Brian Scalabrine said opponents aren’t any longer afraid of the Celtics

Celtics

Last yr, the Celtics felt like a juggernaut that had the NBA's most effective offense and second-most efficient defense.

They secured the No. 1 seed within the Eastern Conference in late March and the ultimate few weeks of the regular season felt like a formality. The Celtics had an excessive amount of depth, too many shots and were well behind the remaining of the league.

This yr is different. Offensive efficiency has dropped to 3rd, defensive efficiency has dropped to sixth, and the Celtics' 3-point shooting percentage has declined from elite to middle of the pack. They have fallen to second place within the standings and are in peril of being overtaken by the third-place Knicks in the event that they proceed to play like this.

Other teams are catching up. Boston has lost seven of its last 14 games, and Wednesday's loss to the Raptors showed that opponents aren’t any longer afraid of the Celtics, based on NBC Sports Boston Brian Scalabrine said.

“I think the first half was phenomenal,” Scalabrine said of the Raptors game on Celtics Postgame Live. “I thought we were shot for shot, good basketball. I don't know the second half. I don't know what they were thinking.

“Did they think the Raptors would give up?” Scalabrine added. “It's just that we're not playing what I describe as the hard-nosed Celtic basketball that we saw last year, where you could see fear in our opponent's eyes. I'm sorry, man. This fear has disappeared. That’s just not the case anymore.”

It's not only essential that the Celtics lose. It's also about who they lose to and the way it happens. Chicago, Philadelphia and Toronto are sub-.500 teams. Sacramento was also there, but improved its record to 20-20 after defeating the Celtics. Orlando didn't have Paolo Banchero or any of the Wagner brothers after they beat Boston in December.

The Celtics lose to bad teams, partially due to shooting strikes, but in addition because they struggle to consistently generate the proper level of defensive intensity.

“The guys are excited to play against us and when they come out here they show it,” Scalabrine said. “You see Scotty Barnes slapping Jayson Tatum right in the face. Right there.”

“If you remember 2008 and 2009, it’s really interesting that the guys were afraid of us,” he continued. “That's exactly how it was. I'm sorry, I just don't see that with this group. I don’t see other teams saying, ‘Man, we have to get to the point today or the Celtics are going to beat us by 50 points.’ I don’t know if those days are over, but we don’t see that happening.”