The Boston Celtics took a page out of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ book recently — without all of the scandalous footnotes, it seems.
Several Celtics players revealed after Wednesday night’s win over the Clippers in Los Angeles that they held a team meeting Monday night in L.A. to work out their issues amid what was then a three-game losing streak. And while that streak extended to four the following night in a loss to the Lakers, it appears positive progress was made.
Guard Terry Rozier was the first to mention the meeting, which took place after the team canceled a scheduled practice Monday.
“We just all had a meeting and we talked about a lot of things that we can get better at,” Rozier told reporters Wednesday, via ESPN’s Chris Forsberg.
So, what was discussed?
” … Just group things,” Rozier said. “Sometimes when you have them talks within your brothers, you don’t want it to get out, but it’s nothing personal. It’s just something that we all just have to get better at. We talked about things that we can just get better at as a group.”
All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving also tread lightly when asked about the behind-the-scenes powwow.
“I’m trying to think about the right thing to say before it gets misconstrued,” Irving said. “Team meetings, it happens all the time. We could call every time we meet a team meeting. And throughout your professional career, there are going to be times where you’re tested. And for us, it was things that we can control and everyone being great at their role, and us collectively coming together even better as a group.”
“…Â I think that we did a great job of just putting everything out on the table. And it’s just about being professional and going out there and executing.”
We don’t blame Rozier and Irving for being tight-lipped. On the same day they met, reports surfaced of an ugly team meeting in Cleveland in which the Cavs supposedly pointed fingers in all directions, many of which were directed at forward Kevin Love.
The C’s surely want to avoid that drama, but they’re also acknowledging their recent struggles. Irving mentioned a need to withstand adversity after Sunday’s loss to the Orlando Magic, and the team’s latest meeting appears to be a step forward in that process.
