Gm10 Celtics @ Orlando Magic (Sun Nov 5th - WIN 104-88)

Boston Celtics Cannot Take the Magic Lightly
by Joshua Bateman

Photo: Unknown Credit


The Boston Celtics cannot take a hot Orlando Magic team lightly

The Boston Celtics have surprised a lot of people with the way they have bounced back from the devastating start to the season. The Celtics are entering their game against the Orlando Magic as the hottest team in the NBA, but the Magic might be the only team that has surprised more people than the Celtics this year.

Many thought they could land deep in the lottery, with the playoffs being a long shot. Right now, they are in third place in the East, and have just one more loss than the Celtics.

It is always hard to tell how fluky things are this early on, but the Magic are a team that needs to be taken seriously until further notice.

In fact, this could end up being the most challenging game for the Celtics since the streak started. No, the Magic and not more talented than the Thunder or the Spurs, but they are playing their best basketball right now, and that has not been the case for most of Boston’s opponents.

The Celtics have won seven straight, but it is easy to see that they have not been at their best either. They are finding ways to beat their opponents, because their defense keeps them in every game and Kyrie Irving and Al Horford are becoming one of the best closing duos in the NBA.

The Celtics are yet to run into a team that is playing hot, and if they still are not ready to be at their best, then this game will be as challenging as any other so far this season.

The one player that has been playing out of his mind on the Magic is Aaron Gordon. He is going to be a problem for any defense, and it will be interesting to see how the Celtics handle him. He has blown up a lot of games this year, and the Celtics need to make sure their defense is able to handle him.

The Celtics will quickly need to figure out who needs to guard him. Horford has handled some of the most dynamic bigs in the NBA so far this year, but Jaylen Brown is a much more physically suited matchup.

Brown has been phenomenal, but when you run into a player that is shooting just under 60 percent from three, while also being a physically imposing force on the inside, there are no guarantees.

Gordon has been an offensive juggernaut, and anyone that does not take hims seriously is paying the price this season.

The Magic have also proven that they can beat quality opponents. The seem to be making up for talent discrepancies, but they are so young that we just may not be giving their talent enough credit yet.

The Magic have defeated the Cavaliers, the Spurs and the Grizzlies this season. They are not backing down from top opponents, and even if it is not sustainable, their players are doing what is necessary to prove they can keep up with some of the best talent in the NBA.

Overall, the Magic are arguably the most surprising team in the NBA so far, and those quality wins tell the story. The problem is that they are fresh off a double digit loss to the Bulls, and if that brought them back to earth, then the Celtics should have no problem.

That is also where the risk is for the Celtics. They cannot look at that performance against the Bulls as any kind of standard for what they will be facing on Sunday night.

The Celtics need to be preparing for the team that has been as good as anyone else to start out the season, and they certainly cannot afford to slow down on defense.

If the Celtics keep up their defense they should be okay. If, however, they think this is a Magic team they can ease up on a bit, then there could be a lot of trouble. The Celtics still cannot trust their offense enough to just take over games.

Maybe against the bottom dwellers an inconsistent and unsettled Celtics offense can win games on their own. Even if the Magic come down to earth a bit, we now know that they are not bottom dwellers, and a lack luster defensive performance against them could end the longest active winning streak in the NBA.


hardwoodhoudini.com/2017/11/05/boston-celtics-cannot-take-the-magic-lightly/

This has been a stretch of bad basketball. The shooting has been horrible. And we keep launching up 3-pointers. We're not even trying to close this thing out right..

Tatum is really good. This one's a wrap.

Petey, ORL is really shooting poorly (our defense?) and we are mediocre ... 43% overall and 35.5% on threes.

With 3 mins remaining and a 20 pt lead I think Brad is alright, considering who's on the floor for the Magic.

One may even call this a "signature win" based on early standings and who the Magic have beaten so far sans the Bulls fiasco the other night.

I'm afraid the dancing bear has done his last meaningful dance already. Sometimes opportunity just passes you by and you never really get a shot, but he doesn't look that ready to me. Semi on the other hand is the flavor of the month.

For the bear to get a shot now he's going to need everybody in front of him to get hurt, like robbie benson in one on one.

Can't be over impressed with his China stats after seeing this;

www.celticslife.com/2017/11/jared-sullinger-is-dominating-in-chinas.html

Former Celtics big man Jared Sullinger is absolutely destroying the competition for the Shenzhen Leopards in the Chinese Basketball League. Through three games, Sullinger is leading the league in both scoring and rebounds, averaging 47.3 points per game and 17.7 rebounds per. His stat lines in those first three games look like the numbers an NBA player would put up playing NBA2k with himself in the game:

His 55 points in game three is the highest scoring output in the young CBA season thus far. Sullinger signed a 2-month $300k contract with Shenzhen, which will keep him under contract through the end of December. At which point he will likely be vying for a return to the NBA.

There were mixed reports back in September about whether Sullinger spurred the Brooklyn Nets to play overseas in China, or whether the Nets simply chose to sign another former Celtics big man, Tyler Zeller, instead of him. My guess is the latter as clearly Sullinger wants to use his short time in the CBA to showcase himself for an NBA return. He's maximizing his opportunity right now, and don't be surprised when his name starts to pop up around the end of the year for teams looking to roll the dice on a guy who has demonstrated in the past that he has the ability to play at the NBA-level.

With the Celtics holding that $8.4 million player exception from losing Gordon Hayward in the lineup they'll be in a prime position to add the veteran big man and bolster the bench with some extra size and rebounding should they be enticed by his play overseas. He's obviously familiar with coach Brad Stevens and his system, so it wouldn't necessarily be a steep learning curve or the former Celtic.

Although given his choice to play in China where he could be more of a factor and focal point Sullinger may prefer an NBA team where he can carve out a bigger role than he'd be able to muster in Boston. Given the way the Celtics are playing right now Sullinger would likely be a depth addition and little more without injuries decimating the Celtics front court.

Right before the feed cut off, the Orlando announcer (was it former coach Bob Neal? (always loved that name)) said that Boston had the best perimeter defense on ball he had seen in years. In an era when people say the rules won't let you guard the ball on the perimeter, the Celtics can.

So I guess the key to that is Jaylen. He's been able to do what Avery was doing and more. He needs to seriously consider his training to keep his muscles fast-twitch and not get to looking like Joe Johnson.

Is there a better defense in the league then ours? I don't think so!!

or J-Lenny B...

Well, seems like everybody all of the sudden is on board with this whole Defensive team thing. I always said, it is whats going to give us meaningful wins including playoff time. Last season we were just trying to overpower/outscore opponents..easy math here.. cant play that way if there is no defense. Some were settled with us having a high scorer zero defense PG..KI >>>>> IT.

loving this season. Last season, not so much.. This year, as much as I have criticized or being tough on Horford, I have finally accepted the fact that he is a player that spreads the floor and not a post up center/forward. I have really REALLY liked his game the past few ones specially though. So, all is good..cant complaint..