On May 22, Beijing time, the third game of the Celtics and Heat Eastern Conference Finals, just after the fourth quarter began, Joe Mazura sent Sam Hauser, Luke Cornet and Payton Pritchard's "full water cooler combination".
In such a game with a back to the cliff and no room for mistakes, the Green Army, which was unanimously optimistic by the media to easily eliminate the Heat and return to the Finals, threw in 12 minutes early.
To be precise, this game has lost its suspense early since the middle of the second quarter. Although after losing two home games in a row, people have long expected the outcome of this series, but they still hope that the greenshirts, who were once the favorite to win the championship, can show some fighting spirit and bloodiness in desperate situations. Even the opponent Heat, should not have expected that the first game after returning home could win so easily...
From narrowly pulling the Warriors off the horse in the Finals last year to being pressed to the ground by the remnants of the Heat, people can't help but ask: How did the Celtics become so pulled?
The tragedy of catching ducks on the shelves
'That's true, so I need to do better and understand what the team really needs.' After the 90-118 defeat to G3, a reporter asked Joe Mazura if he had lost control of the dressing room, and the rookie coach generously admitted that he was not cryptic.
This is the second consecutive season that the Celtics have appointed a man who has never had previous managerial experience as their commander, but Mazura is significantly different from his predecessor.
A year ago, Amy Uduka, also a rookie coach, led the Celtics to stage a headwind turnaround, knocking out the Nets, Bucks, and Heat all the way to the Finals, and if it weren't for Stephen Curry's epic performance in the fourth game of the Finals, they might have lifted the 18th championship trophy in team history.
But just when people were expecting the Green Army to grow in defeat and go further, they were in trouble - Uduka was suspended internally because of the "style problem", and his assistant Mazura became a replacement.
At first, the Celtics hierarchy apparently did not have full confidence in Mazura, and it was not until the All-Star, when he led the team to a league-best record of 42-17 and officially appointed him as a full-time manager.
It turned out not to be a wise decision, as the Celtics were aiming for a championship, and Mazura could lead the strong greenshirts in the regular season, but it didn't mean he could beat a real rival in the playoffs.
From a narrow 4-2 win over the Hawks in the first round, to a seven-and-narrow win over the 76ers in the divisional semifinals, to being beaten up by Butler's remnant Heat in the Eastern Conference finals, Mazura's game management — especially roster rotation and use of timeouts — has been met with a lot of questions.
Taking the first game of the series with the Heat as an example, in the face of the Heat, known for its confrontational intensity, Mazura completely abandoned the tough Grant Williams, and sent Pritchard, who was short in stature and rarely played in this year's playoffs, and was continuously named and frequently targeted.
In addition, when the Heat rallied in the second half, constantly closing the score, and had clearly begun to gain momentum, Mazura did not react until 6:28 into the third quarter, Butler miraculously made a basket to make a 2+1, and saw that the score was about to reverse, finally called a timeout.
This became the only timeout Mazura called in the third quarter, and for the rest of the quarter, although the Heat continued to storm and gradually extended their advantage to double digits, Mazura remained indifferent.
In the second game of the series, Mazura also made a fatal mistake in the use of personnel - in the decisive stage, he chose to let Horford and Smart in the game shoot 3 of 10 to finish the game together, and pressed Robert Williams and Derek White on the bench, rigid use of personnel, directly led to the loss of the game.
And today, after losing the life-and-death battle in such an embarrassing way, even CelticsBlog reporter Keith Smith, who has always been opposed to letting coaches back at every turn, couldn't help but tweet that the Celtics should fire Mazura.
Lack of staffing, lack of on-the-spot adaptability and adjustment, and now, loss of control of the dressing room, these problems are enough to get Mazura out of class.
What's more, when a reporter asked him why he was in this situation, his answer was: "I'm not sure." ”
What is the value of such a coach?
Double Probe: The star is not full
After leading 2-1 in the finals last year and losing three consecutive games to miss the championship, Jason Tatum was questioned, and even He Guangzhi, who usually does not watch the ball, used "Tatum pulled again" as a terrier.
