Rejoice! The Celtics will not go 0-82 this season.
Boston won its first game of the season in Washington, D.C. Saturday night -- but it was closer than it should have been. After jumping out to an early 16-point lead, the Wizards came all the way back to take a lead in the fourth quarter.
Cedric Maxwell joined Lou Merloni on CSNNE's Sports Sunday to discuss the team's play up to this point, and notes that the C's bench is still very much a work in progress.
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"Well they start off early on, you think about playing defense, they did a lot of good things," Maxwell said. "They really shut down Washington, didn't allow them to score any points early in the game. After that, the problem with the Celtics so far is going to the bench. When KG comes out of the game the Celtics have had some difficulties and some problems."
It was the same problem at times last season with Garnett on the bench: the Celtics couldn't compete. The team's second unit is said to be one of the deepest and best in the NBA, but they were outscored 62-27 against the Wizards bench.
With Garnett's minutes plan set for five-minute intervals, others must step up. But it's obvious that he can't be fully replaced.
"I think the thing about KG, KG is the engine," Maxwell said. "You can have the keys -- Rondo has the keys to everything -- but KG is the engine and when the engine is going the car is going the right way. KG rebounds effectively and defensively he is the captain of what they do really well. When he's been out of the game, they have struggled."