Back2Back Victories that will live in INFAMY

[Future Celtics Owner]

We won because those teams undervalued our coach and players and because they were not at full strength.....It does suck.

[mctyson]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

[MarcusStart]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

I can't see why people get so worked up about a bad team winning games. The Celtics will never win the lottery. History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot and that any pick in the draft(even the first) does not guarantee anything. 2-5 extra wins doesn't really mean any thing right now.

[jonaslopes]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

I can't see why people get so worked up about a bad team winning games. The Celtics will never win the lottery. History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot and that any pick in the draft(even the first) does not guarantee anything. 2-5 extra wins doesn't really mean any thing right now.

Exactly:

Damian Lillard: 6th pick
Stephen Curry: 7th pick
Joakim Noah: 9th pick
Gordon Hayward: 9th pick
Paul George: 10th pick
Brook Lopez: 10th pick
Klay Thompson: 11th pick
Kawhi Leonard: 15th pick
Roy Hibert: 17th pick
Eric Bledsoe: 18th pick
Tobias Harris: 19th pick
Serge Ibaka: 24th pick
Kyle Lowry: 24th pick
Jimmy Butler: 30th pick
DeAndre Jordan: 35th pick
Chandler Parsons: 38th pick
Goran Dragic: 45th pick
Marc Gasol: 48th pick

[SHAQATTACK]

I m very glade of these victories .  The team needed faith they can win on the road in the west

The record was embarrassment against west coast teams


How many years ago since Celtics had back to back victories in the West?

Surely 2008 .

Btw ......you build a team from a Culture of winning FIRST ........you never want your team to be down ...knowing they are playing for nothing .......the players can't think like that ......that's not a way to inspire young minds .

It ok for the GM to think tank ...maybe

But you never want the coach and especially young players thinking loose first .....that purely stupid .


If you want the Celtics to lose , and they win instead ......please blame DANNY .....not the coach or players .....they are paid to win every game possible .....they are professionals

Only the GM and owners .can operate the team like a chess board and have a tanking situation .  By telling a coach to not play players or trade them

If the front office is not doing the above you have to believe the coach and players will do there best to win.

[Rosco917]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

I can't see why people get so worked up about a bad team winning games. The Celtics will never win the lottery. History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot and that any pick in the draft(even the first) does not guarantee anything. 2-5 extra wins doesn't really mean any thing right now.

Exactly:

Damian Lillard: 6th pick
Stephen Curry: 7th pick
Joakim Noah: 9th pick
Gordon Hayward: 9th pick
Paul George: 10th pick
Brook Lopez: 10th pick
Klay Thompson: 11th pick
Kawhi Leonard: 15th pick
Roy Hibert: 17th pick
Eric Bledsoe: 18th pick
Tobias Harris: 19th pick
Serge Ibaka: 24th pick
Kyle Lowry: 24th pick
Jimmy Butler: 30th pick
DeAndre Jordan: 35th pick
Chandler Parsons: 38th pick
Goran Dragic: 45th pick
Marc Gasol: 48th pick

Thanks for the list, it's certainly a solid reason to curtail the tanking talk. If the C's were tanking we would never have won either of these games. The Celtics scratched and clawed for both of these wins, that's how you build a team. 

[chambers]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

I can't see why people get so worked up about a bad team winning games. The Celtics will never win the lottery. History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot and that any pick in the draft(even the first) does not guarantee anything. 2-5 extra wins doesn't really mean any thing right now.

Exactly:

Damian Lillard: 6th pick
Stephen Curry: 7th pick
Joakim Noah: 9th pick
Gordon Hayward: 9th pick
Paul George: 10th pick
Brook Lopez: 10th pick
Klay Thompson: 11th pick
Kawhi Leonard: 15th pick
Roy Hibert: 17th pick
Eric Bledsoe: 18th pick
Tobias Harris: 19th pick
Serge Ibaka: 24th pick
Kyle Lowry: 24th pick
Jimmy Butler: 30th pick
DeAndre Jordan: 35th pick
Chandler Parsons: 38th pick
Goran Dragic: 45th pick
Marc Gasol: 48th pick

How many of those guys are franchise players?
Gasol and  Steph Curry? Maybe Paul George.

Your list just proves a point.
Now list the best two players on championship teams over the last 20 years and see where they were picked.

[TheTruthFot18]

Although they were games we should have lost on paper, you have to remember we won both games by 1 point on the final possession (one on defense, the other on offense) and Portland was without LA and Lopez while Denver is good but who's really surprised that we actually won there.

