NBA Notebook: Love of winning, pain of defeat ... which matters more to the Celtics? Why Stevens stays

As another sub-par performance by the Boston Celtics brought into focus another disappointing defeat, Kemba Walker dribbled out the final seconds of Boston’s last possession which led to a shot-clock violation. 

It was a fitting end to the Celtics’ 107-96 loss to the Sacramento Kings which capped off a Kings sweep of the season series. 

And no, this isn’t your Chris Webber-Vlade Divac-Bobby Jackson Kings that were, you know, really good.

I couldn’t shake that image of Walker letting the final seconds tick away in a game that Boston had no shot at that point of winning. 

But at that point, it wasn't about winning and losing. 

You play until there’s no time left to play, regardless of what the outcome will be. 

That fight-until-the-bitter-end spirit that we are accustomed to seeing from Brad Stevens-coached teams, has dissipated before our very eyes. 

This team doesn’t fight through adversity; it folds. 

This team doesn’t buckle up when tough times arrive; it buckles under. 

There is a level of mental toughness that the best teams have, and this team? 

They don’t have it, and have no signs of getting it anytime soon internally or externally if you believe the words spoken lately by Danny Ainge, the man who put this team together. 

He has prepared the Green Team, card-carrying Massholes for the reality that no help will be coming by the trade deadline if it doesn't have the kind of short and long-term benefits for the franchise that he is always wanting to have whenever he does a trade.

We just saw one of the team's primary targets, Sacramento's Harrison Barnes, deliver a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds which was a painful reminder of how too often what the Celtics want and need is so close and yet far away at the same time.

During the Kings' loss, an Eastern Conference scout and I were exchanging text messages. I asked him about the Celtics and his response I feel is an opinion that many have about the Green Team these days.

“I don't understand this team,” he texted. “Is it (that) they don't want to win or do they not care about losing. Which matters more?”

It’s a fair question considering how this team has played by and large this season, compared to what we are used to seeing. 

Do they enjoy winning more than they hate to lose?

If their love for winning trumps the pain of defeat, this team is in bigger trouble than we thought. 

Because of the malaise that they find themselves in now, they can only climb out of it if losing hurts more than the feel-good vibes of winning. 

That’s what the better teams do, anyway. 

Brad Stevens stays, this is a recording

Another head coaching job in Indiana opens up (this time it's Indiana University), another cycle of “Brad Stevens is coming home” talk.

Rinse. Recycle. Repeat.

We’ve seen this play out a handful of times since Stevens, an Indiana native who left Butler University for Boston, but this cycle felt different. For the first time since Stevens arrived in Boston in 2013, he wasn’t leading a Celtics team on the rise at the time of the college coaching vacancy. 

Boston has been a huge disappointment this season, which a league source tells BostonSportsJournal.com is in part why Stevens never seriously considered the current opening at Indiana. 

“Brad’s not the type to just get up and leave a situation as bad or worse than how it was when he arrived, if he has a choice,” the source said. “Now will he someday leave Boston and go back to college coaching? Sure; I could see that. But that’s not likely to happen until he has them (Celtics) in a good place or at least a better place than they are right now.”

Fan boost for the C's?

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker has indicated fans will be allowed to return to pro stadiums and arenas this month. While the fans won’t knock down a 3-pointer or get a defensive stop for the Celtics, they could be just what this team needs to jumpstart what has been a season marred by breakdowns at both ends of the floor instead of what many anticipated would be a break-through season. 

“That’s one reason I wanted to join this organization, because of how amazing their fans are and their fan base,” said Tristan Thompson who spent his previous nine NBA seasons with Cleveland. “Of course we’re limited to 12 percent or whatever the number is, so I know that will be the strongest 12 percent there is in the league cheering for us every night. And having them back in the arena will bring that extra energy for us, and give us that boost that we want and need sometimes during the game. I’m extremely excited, and as the weeks and months continue the virus settles down a little bit and the vaccine gets going, we can get a higher percentage into the arena.”

While it remains to be seen just how big a boost the Celtics will receive from playing in front of fans, there’s no doubt it has the potential to be the much-needed stimulus package this team needs in order to get back on track and finish the season on a high note. 

C's Fans: More Time Lord, please

When it comes to upside and talk of potential, there may not be a better example of this among Celtics players, than Robert Williams III. 

He is the one player this season whose play seems to steadily get better from one game to the next, which is why Celtics fans are chomping at the bit to see more and more Time Lord.

But here’s the thing. 

Having come into the league with knee tendinitis issues that played a role in him falling to the Celtics with the 27th pick in the 2018 draft (he was viewed for most of the year as a top-10 pick), Boston has been overly cautious with playing him heavy minutes. 

In the past, it was easy to limit his minutes due to injuries, or him simply not playing well enough, or consistently enough, to be on the floor for long stretches. 

This season is different. 

He has established himself as the best game-changer Boston has at the center position, even as he continues to share the position with Tristan Thompson and Daniel Theis. 

Williams has strung together four consecutive double-digit scoring games, a first for him. Included within that stretch are three consecutive games in which he logged 20 or more minutes, also a first which speaks to how Williams is getting a larger piece of the playing time pie. 

Of course, Thompson being in the league’s health and safety protocol program means more time for Williams, his ever-increasing role was apparent even when Thompson was in the mix. 

This season, Williams has had 10 games in which he has played 20 or more minutes. In his first two seasons, he only had a total of six such games. 

So yes, we are all getting to see more Time Lord than ever. 

But considering how well he has played of late while so many of his teammates have delivered sub-par performances, Celtics Nation has every right to want to see more of the Time Lord takeover of the center position. 

P.J. Tucker’s impact

The Milwaukee Bucks acquiring P.J. Tucker from Houston didn’t draw the kind of headlines his former Rockets teammate James Harden did when he got his wish and was traded to Brooklyn. 

But there’s a sense that adding the 6-foot-6 Tucker may wind up being that one piece that the Bucks were missing to get over the hump and advance to the Eastern Conference finals. 

“PJ is perfect for what they need,” a league executive told BSJ. “He’s a 3-and-D guy, knows how to play well with superstars, and is tough. Look at Milwaukee the last two years and ‘tough’ is not a word you would use to describe most of or any of their players. They were going to be a tough out for any team they see in the playoffs. P.J. makes them tougher.”

That’s certainly not good news to the Celtics who find yet another team ahead of them in the standings, bolstering their roster via trade.