To put it frankly, the Celtics aren’t learning much from these games right now.
It’s clear that while other teams are putting in full effort, the Celtics seem to be merely counting down to the end buzzer, trying to walk off healthy.
They are disengaged. The reality of meaningless games is starting to settle in.
When Joe Mazzulla took to the dais following Thursday night’s loss to the Knicks, he wasn’t concerned. He knows the mental challenges that come with being in the luxurious position the Celtics are in.
“I think it’s just a tough spot to be in, you know? I think our guys have handled that as best as they could,” Mazzulla said postgame. “We ran into our last two games against two that are highly, highly desperate. And as much as we want to be able to simulate that, that’s just not the position that we’re in.”
While there’s no reason to overreact to these games given the circumstances, a potential issue for when games do matter again has been highlighted, one that Mazzulla bluntly pointed out postgame Thursday.
“Rebounding,” the bench boss said when asked if there was anything he could take away from the loss.
Boston was outrebounded 52–36 on Thursday night, with 17 of New York’s 52 boards coming on the offensive glass. As a result, the Knicks had 22 second-chance points. Twelve of those 17 offensive rebounds came in the first half. For reference, the Knicks lead the league with 12.7 offensive boards per game.
Over the last three games, Boston has been outrebounded by an average of 13.3 per game. It was 52-36 against the Knicks, 49-38 against the Bucks, and 53-40 against Portland. They have conceded at least 20 second-chance points in three of their last five games.
Some of that can clearly be attributed to Boston’s lack of effort and shying away from physicality to preserve health, which seems to be what Jaylen Brown believes.
“I only have one rebound tonight,” Brown said after the game. “We just got to rebound. We got to play physical. More tough and we got to get the job done. We just got to nip that in the bud.”
Overall, the Celtics have been a strong rebounding team this season. They are second in rebounds per game, first in defensive rebounds, and 14th in offensive rebounds. However, they surrender the fourth-most offensive rebounds in the league (11.2). Nevertheless, this hasn’t severely impacted them, as opponents average just 13.6 second-chance points per game, the 10th fewest in the league.
Rebounding emerges as a critical factor for the Celtics. Boston has been outrebounded in 11 of their 18 losses (61.1%) this season. In these losses, they’ve surrendered an average of 12.2 offensive rebounds per game, which would lead the league. These offensive rebounds have translated to 15.4 second-chance points.
“You got to emphasize it,” Brown said on rebounding. “It’s a fight. You just got to have a mentality — if I’m not going to get the ball, he’s not going to get the ball. It’s a choice.”
As the playoffs draw nearer, it’s evident that the Celtics will have the edge in talent over whoever they see in the first round. However, giving up extra possessions through offensive rebounds or turnovers could give weaker teams a chance to compete. This is why rebounding, specifically on the defensive end, needs to be front-of-mind for Boston to come next weekend.
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