In this year's playoffs, Tatum's performance before the division semifinals broke out seven times, and it was also unsatisfactory. In the second game of the series with the 76ers, he scored only 7 points on 1-of-7 shooting, and the win had little to do with him; In the fifth battle of Tianwang Mountain, he lost all 5 shots in the first quarter, and although he scored 36 points in the end, he also occupied 27 shots and performed inefficiently; In the sixth game of the series, he shot 0-of-10 in the first half and did not complete his redemption until the fourth quarter....
In the series with the Heat, Tatum also showed a crotch-pulling performance, especially in the first game, with three consecutive turnovers in key moments, compared to Butler, the star opposite, one in the sky and one in the ground. In today's game, he only hit 6 goals in 18 shots, and as the team boss, he naturally bears the main responsibility for the loss.
Since entering the league as a scout show in 2017, Tatum has continued to improve, and after leading the team to the Finals last year, it seems that he is only a layer of window paper away from being a true superstar. However, this seemingly thin layer of window paper is not broken with a stab, and what determines whether he can complete his transformation is precisely the "Mamba spirit" that he has been chanting in his mouth, derived from his idol Kobe.
But spiritual attributes are also part of the talent, and many times, cannot be forced. Tatum's toughness obviously doesn't match his physical talent and technical abilities, which is the core reason why he was blown out of sight in a duel with Butler's leader.
Compared with Tatum, the other of the Green Army's double scouts is much harder, but his lack of absolute talent and technical ability makes him destined to become an excellent second-in-command, but unable to become a qualified leader.
Last year's Finals, Brown received praise almost in proportion to Tatum's scolding. In addition to the fact that Brown's statistics in that round of the series were indeed better, another key reason is that people have different expectations for the two of them.
Although known as a double scout, the tactical roles and positioning of the two men in the Green Army are markedly different: Tatum not only attracts more defensive attention, but also takes on more ball-carrying organizational tasks that he is not good at. In fact, Brown is not only less tall and less armspan than Tatum, but his offensive skills with the ball are not as good as Tatum's ability to handle the ball, which is why the Celtics positioned Tatum as the team's brother early, and Brown could only serve as a deputy.
It is also for this reason that when the coach misdirects and Tatum also shows a crotch, it is simply unrealistic to expect Brown to step up and support the team. Especially with a well-prepared and disciplined team like the Heat, Brown's chances of dominating the game as a raider are even slimmer.
In the second game of the series, he even shot 7-of-23 from the field, posting a catastrophic performance of minus 24 points. It can only be said that the ability is limited, and he is no wonder.
Although the overall talent level of the Celtics is much higher than that of the Heat, whether it is Tatum (or double scout) on the court or Mazura off the court, the leadership ability is far inferior to their opponents, and it is not surprising to lose.
There are no upsets in the playoffs
Before the start of this year's divisional finals, the Celtics' promotion odds were as high as 78%, while the Heat were only 22%, and experts in major media were almost unanimously optimistic that the Green Army could eventually eliminate the Heat and return to the Finals. From that point of view, the Heat are now 3-0 with four game points in hand, which is indeed a super upset.
But if you go back and re-examine the Celtics' performance in this year's playoffs, you will find that their current rout has long been traceable. Although the Celtics eliminated the Hawks and 76ers in a row, their form and performance have not been ideal.
The Celtics' first-round rival, the Hawks, have struggled this season because Murray built an All-Star backcourt last summer, and consecutive losses have triggered a series of locker room crises, John Collins is mired in trade rumors, and Nate McMillan is out of class because of his conflict with Trae Young.
But such a team that stumbled all the way to the playoffs forced the Celtics to Game 6, and the final four games were only single digits.
Facing the 76ers in the divisional semifinals, many believe the Green Army can easily get through with Embiid's knee injury unclear. But in the first game of the series, they lost at home to Harden, who led the team with a single core, and then lost Tianwangshan after 2-2, and if it were not for the playoff crotch triangle opposite Embiid & Harden & Rivers, they would not have been able to get to where they are today.
So, whether it's a 4-2 elimination of the Hawks in the first round, a seven-game win over the 76ers in the second round, or a 3-0 defeat by the Heat in the Eastern Conference finals, the Celtics themselves are no different, the difference is only in the opponent. Yes or no, in fact, it all depends on peers.
The Celtics are not as strong as many people think, and the Heat are clearly not as weak as many people think. In a best-of-seven series, it's hard to have a real upset, and if you can't win your opponent, it's a bad level, and it's over.