Sixers lose big lead in Boston, trail Celtics 2-0 in series
Sixers blow 22-point first-half lead, lose again in Boston and limp home down 2-0
BOSTON » Before any shot is set up, before it is attempted, before it has floated into the air, off the rim and back toward the floor, Dario Saric has already figured out where to be for the rebound.
He knows it when his teammates shoot. He knows it when his opponents shoot. He knows it when he shoots. He knows it, and he believes it, and he thinks he knows why he has been blessed with such an ability to get his hands on every loose ball that some have begun to liken him to a better-shooting Dennis Rodman.
“Maybe I have that instinct,” Saric was saying Thursday morning, as the Sixers gathered for a shoot-around at the TD Bank Garden. “Sometimes, some players know how to follow the ball in the air. Then, they might be able to know which way to go for the ball after the miss. But I’ve always tried to put myself in the position where it is more logical that the shot will go.
“If there is a corner shot, I will try to be on the correct side. Sometimes, you box out your guy. But if your guy doesn’t go for the rebound, you can see what is happening. Maybe the ball has a huge arc. Or maybe there is no arc and it is a straight ball and you can kind of realize where the ball will go.”
That would be the concept. But few are as quick to complete those geometric calculations as Saric, who had a game-high five offensive rebounds in the Sixers’ Game 1 loss to the Celtics in the NBA’s Eastern Conference semifinals. Even on a night when he did not shoot well, he was consistently involved, if not grabbing the rebound, then getting a piece.
“I always was a good offensive rebounder,” Saric said. “Maybe it helped me a lot because when I was a kid, I played soccer. I loved it. I was taller than everybody. And it took some footwork to jump and score on a header. And I still try to use that kind of footwork all the time. I use it for offensive rebounding to hide from the man who is guarding me, to not let him know if I am going to go left or right.”
Rodman was a five-time NBA champion and a two-time All-Star for just such instincts. Six times, he led the NBA in offensive rebounds, making him a force despite his 23.1-percent career three-point shooting average.
“He was great,” Saric said. “He was amazing. I heard that he used to ask coaches about analytics, to tell him where players were shooting the ball and that, for instance, ‘56 percent of the time it would go to a certain side.’ I was reading about that, about how he was focused and was ready to learn and to listen to his analytics team to know where to be for the rebound.”
Saric does not rebound at Rodman’s pace, but he led the Sixers with 154 offensive rebounds this season while shooting nearly 40 percent (39.3) from the arc. And how many players are that involved on offense both from the perimeter and the paint?
Saric shot 0-for-4 from the arc in Game 1, not that he was alone among struggling Sixers shooters. But his ability to keep plays alive was striking. And that gives him value beyond the points column in the boxscore.
“A night when Dario doesn’t make a three-point shot is rare,” Brett Brown said. “But, for sure, he’s got opportunities to make plays and impact the game all around. We all sort of feel it the most when he is making threes. But he can certainly do other things to help us win.”
*** Somewhere in the two days between Games 1 and 2 of the Celtics series, one Brown message came in garbled to Joel Embiid.
As he might, Embiid was heard saying he was encouraged to take eight to 10 three-point shots in a game. Sitting nearby as reports of that discussion bounced toward him, Brown nearly broke into a laugh.
“Did I say eight to 10?” the coach said, loud enough to needle Embiid. “Did I say eight or 10 threes? I thought it was four to six. But that’s OK.”
As he fist-bumped Embiid, Brown continued.
“He’s right,” he said. “I think in the trail spot, he is really good at it. It’s hard when you are wearing a mask. But look at Al Horford. Look at what a five-man can do who can shoot threes.
“In general, we need to shoot more threes as a team. If that’s including Joel in that trail spot, fine. But in general, it’s how we talked about playing basketball since I was hired.”
*** It’s one thing for a distance shooter to have an off night.
It’s another when that player has shot 42 percent or better from the arc, and at a high volume, in each of the last four years.
So, yes, J.J. Redick was bothered for two days after going 2-for-7 from distance in the Sixers’ 16-point, Game 1 loss.
“Oh, no question, no question,” Redick said at the morning workout. “That’s the beautiful thing about the NBA. You can have an off shooting night and, generally speaking, you have an opportunity within 48 hours for another chance.
“But if I miss a free throw, it gnaws at me. There is no such thing as a perfect game. But to quote from ‘Billions’, in your pursuit of precision, you are trying to get as close to perfection as possible. It is near impossible. But those are the things that keep you up at night, for sure.”
*** The series arrives in Philadelphia for Game 3 Saturday night at 5 and Game 4 Monday night at 6.