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Too many 3s for the C’s? 🧱
Plus: 💍 Drake Maye puts a ring on it
Good Morning, Boston.
On this day in 1992 … Robert Parish, part of the OG “Big 3” crew alongside Larry Bird and Kevin McHale, netted his 20,000th career point with a turnaround jumper against the 76ers. Fun fact: Parish is the first (and best) NBA player ever to wear No. 00. The hard-nosed big man was often emulated, but never duplicated. One of these days, No. 0 will join No. 00 in the Garden rafters.
WHAT’S ON TAP TODAY:
Drake Maye scores again
Trent Frederic’s fists do the talking
Matthew Arena’s Beanpot farewell?
LET’S GET INTO IT …
LEADING OFF
Shooting blanks
Image: Frank Gunn/AP
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The Celtics have hit a snag. Wednesday’s loss to the 10-31 Toronto Raptors is another low point in a rough stretch for Boston. They haven’t played like a team with the NBA’s third-best record (28-12), and teams certainly aren’t afraid to square up with them, not even at TD Garden. Detractors will likely point to the Celtics’ extreme reliance on 3-pointers as a reason they’re faltering lately. The thing is … they might be (partly) right.
Their long-ball happy style isn’t working lately. As we’ve all heard, the Celtics shoot a ton of triples, leading the league in 3-point attempts per game. The problem: they’re just 15th in 3-point shooting percentage, which has steadily dipped each month and bottomed out at a brutal 32.8% in January. (For perspective, that would be the second-lowest percentage in basketball ahead of only Orlando.) They missed 30 of their 46 attempts Wednesday. Boston’s simply not the same team when they’re not hitting from deep.
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That’s music to the haters’ ears … With every bricked shot from beyond the arc, Kendrick Perkins has to be doing cartwheels. Along with their “easy” path, stacked roster, and Jaylen Brown winning Finals MVP over Jayson Tatum, the Celtics’ 3-point shooting is an especially popular reason why pundits didn’t love the Celtics’ 2024 NBA Finals run. Everyone from fans to basketball journalists has publicly decried their persistent barrage from deep, suggesting “[Joe] Mazzulla ball” ruins the basketball-watching experience. NBA commissioner Adam Silver has even said he’ll “tweak” the game to address those concerns.
… But like it or not, the game’s changed. Bottom line: you win by scoring more points than the other team. 3-pointers are worth more than even the most exciting twos. (Sorry, midrange god Brandon Bass.) Therefore, teams are shooting more threes than ever because it increases the odds of winning. Unless the NBA moves the three-point line back (again), nothing can change that. But as teams like the Celtics and Golden State Warriors have shown, you can shoot a lot of threes and still play winning basketball. Which is why …
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The Celtics have bigger problems than “too many threes.” Sometimes even good teams like Boston have days when shots don’t fall. You can live with that. What you can’t accept is playing with “no spirit” and giving up 110 points to a terrible Raptors team. Once the C’s start playing more aggressively on both ends of the floor (and maybe try a few more layups), those 3-point attempts will feel a lot more palatable. With luck, they’ll start going in again, and people can quit complaining about them.
BOSTON SPORTS
Quick hits & headlines
Image: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Drake Maye gets engaged! The Patriots’ face of the franchise had a very good reason for missing Mike Vrabel’s introductory press conference: he was busy setting up a long-term extension with his girlfriend. A romantic beach trip with red roses in the sand? Perfect play-call. A+ execution. That’s our QB.
Vince Wilfork’s not impressed with Tom Brady’s broadcasting. Count the ex-Patriots defensive lineman as one of many who think Brady’s a far better quarterback than he is a broadcaster. Given how influential Brady’s been as a part-owner of the Raiders, he might not be in the booth much longer anyway. (#FreeGregOlsen.)
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Trent Frederic gets revenge on Emil Lilleberg. The pugnacious Bruins winger doled out some old-fashioned justice to the Lightning’s Lilleberg during Tuesday night’s 6-2 win for cross-checking and punching Boston’s Mark Kastelic while he laid on the ice last week. Even better: the B’s have their fight back as a team, winning two in a row after a six-game losing streak.
Franklin’s own Michael Callahan makes Bruins debut. The 25-year-old defenseman went from boarding a bus to Syracuse with the Providence Bruins Tuesday morning to helping the B’s stifle one of the NHL’s best offenses later that night. Frederic even took a break from beating up Lilleberg to give Callahan a puck to take home as a souvenir. Sure beats a trek through upstate New York.
Northeastern women punch Beanpot ticket in style. The Huskies advanced to the women’s Beanpot championship again Tuesday night, beating Boston College in front of the largest crowd for a Northwestern women’s game ever at Matthews Arena. If that’s the last Beanpot game at the 115-year-old building, what a way to go out. The Huskies take on BU at TD Garden for all the beans (?) on Feb. 21.
LAST CALL
Double-OT?
Image: Michael Thomas/AP
What about taking both Texas tackles after a trade down and then back into the first round [in the NFL Draft]? — @kstandish42
Thanks, Ken.
Kelvin Banks Jr. will be a first-round pick, but I’d rank LSU OT Will Campbell or even Arizona WR Tet McMillan as higher priorities in a trade-down scenario.
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Banks’ teammate Cam Williams, meanwhile, might be worth a trade-up into the first round. He committed a ton of penalties last year — a perfect fit for the 2024 Patriots — but he’ll likely impress scouts with his mobility during the draft process.
Expect the Pats to sign at least one starting-caliber tackle in free agency, so they can focus on the “best player available.” Someone tell Eliot Wolf and Mike Vrabel to throw a bag at Ronnie Stanley.
THEY SAID IT, NOT ME
[No] fear factor
Image: Frank Gunn/AP
Guys are excited about playing us and when they come out here, they’re showing it.
Brian Scalabrine on other teams’ mentality playing the Celtics.
It sounds like a morgue in here … it’s the ultimate compliment.
Joe Mazzulla on the mood after Boston’s close win over the Pelicans Monday night.
We’ve got to look at two paths — one that we’re buying and one that we may be just retooling a little bit.
Cam Neely on the Bruins’ plans before the trade deadline.
Once you started going back and forth with ‘Vrabes,’ this guy’s going for the throat.
Brian Hoyer on trash-talking new Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel.
GAME … SET … MEME
Double standard, much?!
The irony of the Vrabel vs. Ben Johnson debate: When Johnson’s top-ranked Detroit offense ranks third in the NFL in rushing attempts, nobody panics. Because it’s all part of the plan. But when Vrabel says something simple like “throwing the ball 50 times in a game is usually bad,” well then everyone loses their minds! Introduce a little … balance.
🗞 That’s a wrap. I’m predicting a lot of new offensive linemen and a bounce-back year for Rhamondre Stevenson in New England next season.
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