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The Boston Celtics dropped their third straight contest when they lost to the Phoenix Suns on Saturday night.
Despite the 3-game losing skid, Celtics head coach Brad Stevens still sees the positives of the rough stretch they are going through right now. Per Chris Forsberg, the 43-year old mentor believes that they can look back on these past three games and use them as fuel to get better.
Brad Stevens on Boston’s skid:
"This will be a good stretch when we look back on it because it will force improvement. It’ll force urgency on every detail … These are never fun to go through. It sucks. But this is usually what you look back on and say it was a springboard.”
— Chris Forsberg (@ChrisForsberg_) January 19, 2020
The Celtics didn't have All-Star point guard Kemba Walker, who sat out on Saturday with a sore left knee.
Boston was also not able to take advantage of a career ball-game from Marcus Smart. Smart, mostly known for his pesky defense, knocked down a career-best 11 three-pointers, setting an all-time franchise record in the process. The 6-foot-3 Oklahoma State standout finished with 37 points, five rebounds, eight assists, and four steals in .
Unfortunately, Smart's incredible night from deep was not enough to get them back on the winning column. Suns star Devin Booker torched the Celtics with 39 points of his own, going 12-of-20 from the field. He also fell one assist shy of notching his first career triple-double.
Boston started off the season on a strong note, going 23-8 in 2019. But after winning their first two games of the new year, they have gone just 2-6 in their last eight contests.
The Celtics currently sit at fourth in the Eastern Conference standings with a 27-14 record, just half-a-game behind the 3rd place Toronto Raptors and two games behind the no. 2 seed Miami Heat.
Boston's three-game slide kicked off with a 116-103 loss to the Detroit Pistons, followed by a valiant effort in a 128-123 defeat against the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks.
The Los Angeles Lakers visit town for a blockbuster rivalry showdown on Monday. Nothing would be better for Boston fans than seeing their Celtics take down LeBron James and the Lakers and snapping their 3-game losing streak in the process.
