4 is the Spurs for the usual reasons. #5 is Oklahoma City purely and simply because they should be playing in Seattle.

The team I don't hate that most do is the Knicks. I really enjoyed living among their fans. Interest and caring was always high even at the height of the Isiah debacle.

 

[Covert Rain]

From what I've seen, his jumper is not that bad. It looks kinda ugly, but it's pretty effective for a big man.

Not very effective either. Shoots 32% with jumpers.

 

[devilalum]

Watch all his missed layups (and there's a bunch) and a good 95% of them would have been made if he would have dunked them instead. It's not like he can't get high enough to do it. He does that and Nash will make him an all-star.

He's dunking a much higher % now than when he first came over. I'd like to see him get to the line more also. If he's aggressive on those plays he'll get the calls.

 

[devilalum]

Eh, the refs T'ed Pierce up for that, and that was enough. If the Suns weren't already losing by a zillion, the point on the scoreboard would have been a better retaliation than any amount of macho posturing.

One could argue that the macho posturing is better when you're already losing by a zillion. Good for team bonding and such...

 

[elindholm]

One could argue that the macho posturing is better when you're already losing by a zillion. Good for team bonding and such...

It teaches bad habits. The Suns lost a championship due to macho posturing. One hopes that the organization has learned its lesson.

 

[AzStevenCal]

It teaches bad habits. The Suns lost a championship due to macho posturing. One hopes that the organization has learned its lesson.

I like the idea of sending a message when it's appropriate. Losing control and lashing out doesn't qualify, IMO. I want to see us do it with a calm and controlled measure as Wade did in the example I mentioned. Doing it out of anger just sends the message that the other guy has succeeded in pulling your strings.

Steve

 

[elindholm]

I like the idea of sending a message when it's appropriate. Losing control and lashing out doesn't qualify, IMO. I want to see us do it with a calm and controlled measure as Wade did in the example I mentioned. Doing it out of anger just sends the message that the other guy has succeeded in pulling your strings.

I stand by my assessment. Saying that it's okay when "calm and controlled" but not okay when "out of anger" is relying on the officials or the league office to be impartial when determining the difference. I think we all know how well that is likely to work out. Stern has made it very clear that anyone not following his rules faces a punishment of arbitrary and unpredictable magnitude. Given that that's the power structure that's in place, the only sensible response, as cynical as it might seem, is to comply.