Your Morning Dump... Where we're a long way from where we want to be

Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here... highlighting the big storyline.  Because there's nothing quite as satisfying a good morning dump.

“We’re not executing. We’re not trusting each other. We’re going to win games, still, but we’re not going to win against good teams. It’s just not going to happen. And we’ll get it, but right now we don’t have it. I said it before the game, I said it (Thursday), I’ve been saying it for a week. We’re just going to keep working.”

Doc Rivers, in the Herald - Newest Trick for Celtics is a disappearing act

“Yeah, I mean that’s something that we got to do a better job as starters. I think it’s kind of getting repetitive -- the starts we’re getting off to and then it’s sort of like we brake off. You know, against a good team, we got to defend for all four quarters. The slippage that we have in the first quarter is about being mentally and physically ready at the start of games. It definitely hurt us tonight.”

Paul Pierce, in the Globe - Postgame Chatter

Let's face it.  The Celtics lied to us.  They lied to us when they came storming out of the gates.  They lied to us when they had a ridiculous defensive efficiency rating.  They lied to us when they were banging 3's all over the place.

The Celtics are playing bad basketball right now.  Doc is right.  They're sloppy.

Take a look at the video: The first three in the video is Rajon Rondo's fault.  He comes down to double Dwight Howard but he goes for the ball and gets way out of position.  KG is on Rashard Lewis.  With Rondo way too low on the D, Howard kicks it back out to Jason Williams.  When KG rolls over on Williams, he kicks it to Lewis for the wide open 3.

The second 3 is a fast break 3 where Paul Pierce just doesn't get out.  But the third one, Pierce plays some horrible pick and roll defense.  Howard sets the pick, Perk rides Mickael Pietrus out and goes back to pick up his guy, but Paul Pierce had gone under the pick and never got back out to challenge the shot.  When Pietrus takes the shot, Pierce is almost at the free throw line... rather than turning the corner and getting up on the shooter.

That game was marred with Celtics getting caught too far one way or the other.  They were out of position and out of sync.  A good defensive team doesn't do that kind of stuff.  It's no wonder why Tom Thibodeau was out of his mind during yesterday's game.  Everything he was seeing must have been driving him nuts.

After the jump, Page 2... where Sheed isn't concerned about his shooting.

“I ain’t worried about it, honestly,’’ said Wallace, after he missed all eight 3-point attempts. “I probably rushed about two or three of them. Other than that, it’s good looks, they’re just not going for me. I’m not worried about my offense now. It’s still early in the season, I know I won’t be shooting like this for the duration of the season.

“It’s just a matter of making some shots. Everybody goes through it, no matter if it’s 2-pointers, 3-pointers, or foul shots - everybody goes through slumps every now and then. But the key, or the heart of that player will determine how he plays. I’m not the type to let the threes get me down. I’m missing a couple threes so I don’t want to do this any more - no. I’m out there playing basketball.’’

Globe: Wallace unable to zero in

When the Celtics were playing well early in the season, Eddie House and Rasheed Wallace were making a ton of 3's... especially Sheed.  He was among the league leaders in makes and takes. 

Honestly, we should have seen this coming earlier.  How many games did the starters come out slow but were bailed out by the bench?  Now, the bench isn't bailing anyone out.  Sheed and Eddie are cold... and they're the second unit scorers.  Marquis Daniels is doing some good things, but he's still a little lost in the system.  Shelden Williams is impressing a lot of people, but he can only do so much.

This team needs Sheed to be option #1 off the bench.  Yes, he could stand to get into the post a little more... and maybe he should to get himself going a little.  He was 4 of 8 from 2 last night and he had 13 rebounds plus two HUGE steals in the clutch.  I'm OK with him stepping out to take 3's, but I really think him mixing it up a little more will help his 3 point shooting. 

Rasheed Wallace is a big man who can hit 3's, he's not a 3 point shooter.  That's an important distinction. If he plays like a big man who can hit 3's, the Celtics will benefit.  If he tries to be a 3 point specialist, he's going to have problems.

The rest of the links:

Herald: This green group still a mystery  |  Kevin Garnett's burst takes a night off  |  Globe:  Out of Sync  |  Ryan -They need to regroup  |  Finding combinations hasn't been a lock  |  WEEI:  Flannery -Celtics struggles keep on coming  |  Camerato-Magic know formula to beat Celtics  |  CSNNE:  Magic act too tricky for Celtics  |  Souza:  Celtics run out of tricks  |  Telegram:  Celtics center has its Perks  |  Celtics Blog:  What's wrong with the Celtics  |  ESPN Boston:  Where's Rondo?  |  Hardwood Houdini:  Celtics fans, here's your chill pill  |