Stop us if you’ve heard this before: The Boston Celtics lost because of abysmal shooting.
For literal years, reliable perimeter shooting has been an issue, and they really didn’t do anything this offseason to help their cause. Boston drafted Vanderbilt sharpshooter Aaron Nesmith with the 14th overall pick, but it’s unfair to expect him to step in and rectify an issue that’s long predated him.
Carsen Edwards was another marksman in college, but minus that one preseason game last year against the Cleveland Cavaliers, he hasn’t exactly been Ray Allen.
So with this in mind, does it at all surprise you that in the C’s two preseason games — both losses — Boston heaved 84 shots from deep and made just 19 of them?
That’s 22.6 percent. Not breaking new ground here when we say that won’t cut it.
When we suggested a couple weeks ago that the Celtics aren’t legitimate NBA Finals contenders, these were the exact issues we had in mind. The Celtics, to a frustrating degree, love to shoot even when they’re not hitting, and that ghastly clip keeping up is going to crush them this season.
Of course, the necessary caveat needs to be expressed that this is just a two-game sample size and it’s only the preseason. They’ve only been back in camp for less than three weeks and are missing important players due to injury.
But Danny Ainge didn’t address a clear need this offseason, and wouldn’t you know it, it’s already sinking them.
