20160107-BOSCHI

Marc D'Amico

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CHICAGO – Jae Crowder is oftentimes the voice of the Boston Celtics players.  He was such again Thursday night in Chicago when he said of Brad Stevens, “He’s my leader.”

Crowder didn’t have his leader during a loss to the Chicago Bulls.

Stevens was absent from the Celtics for a regular season game for the first time during his two-plus seasons as a coach.  He was tending to more important things – family, friends, and life – in Indiana, where one of his former players needed his presence more than anyone else could have.

As such, the Celtics were in for a very different night than they had ever experienced.

Assistant coach Jay Larranaga stepped in for Stevens and did an admirable job.  He garnered praise from the C’s players after the game, as Crowder and Evan Turner said he did a “great job,” while Jared Sullinger said Larranaga “did a hell of a job.”

Those players pointed to Larranaga’s ability to maintain a semblance of normalcy amid a challenging situation.  The C’s stuck to their normal routine, and that helped them steady their course throughout a rocky day.

However, no matter what Larranaga said in the locker room before the game, or what he did on the sidelines while the game was in session, he wasn’t going to be Brad Stevens.

“It’s a change,” he said succinctly.  “It’s a different voice.”

Larranaga knew that such was the case going into Thursday’s game.  In fact, he stated 90 minutes before tip-off, “I’m not going to be like Brad.  He’s a very special person.”

Larranaga is special in his own right.  His name has rumbled around the league for head coaching positions for a few years now, and for good reason.  He’s a sharp and personable guy who has learned from some of the best, including his father, Jim Larranaga.

But even with Larranaga stemming the tide, the Celtics missed that calm, soothing voice that they have grown accustomed to.

“[Stevens’] presence,” Evan Turner said of what the C’s lacked Thursday night.  “He’s our head coach.  That’s what we’re used to.”

Jared Sullinger added, “I think from the standpoint of the head coach, he decides the rotations, he thinks what’s best for the team.”

Crowder, who went into the most depth of all of the Celtics players about the absence of their coach, spoke of what the C’s draw from Stevens during game action.

“I just look over for reassurance,” he said, later adding, “It helps me a lot to see our leader so calm and possessed when a team goes on a run when we’re on the road.  As the team gets frantic, I think he holds his poise very well, and it rubs off on each and every one of us players.”

The Celtics were devoid of that poise in Chicago, and it hurt then in the end.  Larranaga and Crowder both stated that the team failed to execute its game plan and at times lost its composure.  Stevens keeps his players calm, and once he has them in tune, his mind can change the course a game all by itself.

“He does make heck of a play calls during crunch time and I think we probably missed that a little bit tonight,” Crowder said.

In the end, Boston fell 101-92 to the Bulls at the United Center.  The C’s walked off the court with hanging heads from a loss, but they had even heavier hearts for their coach.

Stevens is the kind of person – not just the kind of coach – who is there for people, and in particular his players, when they need him.  That’s exactly why he was absent Thursday night.  The Celtics just wished that they could have delivered a win and been there for him throughout such a difficult time.

Crowder texted Stevens earlier in the day.  When elaborating on that conversation, Crowder said, “I just… I didn’t know what to say.”

Following a frustrating loss on the road, the team now had nearly 12 hours to digest the fact that their coach, his family and his friends were going through something difficult enough to pull him away from a regular season game.

By now, they should know exactly what to say to him in addition to any condolences: You’re my leader, and I can’t wait to have you back.

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Crowder Says of Absent Stevens, "He's My Leader"

Pete Stringer

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Sometimes, the key moment in a game happens right after you walk out of the locker room. For the Celtics on Thursday night, when they returned to the floor after halftime, the game got away from them.

The end result? A 101-92 defeat at the hands of the Chicago Bulls.

Trailing 47-48 at the half, the Celtics surrendered a 13-2 run at the start of the third quarter, and they never drew closer than six points the rest of the way.

Despite seven Celtics scoring in double figures, the Celtics' offense struggled for its second consecutive night. Jumpers repeatedly fell short off the front iron, especially from 3-point land, and the Celtics fell to 19-17. The Celtics hit just five of their 25 3-point field goals, and shot 36 percent from the field overall.

It’s hard to pick a Key Player when the entire team struggles, but the one guy who jumps off the box score for the Celtics is Jared Sullinger, who notched a respectable +10 when he was on the floor. He scored 13 points and added 11 rebounds for the Celtics.

On the other side of the ball, Pau Gasol posted 17 points and a game-high 18 rebounds, as the Celtics struggled to handle his length around the basekt.

Jay Larranaga, who filled in as head coach Thursday, on the differences between he and Brad Stevens.

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Keys to the Game: Bulls 101, Celtics 92

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Photos: Celtics vs. Bulls - Jan. 7, 2016

Pregame - Larranaga Steps in for Absent Stevens in Chicago

CHICAGO – News broke at 5:15 p.m. this evening that Brad Stevens would be absent from his first regular season game since taking over as head coach of the Boston Celtics on July 3, 2013.

Assistant coach Jay Larranaga will serve as head coach in his absence.

The Celtics were vague in detailing the reason for Stevens’ absence, saying only that Stevens traveled to Indiana to visit a former Butler University player of his.  Although speculation has been rampant about who that player is, the team, nor Larranaga, would give any more detail.

