This was a very tough loss for reasons that have already been mentioned. I just have a couple things to bring up.
First off, Cauley-Stein needs to see more action. I don't care that he is a rookie. His defense is way too valuable to leave on the bench. Every game we should be logging 80+ minutes across Cousins, Cauley-Stein, & Koufos (35/25/20). Do you know how many times those players have played 80 min or more in a game this season? Zero times. All three bigs are good defenders with one of them being a beast offensively (Cousins), one of them being average offensively (Koufos), and the other being below average offensively (Cauley-Stein). These aren't all one trick ponies. These players should get significant minutes each and every game.
Just to throw some stats out there...
Looking at all the games Cousins was healthy (9 games total), we went 4-1 when our three bigs logged 70 or more minutes in the game (LAL, SA, DET, BKN, @ORL) which is about a 35/20/15 minute distribution for Cousins/Koufos/Cauley-Stein, and in those 5 games, we gave up 102.4 PPG while scoring 105.8 PPG (+3.4 Net). During the remaining 4 games where we did not play Cousins, Koufos, & Cauley-Stein at least 70 minutes, we went 1-3 while scoring 107.5 PPG but giving up 110.5 PPG (-3.0 Net).
Karl needs to get a clue very quickly. Any competent coach would not handicap his team much like Karl has done thus far. You have 3 good rim protectors. Why are you scared to use them? This team is built to protect the rim, protect the paint, dominate the glass, and play inside/out. I think part of the reason is that this team isn't built to fit Karl's strengths as a coach. Karl is trying to play his game while the team is trying to play their's. A great coach is able to adapt to the team's strengths while an average coach tries to have the team adapt to the coach's strengths. It's obvious that Karl & this roster are not the best match, but you have to hope Karl figures it out. Firing him is too risky and puts this season in jeopardy, and him continuing to coach this way is not going to maximize our team's potential. It's a frustrating predicament we are in.
Secondly, Collison is not working out. I love him to death and have no doubt he can be a solid contributor on a playoff team, but I still have yet to see any glimpses of how a Rondo/Collison pairing will work. We look more competitive with him off the floor right now, and that's not a knock on him. He's out of his element having to guard SGs on a regular basis while having to constantly defer ball handling duties to Rondo. I think it could benefit us if we moved him for someone who compliments the core. We have 3 guys who should be logging 35+ MPG in Cousins, Gay, & Rondo. We shouldn't be having primary backups behind those guys (especially ones who aren't versatile enough to play another position). Collison is good Rondo insurance for the short term, but if Rondo keeps up this level of play, we have to heavily consider moving Collison for complimentary pieces particularly if the Rondo/Collison pairing continues to struggle.
Having said that, I don't see a great trading partner. Utah and Chicago are probably the two teams that would have the most interest (maybe the Pelicans if they think a Collison/Evans backcourt would be a solid pairing, and if they'd like to move on from one of Holiday or Gordon). I think Burks from Utah would be a great fit, but I know Utah likes him a lot. It might be one of those things where we'll need to stick it out and see who becomes available or which teams are having injuries at PG when the deadline approaches.
