Jrue Holiday gives candid take on Celtics’ blow out...

Jrue Holiday gives candid take on Celtics’ blowout loss

Boston’s dismal shooting performance cost them their second consecutive home game.

Boston — The Celtics lost to the Clippers 115-96 on Saturday night, taking it on the chin in one of their

worst losses of the season. The Clippers put on a clinic against an overmatched Boston team, building a

31-point advantage after three quarters without the participation of any starter for the Boston side.

Even though it was just Boston’s second defeat of the year at TD Garden, Jrue Holiday was affected by

the crushing defeat.

Holiday described it as “a good ol’ fashioned (butt) whooping.” It is, in my opinion, quite humble to be

able to kind of return home and get your ass kicked. But the season is well underway. We kind of keep

this in the back of our minds, knowing that we can learn from it. When we play well in the previous

game, it will never leave our minds.

Holiday was one of several starting Celtics players who had a poor offensive performance; in 27

minutes, he scored seven points on 2-of-11 shooting and was benched for the entire fourth quarter. With

their combined 13 of 55 field goal performance, Boston’s starting five put the team in a deficit from

which they were unable to recover in the second half. Holiday speculates that the misses might have

contributed to defensive lapses.

“I don’t think it’s about effort, after some of those shots,” stated Holiday. “I believe we attempted to grab

offensive rebounds when we walked out there. However, I believe they had numerous transition points

and leaks, so perhaps we weren’t focused enough on regaining the defensive position. They performed

admirably.

Coach Joe Mazzulla gained some important perspective from the defeat, which came just after Boston’s

most spectacular offensive victory of the season in Miami, as Boston attempts to stay consistent on a

seven-game homestand.

Mazzulla remarked, “You’re never as good as you think you are, and you’re never as bad as you think

you are.” And it seems significant to me. Adversity is a topic we frequently discuss, and it is typically

understood to mean that something bad has happened to you. However, I find that handling success

and winning regularly is one of the most difficult things to do. And managing victory is just as difficult

as managing defeat. Therefore, in my opinion, you should just concentrate on the moral fiber of your

group and our guys will bounce back.”