Game #10 Recap: Boston Celtics Dominate Disinterested Houston Rockets With A

Philadelphia’s last win was March 25 at Denver, and the 76ers are within five defeats of matching the franchise’s all-time record for consecutive losses.

Boston put the game on ice by closing the third quarter with another 15-0 run, turning a 72-68 lead into an 87-68 runaway entering the fourth.

The Houston Rockets huddled for a players-only meeting on Tuesday morning at the Toyota Center in Houston in an attempt to find a solution to their four-game losing streak.

Stevens knows 10 games is far too small of a sample to get comfortable, but 21 months after challenging his team to embrace the idea of a defensive DNA and become a top-10 defense, his Celtics own the third-best defensive rating in the National Basketball Association early in the 2015-16 season. According to data collected by SportVU, Harden has actually been driving slightly more often this season than he did past year, and he’s been more effective to boot.

The criticism and the fingers have already pointed at Kevin McHale for his inability to pull the Rockets out of the ditch, though he’s changed lineups, tried different tactics, done virtually everything but consult a Ouija board.

Explicitly, the team presently ranks second-to-last in the league in defensive efficiency, allowing over 106.5 points per 100 possessions – only the New Orleans Pelicans concede more – per NBA.com. Lawson to the bench adds an extra element of attack that’s now missing from the run and gun transition bench we’ve put together. One of the reasons Capela’s percentage is so high is that 22 of his 34 made field goals this season have come on dunks. He did say “It was good for us to sit down and talk” and that the start of the season was “embarrassing”.

I hate Dwight Howard so much, but I love watching him direct traffic at the free throw line like a helpless crossing guard in the rain.

Last night, the Houston Rockets got more of the same physical treatment from the Celtics. After averaging 38.5 points per game in their victories, Harden’s numbers dipped to 20.9 points per game in their losses. “I feel like we’re on the same page now”. “We’d better be ready to go”.

The six-point margin was too much for Philadelphia to overcome. The Rockets lost their first three games to open the season, won four in a four and then starting struggling again.

A frustrated McHale said his team doesn’t need a meeting to avoid their longest slide since dropping seven straight from January 9-19, 2013. To beat the Celtics, he said, “We’re gonna have to play a hell of a lot better than we have been”. It looked confident that it was about to sweep a back-to-back on the road in the Western Conference and win its fifth game in six tries. After the talk we had a really good practice, guys communicated we worked hard and now it’s about carrying it over. Unless you’re talking on defense. “You definitely want to play more”.

Houston is 1-3 without Howard. Trevor Ariza averages 2.0 steals per game.

Things did not go smoothly for Harden though, the Celtic’s defense was able to limit Harden in yesterday’s game. Every rebuilding team needs some players like him to show the young guys the ropes, and he still grabs piles (12) of rebounds, even when he’s only got a few points (5).The rest of the team still looks as spotty and raw as ever, with their promise still not being fulfilled. James Harden tops in points with 28.4 and in assists with 6.1 per game.