Isaiah Thomas

The Historic Nature Of Isaiah Thomas, The 'king In The 4th

... weakness at that end of the floor and possibly the toughest player to try and cover for defensively in the league. However, that’s not what I want to define this article, as troubling as it may be. Thomas, while effort is an issue a lot of the time, can’t help the fact that he’s 5’9″ and, most importantly, his insane offensive prowess deserves a great deal of respect. No one could have imagined he’d reach this level, yet he’s maintaining it and seemingly improving as the season goes on. It’s almost impossible to ask or wish for more from him. Defensive issues and detailed statistics aside, the Celtics’ simply wouldn’t rank fifth in offensive efficiency or be 30-18 (second in the East) without him. “I’ve always wanted that moment,” Thomas said earlier this January to ESPN’s Chris Forsberg. “Growing up, always seeing the best players take over in those moments, whether it be Kobe [Bryant], Allen Iverson, [Michael] ...

Even Three-quarters Of Isaiah Thomas Is Worthy Of All-star Nod

... Stuart Cahill. Boston Celtics guard Terry Rozier (12) puts up the shot against Orlando Magic center Bismack Biyombo (11) as the Celtics take on the Magic at the Garden. Staff photo by Stuart Cahill. Credit: Associated Press. CAN’T STOP THEM: Amir Johnson drives past the Magic’s Nikola Vucevic during last night’s game at the Garden; at right, Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder enjoy the view from the bench in the fourth quarter of the Celtics’ 128-98 rout. Credit: Stuart Cahill. Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (4) puts up the shot against Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon (00) as the Celtics take on the Magic at the Garden. Staff photo by Stuart Cahill. Credit: Stuart Cahill. Orlando Magic center Bismack Biyombo (11) wrestles Boston Celtics center Kelly Olynyk (41) for the jump ball as the Celtics take on the Magic at the Garden. Staff photo by Stuart Cahill. Credit: Stuart Cahill. ...

Isaiah Thomas Vs. Lebron James

... Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, we pose a question to a rotating panel of ESPN fantasy basketball experts to gauge their thoughts on a hot topic. Today's contributors are ESPN Fantasy's Jim Mc Cormick, Kyle Soppe and Joe Kaiser. Isaiah Thomas has topped the 40-point mark in each of his past two outings and is having a career-best season. In fact, he ranks 10 th on the Player Rater (based on averages) , three spots ahead of Le Bron James. Who would you rather have the rest of the season in fantasy: Thomas or James? Does the league scoring format impact your thinking. Editor's Picks. After leading the NBA with 3.7 blocks per game last season, Hassan Whiteside is averaging just 2.0 BPG this season. Will he return to form or is this his new ceiling. 1 Related. Jim Mc Cormick: Only Michael Jordan , Kevin Durant , Yao Ming , James Harden and James have sustained at ...

Celtics' Isaiah Thomas Is A Fourth-quarter Killer, But Which Team Is He Killing

... defensive rating gets significantly worse with Thomas on the floor. Maybe more notably, look at that second column. Those are all great defensive metrics. Boston's defense, both individually and collectively, is terrific when Thomas isn't on the court. When he's on the court, they are cheese being melted in a microwave for too long, starting to burn and smell bad. There's been a lot of talk recently whenever the Celtics have struggled defensively that it's about Avery Bradley's defense. One, as Celtics Blog has brilliantly broken down , Bradley's capable of being a brilliant defender but had a few rough stints. Even then, you see above that the Celtics defense is still great when he's on the floor. and Thomas is not. I'll spare you the full table, but if you're like me, you thought "OK, but the offense is obviously way better with Thomas, too, right? Well. not so much. Now here's the offense in the 4 th. This is what really surprised me. Three ...

No Rest, No Problem For Isaiah Thomas

... in late December. Thomas set a franchise record by producing a 29-point fourth quarter that night. That Miami game came at the end of an absolutely brutal December schedule that saw Boston fly halfway around the world as part of 15 flights in a road-heavy slate. The Celtics had a more agreeable January in terms of road games but this month's schedule featured four sets of back-to-backs, including one instance of the much-feared stretch of four games in five nights. Boston went 3-1 during that stretch, which culminated with an overtime victory in Milwaukee on Saturday. Thomas scored 37 points while carrying the Celtics early in that Milwaukee game. Despite all his fourth-quarter heroics this season - he leads the NBA by averaging 10 points per game in the fourth quarter - even Thomas looked mortal while going scoreless over the final 9:33 of Saturday's game. That his teammates were able to pick him up was an encouraging sign for Boston. The Celtics play six more back-to-backs this season. Maybe coach Brad Stevens needs to start running ...

