Late loss clouds Isaiah’s record
CHICAGO — Isaiah Thomas generally talks of what a “surreal” season this has been, as his scoring run conjures up all sorts of names from Celtics past. But when Thomas passed John
Havlicek last night with a 29-point performance that gave the Celtics guard a franchise record 41st straight game of 20 points or more, he wasn’t in the mood for a sentimental journey.
Not after the Celtics lost on a late whistle by referee Zach Zarba that sent Chicago’s Jimmy Butler to the line with nine-tenths of a second left to seal a 104-103 win.
“That don’t mean nothing,” said Thomas, who flew to New Orleans after the game for his second straight All-Star appearance. “That don’t mean anything. I’m trying to win an NBA championship one day and break those type of records.”
Brad likes his club
The All-Star break starts today, and for players it’s time to wonder whether the uniform will stay the same. For coaches, though, it’s time to ignore all of that outside noise.
Brad Stevens, asked before last night’s game about what he would like to add before next Thursday’s 3 p.m. trading deadline, kept his wish list modest.
“I’d just like to have 15 available bodies. So it’s not my job. My job is to coach the guys,” said the Celtics coach. “And I like our team. I’m really impressed with the way other guys have come on and helped us.
“Not having Avery ( Bradley), I thought Jaylen ( Brown) stepped in and showed great growth. Not having Avery and Jaylen, I thought James Young has really stepped in and showed great growth. And that’s the sign of a good team pulling together and just trying to figure it out.”
Fred Hoiberg’s Bulls team has been subjected to even more trade speculation, specifically concerning star Butler, with the Celtics a recurring trade possibility.
“The biggest thing is you can’t concern yourself with it, with all of the rumors thrown in there and the social media thing, talk shows that throw a lot of scenarios out there,” said Hoiberg. “All 30 teams are talking to each other right now. That’s just the way this thing works, and not many things happen. So just try to stay focused at the task at hand.”
Hoiberg is very much in Stevens’ camp when asked about his wish list.
“I like our guys. We were full strength last week and playing pretty good basketball,” he said. “When the break’s over, we want to get back to that and have a good stretch run.”
Focus on return
Bradley (Achilles) and Brown (hip pointer) did not travel with the team yesterday, and continue to rehab their injuries with the goal of being ready when the Celtics return to action on Feb. 24 in Toronto.
By design, though, they will be the most active Celtics over the next seven days. Stevens wants his players to rest after a stretch in which they played six games in nine days in four different time zones.
“They work with our strength and conditioning staff. They work with our trainers,” Stevens said of his players. “We talk hit and miss with individuals about the opportunity to get rest but also to keep your conditioning up, how to do that.
“So they all have individual plans that have been or will be communicated to them,” he said. “But this is as much of a time to get rest as anything else. It’s a long season and I feel like maybe I’m wrong but I feel like playing 57 games before the All-Star break is unique to even the first couple of years I was in the league. I’d have to go back and look at it, and this has been a heck of a stretch we’ve been on recently. It’s coming at the right time from the standpoint of that, and then hopefully get healthy.”
One player who doesn’t necessarily want to stop playing now is Young, who has played his best basketball as a Celtic over the last two weeks. Then again, he’s feeling the grind, too.
“I’ve been on a roll the last few days, but I need a break,” he said. “My body is sore, so it will be good to put up my feet for a little bit, clear my mind and get back to it, keep on playing hard. It’s big, it’s a long season. It’s the best thing for us to clear our minds.”