[jonaslopes]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

I can't see why people get so worked up about a bad team winning games. The Celtics will never win the lottery. History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot and that any pick in the draft(even the first) does not guarantee anything. 2-5 extra wins doesn't really mean any thing right now.

Exactly:

Damian Lillard: 6th pick
Stephen Curry: 7th pick
Joakim Noah: 9th pick
Gordon Hayward: 9th pick
Paul George: 10th pick
Brook Lopez: 10th pick
Klay Thompson: 11th pick
Kawhi Leonard: 15th pick
Roy Hibert: 17th pick
Eric Bledsoe: 18th pick
Tobias Harris: 19th pick
Serge Ibaka: 24th pick
Kyle Lowry: 24th pick
Jimmy Butler: 30th pick
DeAndre Jordan: 35th pick
Chandler Parsons: 38th pick
Goran Dragic: 45th pick
Marc Gasol: 48th pick

How many of those guys are franchise players?
Gasol and  Steph Curry? Maybe Paul George.

Your list just proves a point.
Now list the best two players on championship teams over the last 20 years and see where they were picked.

MarcusStart wrote: "History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot". You want to "list the best two players on championship teams over the last 20 years and see where they were picked".

Boston Celtics, 2007-2008:

Kevin Garnett: 5th pick
Ray Allen: 5th pick
Paul Pierce: 10th pick
Rajon Rondo: 21th pick
Kendrick Perkins: 27th pick

[MBunge]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

I can't see why people get so worked up about a bad team winning games. The Celtics will never win the lottery. History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot and that any pick in the draft(even the first) does not guarantee anything. 2-5 extra wins doesn't really mean any thing right now.

Exactly:

Damian Lillard: 6th pick
Stephen Curry: 7th pick
Joakim Noah: 9th pick
Gordon Hayward: 9th pick
Paul George: 10th pick
Brook Lopez: 10th pick
Klay Thompson: 11th pick
Kawhi Leonard: 15th pick
Roy Hibert: 17th pick
Eric Bledsoe: 18th pick
Tobias Harris: 19th pick
Serge Ibaka: 24th pick
Kyle Lowry: 24th pick
Jimmy Butler: 30th pick
DeAndre Jordan: 35th pick
Chandler Parsons: 38th pick
Goran Dragic: 45th pick
Marc Gasol: 48th pick

How many of those guys are franchise players?
Gasol and  Steph Curry? Maybe Paul George.

Your list just proves a point.
Now list the best two players on championship teams over the last 20 years and see where they were picked.

Here are the last 10 years of the draft's top 3 picks, listing where the teams were pre-lottery.  In other words 1,2,3 means the teams with the worst, 2nd worst and 3rd worst records picked first, second and third.

2014 - 9, 1, 2
2013 - 3, 1, 8
2012 - 4, 1, 2
2011 - 8, 1, 6
2010 - 5, 6, 1
2009 - 3, 6, 4
2008 - 9, 1, 3
2007 - 7, 5, 4
2006 - 5, 2, 3
2005 - 6, 1, 4

There's value in tanking for the worst record but even then, that team has missed the top 3 three times in 10 years.  The number 2 pick has missed SEVEN TIMES!!!  Meanwhile, teams in pre-lottery spots 6-9 have jumped into the top 3 eight times.

It's worth tanking to get the worst record and it's worth it to tank your way to the 8th or 9th worst record instead of 13 or 14.  Beyond that, there's no point in worrying about it.

Mike

[Celtics4ever]

I think of Pearl Harbor when I think of infamy, using it for slipping in the NBA draft doesn't strike me as correct or proper usage.

[Celtics18]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

I can't see why people get so worked up about a bad team winning games. The Celtics will never win the lottery. History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot and that any pick in the draft(even the first) does not guarantee anything. 2-5 extra wins doesn't really mean any thing right now.

Exactly:

Damian Lillard: 6th pick
Stephen Curry: 7th pick
Joakim Noah: 9th pick
Gordon Hayward: 9th pick
Paul George: 10th pick
Brook Lopez: 10th pick
Klay Thompson: 11th pick
Kawhi Leonard: 15th pick
Roy Hibert: 17th pick
Eric Bledsoe: 18th pick
Tobias Harris: 19th pick
Serge Ibaka: 24th pick
Kyle Lowry: 24th pick
Jimmy Butler: 30th pick
DeAndre Jordan: 35th pick
Chandler Parsons: 38th pick
Goran Dragic: 45th pick
Marc Gasol: 48th pick

How many of those guys are franchise players?
Gasol and  Steph Curry? Maybe Paul George.

Your list just proves a point.
Now list the best two players on championship teams over the last 20 years and see where they were picked.

