flobaba wrote:
Inability to connect from 3 should have no effect on their defensive identity though. They are going through some serious growing pains is what it looks like. Their success last year surprised everyone and dare I say came a bit too soon. The young players all understood their roles, and expectations without Kyrie weren’t so high. Just goes to show how little changes in team composition can throw off the balance and chemistry of the team. Brad Stevens was basically being hailed then as the Guardiola of basketball. Now he’s gotta earn all those plaudits all over again and find a way to turn it around come playoff time.
Hey flobaba, I think we're talking about more or less the same thing, and the central difference being huge established expectations and how several are dealing with pressure. Expectations built not only from growth of the squad last season, but the return of the two big stars. Stevens engineered the best season of his tenure last year but that defensive identity and team mentality has been on a constant growth curve for 3-4 seasons now. Pretty sure he's a top tier coach (not just an ATO specialist) , but I agree earning it when you've got all the ingredients is a different test.
I just don't know which way its going to go. I'm done staying up for the games and zombiing into work for the time being.