“(It’s a) difficult situation for Coach Stevens and people close to him, obviously,” Larranaga said as he stood in Stevens’ place at tonight’s pregame media availability.  “So we told him, ‘Don’t worry about what’s going on here.  We’ll try and keep the ship going straight.’”

Stevens’ calm demeanor on the court does a great job of masking his competitiveness.  Danny Ainge has oftentimes said that Stevens is one of the most competitive people he’s ever met.  So for Stevens to miss a regular season game, one to be played against the East’s current No. 2 seed, it says a lot about the enormity of the situation.

As Larranaga stated, it also says a lot about what Stevens stands for at his core.

“He makes it very clear to our players on a day-to-day basis that family is the most important,” Larranaga said, “that the things they’re able to do away from the court … are so much more important than what happens on the court.”

While the Celtics grieve for their coach and what he and his friends and family are going through, they know that he wants them to put forth their best effort tonight in Chicago.  It is Larranaga’s job to make that happen.

Larranaga said that he received a call from Stevens at about 11:30 a.m. this morning, during which Stevens notified him that he would coach his first full NBA game tonight.  Larranaga does have head coaching experience, as he has coached Boston’s summer league team over the past three summers and also stepped in for Stevens on Feb. 23, 2014, when Stevens was ejected from a game against the Sacramento Kings.

Larranaga, 40, said that his day has been so busy since that call that he hasn’t had time to become nervous or to dream up any changes.  Those comments fall in line with those of Hawks assistant coach Kenny Atkinson, who filled in for Mike Budenholzer on short notice on Nov. 14 in Boston.

Rather than making massive changes to a team that has lost three of its last four games, Larranaga believes that his best bet is to do his best Brad Stevens impression.

“I think it’s important to keep it as consistent for our players to the normal routine as possible and what they’re used to,” he said.  “I’m not going to be like Brad; he is a very special person and I’m going to be my own person.  But in terms of just their routine, in terms of what they’re used to, keep it as simple as possible.”

Larranaga did, however, receive a few tips from Stevens before the head coach took off for Indiana.

“After we found out he wasn’t going to be here, just real briefly talking about rotations, talking about keys to defending [the Bulls], to attacking them,” said Larranaga.  “Obviously no easy answers with them, but any word of advice from coach, I want to hear it.”

It’s a safe bet to assume that Larranaga will put those words of advice to use tonight.  There is nothing he and the Celtics would love to do more than deliver a win for their head coach, his family and his friends during a very difficult time.

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DraftKings Post-Ups: Larranaga Steps in for Absent Stevens

Boston Celtics

The Chicago Bulls are enjoying their best stretch of the season with Jimmy Butler leading the way.

The Boston Celtics are enduring some woes, but their defense and play on the road make them a dangerous opponent.

The Bulls look to extend their season-high winning streak to six Thursday night when they meet a Celtics' club that owns the Eastern Conference's best road record.

It's well documented by now that Butler was critical of coach Fred Hoiberg after a blowout loss at New York on Dec. 19. The superstar has backed up his strong words with strong play, averaging 31.3 points in the last four games of this win streak.

Chicago (21-12) is averaging 109.2 points in the last five games.

"Everybody's doing their job, trying to win their matchup," Butler said. "When you buy into that team thing, you win five games in a row."

Boston (19-16) comes to town after its third loss in four games, falling 99-94 to Detroit on Wednesday. The Celtics led by 13 in the third quarter before collapsing down the stretch, getting outscored 33-19 in the fourth.

"We didn't bring it in the second half," said Jae Crowder, a college teammate of Butler's at Marquette.

The Celtics have brought it on the road, posting a 10-6 mark with three straight wins and may thrive being away from Beantown. They are also 5-2 in the second game of back-to-backs for the East's best mark.
Boston can also play defense, allowing 97.9 points per 100 possessions for the league's second-best mark to San Antonio.

Guard Avery Bradley is expected to miss a third straight game with a left hip contusion. Coach Brad Stevens indicated that David Lee or Tyler Zeller will see action in this contest after neither played Wednesday.
Isaiah Thomas, reportedly playing with a sprained left thumb, had 22 points and 10 assists.

Derrick Rose returned for the Bulls in Tuesday's 117-106 home win over Milwaukee after missing three games with a sore right hamstring. He showed no effects of the injury and took the ball to the basket all night, finishing with 16 points.

"I thought Derrick was good. He was a little rusty out of the gate. Once he started attacking the basket, I really liked the way he was playing," Hoiberg said.

Much has been made of the transition from defensive-minded former coach Tom Thibodeau to the offensive-minded Hoiberg possibly hurting Chicago on that end of the court. The Bulls, though, lead the NBA in defensive field-goal percentage at 41.8.

The Celtics survived Butler's 36-point night in a 105-100 home victory over the Bulls on Dec. 9. Thomas scored 20 as one of eight Celtics to score in double digits.

Lee had 12 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes, making him a good choice to see action Thursday.

Flashy Chicago native Evan Turner has started the last two games in place of Bradley, totaling 29 points and 17 boards. Turner scored 29 in Boston's last trip to the United Center, a 109-104 overtime defeat Jan. 3, 2015.

20160107‑BOSCHI

Crowder Says of Absent Stevens, "He's My Leader"

Keys to the Game: Bulls 101, Celtics 92

Photos: Celtics vs. Bulls - Jan. 7, 2016

DraftKings Post-Ups: Larranaga Steps in for Absent Stevens

1/7 Game Preview: Celtics at Bulls