Here's a list of guys who have been among the top two players on a champion in the last twenty years picked outside the top 5:

Clyde Drexler, 14th
Kobe Bryant, 13th
Ben Wallace, undrafted
Tony Parker, 28th
Manu Ginobili, 57th
Paul Pierce, 10th
Dirk Nowitzki, 9th
Kawhi Leonard, 15th

Here's a list of guys who were drafted in the top five, but were top two players on championship teams other than the one they were drafted by:

Shaquille O'Neal, 1st
Chauncey Billups, 3rd
Kevin Garnett, 5th
Pau Gasol, 3rd
Tyson Chandler, 2nd
Lebron James, 1st

Here's a complete list of players who were among the top two players on championship teams who were drafted in the top five by the team they won a title/s with over the course of the past twenty years. 

Hakeem Olajuwon
Michael Jordan
Scottie Pippen
Tim Duncan
David Robinson
Dwayne Wade

*Note that only two of the six players on this last list have won titles in this century. 

[Emmette Bryant]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

I'm not saying anything.  You can just cry yourself to sleep.

[droopdog7]

in the history of the Celtics. Why are we winning on the road against elite Western Conference teams?

Do we want to stay in the basement of the NBA for years to come. Even the Lakers are Tanking.

What is wrong with the people running the Celtics?

Why are we winning games we ought to lose?

For the life of me I don't understand this thought process.  Why do we want this team to lose?  If they start winning lots of games, even with players like Bass and Prince getting some minutes, doesn't that mean the team is better than we think they are?

Wouldn't you rather have a team of 20-24 year olds who win 40 games versus a similarly aged team that wins 14?  Why do you believe that we have to draft in the top 5 to get an impact player?  Why can't we add solid mid-draft talent and one potential FA/trade veteran to put this team back in contention?

Granted this Celtics team is probably not going to win 40 games, but what if they went .500 after the All-Star break.  Why is that BAD??

I can't see why people get so worked up about a bad team winning games. The Celtics will never win the lottery. History has show that you could find quality talent in the 5-10 slot and that any pick in the draft(even the first) does not guarantee anything. 2-5 extra wins doesn't really mean any thing right now.

Exactly:

Damian Lillard: 6th pick
Stephen Curry: 7th pick
Joakim Noah: 9th pick
Gordon Hayward: 9th pick
Paul George: 10th pick
Brook Lopez: 10th pick
Klay Thompson: 11th pick
Kawhi Leonard: 15th pick
Roy Hibert: 17th pick
Eric Bledsoe: 18th pick
Tobias Harris: 19th pick
Serge Ibaka: 24th pick
Kyle Lowry: 24th pick
Jimmy Butler: 30th pick
DeAndre Jordan: 35th pick
Chandler Parsons: 38th pick
Goran Dragic: 45th pick
Marc Gasol: 48th pick

How many of those guys are franchise players?
Gasol and  Steph Curry? Maybe Paul George.

Your list just proves a point.
Now list the best two players on championship teams over the last 20 years and see where they were picked.

Here's a list of guys who have been among the top two players on a champion in the last twenty years picked outside the top 5:

Clyde Drexler, 14th
Kobe Bryant, 13th
Ben Wallace, undrafted
Tony Parker, 28th
Manu Ginobili, 57th
Paul Pierce, 10th
Dirk Nowitzki, 9th
Kawhi Leonard, 15th

Here's a list of guys who were drafted in the top five, but were top two players on championship teams other than the one they were drafted by:

Shaquille O'Neal, 1st
Chauncey Billups, 3rd
Kevin Garnett, 5th
Pau Gasol, 3rd
Tyson Chandler, 2nd
Lebron James, 1st

Here's a complete list of players who were among the top two players on championship teams who were drafted in the top five by the team they won a title/s with over the course of the past twenty years. 

Hakeem Olajuwon
Michael Jordan
Scottie Pippen
Tim Duncan
David Robinson
Dwayne Wade

*Note that only two of the six players on this last list have won titles in this century.

Appreciate the research (TP).  I would add Richard Hamilton to the list (7th pick) and Jason Kidd (2nd).

[fairweatherfan]

Here's a complete list of players who were among the top two players on championship teams who were drafted in the top five by the team they won a title/s with over the course of the past twenty years. 

Hakeem Olajuwon
Michael Jordan
Scottie Pippen
Tim Duncan
David Robinson
Dwayne Wade

*Note that only two of the six players on this last list have won titles in this century.

Doesn't matter much but Pippen was actually drafted by the Sonics; he was a draft-day trade.  TP for putting the list together.