Why are the defending champion Boston Celtics 7-7 of their previous couple of video games? You may level to many statistics, from a drop in proportion of three factors has the alarming web score of the beginning 5.
However after arguably their worst defeat of the season on Wednesday night… a 110-97 loss to the Toronto Raptors 9-31 — Kristaps Porzingis identified one thing that statistics can not measure.
“I believe we performed with out spirit, with out persona,” Porzingis informed reporters. “It is only a weak efficiency on our half, actually. We’re simply enjoying with out persona proper now.”
The Celtics struggled offensively, taking pictures simply 39.6 % from the ground (their third-worst mark of the season) and lacking half of their free throws (9 of 18). However unhealthy taking pictures nights occur. Extra regarding was the workforce’s physique language, as the enjoyment and vitality with which Boston performs at its finest was nowhere to be present in Toronto.
“We’re simply going up and down,” Porzingis added. “That’s bizarre to say. We now have folks of excessive character right here, but it surely’s simply that issues aren’t going the best way we would like them to. We’re somewhat sluggish right here and there. There’s merely no spirit, no persona.
Porzingis is normally the happiest participant on the courtroom and his optimistic vitality might be contagious. The Celtics went 43-14 within the video games he performed final season whereas averaging 120.1 factors per recreation. This season has been a special story, as Boston is simply 9-8 in video games with Porzingis since getting back from offseason surgical procedure in late November.
Whereas Porzingis did not establish a selected trigger for Boston’s struggles, he believes a turnaround will start if gamers take accountability and focus not solely on their execution, but additionally on their mindset.
“I actually don’t know,” Porzingis mentioned. “I believe we simply must ask ourselves individually the place we are able to enhance, what we have to do higher, are we in good condition? Are we that? Are we feeling good? Are we mentally locked in? After which attempt to repair a number of the issues that we now have occurring.
“But it surely’s not the tip of the world. Each workforce has its ups and downs. Simply, tonight is like shit proper now, and we performed some unhealthy basketball.”
The Celtics stay probably the most gifted workforce within the NBA. Their complete prime 9 is unbroken from the group that tore by the league final season en path to Banner 18. The regulation of averages suggests their latest taking pictures woes ought to ultimately enhance.
However as Porzingis identified, the best method for the C’s to start out turning issues round is to play with extra “spirit” and rediscover the optimistic vibes that performed a key function within the season’s success final.
“We all know we are going to get by this,” Porzingis mentioned. “I do know that, we all know that, however we have to start out, we have to start out enjoying higher and we simply cannot maintain rolling and simply hoping to go up on the finish, so it is in our fingers.
The Celtics are again in motion Friday night time at TD Backyard in opposition to the Orlando Magic, with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on NBC Sports activities Boston.
