Getty Ime Udoka, Boston Celtics
Heading into their December 13 contest against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Boston Celtics were on a three-game losing streak.
Losses to the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, and Phoenix Suns had eradicated the feel-good factor that the Celtics mauling of the Portland Trail Blazers had helped foster.
Throughout the team’s three-game slump, part of a 1-4 road trip, questions were raised about the Celtics’ current core and if they were capable of rediscovering their swagger once they got back in front of their own fans at the TD Garden.
The criticism levied towards the Celtics was often harsh but fair, as the team looked a shadow of themselves, especially on defense. Since the start of the 2021-22 NBA season, we’ve become used to Boston struggling to get things going on offense. Still, their defensive performances had given fans hope that eventually, the team would figure things out and start climbing the Eastern Conference standings.
So, when the team suddenly became a turnstile, allowing easy bucket after easy bucket, people began to press the panic button. Media began to call for trades, and social media was awash with pleas to alter the team’s starting line-ups, and more importantly, the rotations as a whole.
But it would seem that head coach Ime Udoka had different ideas, starting with a film session in which his team would watch their lackluster performances to see, as Udoka said, “how ugly it looks,” and to be held accountable for their mistakes
“We showed the film of Westbrook getting down the lane and flexing and doing his antics there. We showed them LeBron and guys basically moving out of his way. I had a very animated film session out of that trip, showing all five games. Whether it was Donovan Mitchell in game one or Phoenix in game five, we showed them a lot of film – 100 plus clips. Transition isolation was one of them, one long section, and I didn’t love how we didn’t fight at times. So, put it out there, guys responded well, but there’s no way to sweep it under the rug,” Udoka told the media following Boston’s win against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Tatum Believes Film Session ‘Is What We Needed’
Despite rediscovering his scoring touch on the Celtics West Coast road trip, Tatum could not help his team to more than a single victory over their last five games.
Speaking to the media following his December 13 42-point performance, the All-Star wing noted how the team hadn’t been playing well and needed a reality check.
“We came back from a 1-4 road trip, so you can imagine that there’s a lot of things to be shown, a lot of things to talk about. 1-4, it wasn’t gonna be pretty. It was honest, it was direct, it was open, and it was what we needed. It wasn’t time to sugar-coat anything. We didn’t play how we wanted to, especially those last three games,” Tatum said.
The Celtics were a far better unit on both ends of the floor against Milwaukee, sprinting into their screens to spring shooters free and operating as a unit with weak-side help defense. It makes sense that a well-orchestrated performance would follow an intense film session and also that Tatum found himself working in more space than what he’s been accustomed to so far this season.
Grant Williams Recalls Film Session: ‘It Was Animated’
No player has benefited more from Ime Udoka’s coaching than Grant Williams, who has gone from struggling sophomore to integral three-and-D guy in the space of six months.
After finishing the contest against Milwaukee with 17 points, Williams spoke to the media about the team’s recent film session and why he felt it was important to hold everyone accountable.
“It was animated. He challenged guys down the line, didn’t leave anybody off the hook. We all respect and love that, took that to heart. We all came out and had a lot more fun; you can see our faces. As well as that same type of intensity we carried over from the walkthrough. Guys were prepared from the jump. Having great conversations, great dialogue, and carried that film session over into today,” Williams said.
Williams is currently ranked sixth in the NBA for three-point percentage and continues to impress as a screener and defensive piece, especially as a help defender.
With the Celtics set to face the Golden State Warriors on Friday, December 17, the team will need Williams to be firing on all cylinders if they wish to make it two wins from two and genuinely put their West Coast struggles behind them.