The Robert Williams Era Has Arrived And It's Off To A Fantastic Start

Gary Dineen. Getty Images.

Heading into this two game set with a Bucks team that had been playing some of the best basketball in the entire NBA, I think we were all hopeful for at least a split. Considering we haven't seen these two teams play since opening night when Jayson Tatum hit a game winner in Giannis' eyeball, a lot has changed in the past 94 days. I wouldn't exactly say the Celtics have been playing the best basketball post All Star break, in fact it's been down right brutal. I mean they had lost 4 of their last 5 before this MIL trip, and it was certainly a crossroads moment. Would it have shocked anyone if the Bucks blew the doors off this team and things really startred to spiral?

But then Wednesday happened. Yes, a brutal two point loss, but the Celts showed fight. They showed once again that they could compete with this Bucks team when they play the right way. Then the trade deadline happened, Ainge actually did something, and the vibe started to change. There was hope. It sucked losing Theis, especially since the Bucks were on the horizon again on Friday, but it also meant more of an opportunity for Rob. The result? Probably their most complete game of the entire season. A total ass kicking of a team that had won 8 in a row. Don't let the final score fool you, the Celts whooped that ass.

Now it's still important to keep perspective. The record does stand at 22-23. That's bad. The Celts sit in the 7th spot at the moment. That's also not great. Not as bad as someone like Miami who has now lost 6 in a row and sits in 8th (you'd never know), but there is still a whole lot of work to do before this season is turned around. At the same time, there's no denying that this MIL trip gave this team a different feel. Adding Evan Fournier to the mix isn't too bad either. I will say we've been here before, only to see the team take a couple steps back. But if we see them play like they did last night, there's legit reason for optimism. Will they? Who the hell knows, it's certainly not a guarantee, but coming off what has to be their best all around performance in months I'm not going to worry about that right now.

Let's just jump right in.

The Good

- Maybe you thought we were going to start this blog with the performance of Jayson Tatum, who was spetacular. No no, we're going with the guy who in my mind had an even bigger impact on this win. Making his first start of the season, I think it's safe to say Robert Williams answered the call

You're looking at the starting center of the future folks. Ainge talked about how they were ready to give Rob and expanded role, and would you look at what that looks like. It's incredible. We've seen it for about a month now, and to think he's only going to get better as he gets more reps has me over the moon. He's blossoming just how we all hoped he would and then some. I find it interesting how a team that lacks energy and effort at times had their first game of 48 minutes of good energy in a game where Rob played 27 minutes and was on the floor from the jump. The impact he made early on both ends is why the Celts got off too such a strong start.

In the first quarter alone he had 3 assists and 2 blocks and was a team best +12 in his 7 minutes. He set the tone early. I just don't understand how you can watch Rob play and think to yourself, "this team needs Andre Drummond". In addition to his energy and impact on both ends, he finished with 0 TOs and just 2 fouls. That is huge. It shows me that Rob is starting to put it together. Is it crazy to think the Celts have found a legit weapon that also fits the Jays timeline? I don't think so.

And you know what? We have to talk about how effective Rob was on Giannis. We just do. When you see him handle Giannis on multiple possessions with Giannis going downhill, that's noticeable. He forced him into jumpers. He defended without fouling. Rob matched up on Giannis a total of 8 possessions (2nd most) and held him to 1-3 shooting and just 3 total points. I mean holy shit. Then on the offensive end, we're seeing a player with a passing ability of prime Horford. You know how important that is to the offense? The answer is very. This isn't a case of all of us overreacting to one performance. Rob has been doing this shit for over a month, now he's just been given the keys. I know they'll be reluctant to bring Thompson off the bench once he's back, but I think you have to tell him to just suck it up and not mess with Rob's vibe. It clearly works.

- And yes, then there was Jayson Tatum. On Wednesday, I hated his offensive approach. He settled wayyyy too much. Last night we got the version we need. The one where he basically asserted himself as the best player on the floor and told the team to get on his back. He stepped up and then some

The line is nice, I mean 34/6/7 against that Bucks defense is nothing to sneeze at, but for me it was all about his shot profile and his efficiency. After struggling on Wednesday because he played outside/in, Tatum finished at 13-18 (4-7). Just look at how different his approach was early. Everything was at the basket. That gave him a rhythm and then he started raining it from three. You cannot tell me this isn't exactly what you want to see from his shot chart 

He clearly got the message that he needed to be more aggressive early and not settle for contested threes on like 5 of his first 6 FGA like Wednesday. Look at what a difference it made. 