Isaiah Thomas Scores 38 Points, Celtics Beat Lakers 113-107

... the fifth time in six games. Boston and Los Angeles both began the night with 3,252 wins, tied for the most in NBA history. Before their loss, the Lakers held at least a share of the league’s all-time victories mark since 2001. With Toronto’s loss to Orlando earlier in the night, Celtics coach Brad Stevens was assured his spot as coach of the Eastern Conference in the NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans next Sunday. Thomas scored seven points in the third as the Celtics broke the game open and led by as many as 16. The Lakers cut it to 82-74 after three but couldn’t get the deficit below six. Boston opened the game on a 7-0 run before Russell’s 3-pointer put the Lakers up 15-14 with 7:34 left in the first quarter. Rozier’s buzzer-beating 3 drew the Celtics to 30-29 after one. Thomas had 12 points in the period. Rozier’s floater a minute into the second put the Celtics ahead for good, and Boston stretched ...

Isaiah Thomas Was Furious Over Claims He Talked Trash About Dennis Schroder’s Mother

... some dumb stuff about my family, that has nothing to do with basketball. That’s his choice. I’ve got too much class for that. Next one, we are going to get it.”. Once Thomas saw the quote, he tweeted directly at AJC Hawks beat writer Chris Vivlamore and denied the claims. @CVivlamore AJC not sure what the quote is referring to but one thing is certain I would never disrespect/talk trash about anyones family/mom. — Isaiah Thomas (@Isaiah_Thomas) January 14, 2017. Come Sunday, Thomas was still furious about Schroder’s accusations. He denied again that he talked trash about the Hawks point guard’s family and even took a not-so-subtle shot at Schroder himself. Via the Boston Globe. “Yeah, I don’t talk about nobody’s mom, I don’t cuss at nobody’s moms, and I don’t talk about people’s families. So whatever [Schroder] said, that’s a 100 percent lie and he knows that. I always say, ‘Keep it hoop.’ When it comes to ...

With Floyd Mayweather In The House, Isaiah Thomas Delivers Knockout Punch

... an emphatic slap. Thomas and Mayweather are longtime friends, and Thomas jokes that the Celtics "usually win when he's in the building." Mayweather was shown on the Garden's Jumbo Tron during one fourth-quarter timeout, and he playfully held up the Celtics' cap of a companion as the crowd roared. Immediately after the final buzzer, Mayweather asked Thomas for his game-worn jersey and Thomas obliged, hoping for a gift in return. Floyd Mayweather was enjoying the show that Isaiah Thomas and the Celtics put on in the fourth quarter. Greg M. Cooper/USA TODAY Sports. "I wanted that jewelry," Thomas said of Mayweather's glitzy chains and wristwear. "I didn't want the jacket. That's too small for me. I wanted that jewelry.". Thomas made 7 of 12 shot attempts in the fourth quarter, including three 3-pointers. TD Garden serenaded him with now-familiar "MVP" chants as he ...

Another Big 4th Quarter From Isaiah Thomas Gives Celtics Win

... with Lowry - before a few others player joined in and had to be separated by the officials. Boston's Terry Rozier and the Raptors' De Marre Carroll were each given a technical (see full recap). James, Irving lead Cavs past Timberwolves. CLEVELAND - Le Bron James scored 27 points, Kyrie Irving had 14 and a career-high 14 assists and the Cleveland Cavaliers, coming off a losing record in January, defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 125-97 on Wednesday night. Cleveland, which went 7-8 last month, began February looking like the defending NBA champions. The Cavaliers held a three-point halftime lead and took control midway through the third quarter. James' three-point play gave the Cavaliers a 90-70 lead. Cleveland All-Star forward Kevin Love missed his second straight game because of back spasms, but the Cavaliers had five players in double figures in scoring. James was 11 of 14 from the field, and Irving scored 14 points. Kyle Korver added 20 points, while Channing Frye, starting in place of Love, had 18 points. Tristan Thompson had 18 ...

Isaiah Thomas’ 41 Points Lead Celtics Past Pistons

... 19 in the second game of a 10-day contract, a night after hitting two key free throws in the final seconds of a win at Southwest Division-leading San Antonio. James had 23 points and Kyrie Irving scored 18 – but just one between them in the fourth quarter – for the defending champs, who were without fellow All-Star Kevin Love because of recurring back spasms. The Cavs dropped to 7-8 in January. The loss also trimmed Cleveland’s lead for the top spot in the Eastern Conference to 2 1/2 games over Boston. Heat 104, Nets 96: Goran Dragic scored 20 points, Dion Waiters added 19 and the Heat pushed the NBA’s longest current winning streak to eight games. James Johnson had 17, Rodney Mc Gruder scored 13 and Hassan Whiteside added 12 for Miami. Waiters and Dragic combined to hand out 17 assists for the Heat, ...