Celtics work on mental culture
Look to bounce back after tough stretch
The Celtics haven’t won two straight games since the night of Jan. 25 in Chicago, on the second night of a back-toback swing.
CELTICS NOTEBOOK
Heading into Tuesday’s game in Dallas, they have gone 5-9 since then. In terms of breaking the cycle, every game is magnified.
“I think every game, when you’re in the midst of what we’re in the midst of, is a pivotal game,” said Brad Stevens. “That’s why (Sunday’s overtime loss in New Orleans) was so tough, because you have a chance to now build.
“You have a chance to now take two straight games and have some positive more positive than negative out of it,” he said. “Obviously you don’t feel good after the game the other day, but you know you see the small growth. But there’s no question that every game for us right now is a big game. And that’s just part of it. You need to balance all of that with playing confidently and freely. And again, it all goes back to what do you put into it? What do you put into it? What are you putting into preparing, getting ready to compete and taking somebody else’s best shot and coming out on top. Easier said than done in this league, but that’s what it’s going to take for us to get going in the right direction.
“But we have to keep some perspective while we go through this with our groups so that we can hopefully, as we get full, as we get whole, be building enough, or built enough, that then take advantage of it. Every game is so pivotal, you just try to grab a win wherever you can. And I think that obviously Dallas is in the same boat, they’ve done a good job recently, I thought they played well (Monday) night, and so it will be a real challenge tonight.”
Green All-Stars
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown clearly didn’t suffer from the Celtics’ recent struggles where NBA coaches are concerned.
Both were named all-star reserves after the coaches’ tallies were counted. Stevens was not allowed to vote for his own players.
There were a number of snubs in the Eastern Conference, with Trae Young, Khris Middleton and Jimmy Butler all left on the outside.
No rest for weary
Wednesday’s game in Atlanta considered, the Celtics actually debated sitting Kemba Walker against the Mavericks and instead playing him against the Hawks, his 28-point performance on Feb. 19 against the Hawks considered.
But the Celtics have decided to stick to their original load management policy for Walker and his tender left knee.
“We’ve talked about everything like that. We just made the conscious decision that he’s gonna play in the first games of back-to-backs,” said Stevens.
“We did talk about that, and if he had felt any issues at all coming from the extended minutes in overtime the other day, then we would have been quick to make that change. But we made that plan from the got-go and we’re going to stick with that. He feels good, which is a good thing.”