- We also got back to back legit performances from Kemba, which is a pretty big deal. Especially going up against someone like Jrue Holiday and a Bucks defense that is super long. 

So much was made over Kemba's first 10 games, well let's check in on how he's been since. In the 17 games since, here is his production

19.8 points / 3.5 rebounds / 4.8 assists / 1.3 steals / 42% FG / 38% 3P% with 3.3 3PM

Basically, he's back to normal. He looks healthy. He passes the eye test. The one thing I'll say is he's not getting to the line as much but not because he isn't driving the ball. For whatever reason, he's getting a weird whistle this year. The point is, that production is fine as a #3 guy. Remember, the Celts are about to add a 20 point scorer to the mix as well. 

Not only that, but his defense was actually pretty good last night! We all know that this team will only go as far as Kemba allows. When he plays like this, they can beat anyone. When he disappears, winning against good teams becomes an uphill battle. But for those who were screaming for consistency, well I would say a 17 game sample of 27 total games is pretty consistent. 

- It's no surprise the team as a whole looked so much better offensively because the ball was moving. It's not exactly rocket science and why we all get so frustrated when we see them get away from playing like this. Another stellar shooting night at 48/46% with 22 3PM against a legit Bucks defense, you can credit that to 27 assists on 43 FGM. That's the good shit right there. The ball never really stuck, multiple players touched it, guys passed up a good shot for a great shot, it was the best I've seen this team move the ball in weeks and look what happened.

- After Wednesday, a whole bunch of people were in my mentions demanding Marcus Smart be traded. They needed him off the roster. Whoops

Now I can admit. I have talked about how at times Smart does more harm than good. I hated his early FGA on Wednesday. But last night was a great example of why he helps you win. The made threes were a little fluky, but how about the defense? It finally showed up. His shot selection was much better as well for the most part. He took just 2 FGA in the fourth quarter for those who obsess over that. Basically, you do not win this game without Smart. Period. He gave up just 4 points on 11 possessions defending Giannis as well.

- I thought it was noticeable how every time it felt like the Bucks were maybe going to go on a run, the Celts punched back. Cut it to 12? Brad took a good timeout and boom, the lead went right back up to 16. They never let things get out of hand. Coming out of the half guns blazing and with great energy was also nice to see. Like I said, they played a complete game and that includes the coach as well. 

- This was a really good MIL trip for Grant. Maybe the best two game stretch we've seen him have all year. It sounds crazy, but Grant at the small ball five might actually work. We need to see it more, but you play this well against a good team like MIL, I am going to give you credit. He's really the only pick and pop big on the roster at the moment, so it's pretty important that he finds a way to continue this level of play. His perimeter defense was a little shaky, but other than that he was great in my opinion.

The Bad

- Stop me if you've heard this before but Khris Middleton once again roasted the Celtics defense. This time it was a 7-11 (4-5) performance. It's incredible. This needs some sort of investigation. What the hell happens when he plays the Celts that he suddenly never misses. It's been 4 years now and nothing is changing. I know he's good, but he makes Michael Jordan look like a scrub whenever he plays this team. It's insane. Doesn't matter who guards him, he doesn't miss. I have had enough of it.

- While he climbed out of it, I didn't love how Smart started this game. Very careless with the basketball, kept driving into no mans land and like 4 Bucks defenders, it was rough. But that's the Marcus Smart Experience. You have to love and trust that he'll snap out of it. You have to endure the valleys to experience the peaks. Early Marcus was rough, late Marcus was great.

- I wouldn't say it was his finest moment when Tacko somehow couldn't get a rebound on what had to be 4 straight MIL shots. He's tall as shit, but his rebounding prowess needs work. 

The Ugly

- I'm starting to get a little worried about this team giving up a billion offensive rebounds. The Bucks had 16 last night which led the 17 2nd chance points. That's an issue. We saw the same thing against MEM. Maybe that's where Thompson will help, but at the same time I need defensive rebounding to be a collective thing. It's all about effort and while it didn't burn them in this game, it will moving forward, you can bet on it.

- The Moe Wagner experience was…..something. That early corner three? Awesome. Everything else? Yeah I dunno. Love his energy, let's give him some time to get acclimated obviously, but he was all over the place. 

- If Nesmith is going to get some run, I need him to ya know….hit a shot. That's all.

The Celts have a real opportunity now to seriously turn things around. After this game in OKC, their next 7 games are at home before they head back out West for a 3 game trip. With how they looked in MIL, the dominance of Rob and now the addition of a legit scoring wing in Fournier there is reason for optimism, but we have to see them actually follow through. Show me you can finally build some momentum and not take two steps back. Do that, and then let's fucking go.