Even the best franchises are experiencing a little decline, and in the East, it is Boston which is marking time. More precisely at home. After starting the season with 20 consecutive victories at home, the Celtics have just lost three games in the last five home matches. The latest defeat is a stain since Jayson Tatum's teammates lost to the Lakers, deprived of LeBron James and Anthony Davis!
“I think you have to see both sides of the coin,” answers Joe Mazzulla when asked how the absence of James and Davis affected the Celtics. “It had a positive impact on them and a negative impact on us. It was a combination of both, obviously. We didn't give our all, while they were over-motivated. For the others, there were 70 minutes and 35 shots available and some Lakers players took advantage of it. We just didn’t give it our all like they did.”
Overconfidence
The Celtics missed their start with 9 lost balls and 10 offensive rebounds left to the Lakers in the first quarter alone. In these two stats, there is everything: complacency, a lack of concentration and aggressiveness, carelessness…
“Periods of bad basketball exist. We do our best to limit them, but sometimes we play bad basketball. We cannot sit there, doing nothing, imagining that this will not happen to us. The question is how we respond to it and how we can fix it. Thinking that we won't have tough times during an 82-game NBA season is not the right way to look at things. »
One thing is certain, despite the defeat, Mazzulla keeps smiling, and he thinks it's a blessing in disguise. “Am I upset that I lost?” Yes ! Am I very happy at the idea that we will learn a lesson from this, and that we will progress collectively? I'm more than happy about it! »
