Kyrie: Celtics need trust, attention to detail to shake struggles

The Boston Celtics lost their third straight game Wednesday, dropping to 9-9 on the season. It's a position few expected Boston to be in at the quarter mark of the NBA campaign and Kyrie Irving says the Celtics' issues come down to trust and attention to detail.

After Trey Burke put up 29 points to lead the New York Knicks to a 117-109 road win, Irving was asked if Burke should have been double-teamed.

"I don't know," he said, according to the Boston Globe's Gary Washburn. "I think that our pick and roll (defense), our trust, I think that really comes down to trust."

Boston has now lost home games to supposedly inferior squads in the Knicks and Orlando Magic.

"I think teams come in here or when we go on the road and feel very comfortable," Irving said. "We start paying attention to detail, start doing the little things and voila, we're in the game. I think that at this point, it's just tiring. (There's) no more time to wait."

Irving looked visibly frustrated in the fourth quarter after getting caught in a Mitchell Robinson screen that led to a Burke jumper. His aggravation later led him to snap "F--k Thanksgiving" at reporters in the locker room, which he apologized for Thursday.

Head coach Brad Stevens also sounded alarm bells after the Knicks game by suggesting Boston may not be "that good". Picked by many to win the Eastern Conference, the Celtics remain sound defensively but are a bottom-five team in offensive rating.