Joe Mazzulla loves “The Town.”
His “Whose Car We Gonna Take?” sweatshirt was the second-biggest star of the Celtics-Sixers collection.
We’ve been informed that Mazzulla watches the 124-minute Ben Affleck movie as typically as 4 instances per week. The gamers have turn out to be ensnared in his devotion to the Boston/Charlestown-based crime drama. It has turn out to be a muse for these Celtics.
“I think it’s ‘Whose car are we taking?’ I think that’s the saying,” mentioned Sixth Man of The Year Malcolm Brogdon (by way of NESN’s Sean T. McGuire) concerning the workforce’s connection to the movie. “And it’s basically just ride or die for your guys, the guys you’re on the court with, the guys you’re competing with. It’s having the mentality (of) it doesn’t matter what we’re going to get into, we’re going to do it together.”
That is true, particularly the “ride or die” half.
(Spoiler alert) After surviving a botched theft of Fenway Park, Affleck’s character Doug MacRay pulls a Tom Brady and departs the chilly climes of Greater Boston for Florida. In his wake, he leaves a stumbling, bumbling FBI agent (performed by Jon Hamm). And a giant bag of money buried in a backyard. Its mission is to fund the restoration of a decrepit hockey rink within the literal Town, to be named in his late mom’s honor.
While Affleck’s gang ripped off Fenway in “The Town,” the Celtics robbed their hometown followers blind once more on Wednesday. Boston is 11-11 in its previous 22 postseason video games on the TD Garden / Red Auerbach Day Care Center.
Kudos to Deuce on his slam-dunk Wednesday.
There is one other second notable line from “The Town” the Celtics should undertake for the remainder of their collection towards the Miami Heat and the Finals.
It is a preface to the quote on Mazzula’s sweatshirt. A query Affleck’s character Doug MacRay asks his pal Jem Coughlin, performed by Jeremy Renner.
“I need your help. I can’t tell you what it is, you can never ask me about it later, and we’re gonna hurt some people.”
It’s time for the Celtics to harm some individuals. No matter whose automotive they take.
We’re not, after all, speaking about capturing somebody within the leg or beating them with nightsticks. That may nonetheless be a criminal offense in Massachusetts.
We are speaking about harassing Jimmy Butler for 43 minutes, defending the perimeter towards the likes of Kyle Lowry, and smothering Bam Adebayo as if he have been on hearth.
Gloating about successful three of 4 quarters is the NBA equal of a gluten-free, bubble-wrapped, participation trophy.
If the Celtics really want to emulate MacRay, Coughlin, and the remainder of the second-generation financial institution robbers in “The Town,” they have to be basketball harmful for 4 quarters.
Jaylen Brown agrees. “We came out too cool. It was almost as if we were playing a regular-season game,” he mentioned of Game 1.
Brown and the Celtics have uttered related statements throughout this postseason of predictable unpredictability.
Perhaps the Celtics have to take the court docket for Game 2 sporting nun masks?
Whatever leads to 48 minutes of killer ball in consecutive postseason video games.
The Heat confirmed all how that’s executed Wednesday. Jimmy Butler is the real-life Doug MacRay on this collection. He “clipped” the Celtics within the groin with 35 factors, 7 assists and 6 steals. He additionally served because the fulcrum of Miami’s offense. His presence allowed extensive open threes to fly and fall from the likes of Gabe Vincent and Max Strus. Both Vincent and Strus had as many 3-pointers (three) as Al Horford, Tatum, and Brown – mixed.
The Game 1 loss was a real workforce effort. Non-existent protection, gentle play, a half-hearted effort, 46 factors allowed in a single quarter, and people timeouts.
By the time Mazzulla flung his clip board throughout a TV timeout within the third throughout Miami’s surge, he had lengthy misplaced his workforce. It’s means too late to begin throwing clipboards in May if you’ve been coddling your gamers since November.
The Celtics don’t have to turn out to be thug-like. But they do have to know the place and when to strike as in the event that they have been robbing the Bay Bank in Harvard Square.
This means enjoying protection for the entire sport. Hitting your free-throws. (Boston missed 7 in Game 1). And ensuring Tatum will get the ball on each possession when he’s on the ground, ideally by half-court. Whether head coach Marcus Smart or his assistant Mazzulla makes positive that occurs.
Tatum confirmed the world what he’s able to in Game 7 on Mother’s Day. But he’s no Townie. He spent a lot of the second half Wednesday making an attempt unsuccessfully to combat by means of one- and two-man screens. He took simply 4 photographs within the second half, had 0 discipline objectives within the ultimate 12:40, and turned the ball over 3 times in an excruciating 101-second stretch late within the fourth.
Erik Spolestra’s protection fortunately allowed Smart and Horford to shoot a mixed 6-for-15 and 3-for-9 from behind the arc. Smart’s three gave Boston a 71-59 lead with 10:55 to play within the third. Over the subsequent 4:03, Boston’s lead disappeared because the workforce went and not using a basket. Smart, Horford, and Smart missed consecutive open threes.
The path for the Celtics to the Finals couldn’t have been any cleaner, no less than on paper. Atlanta was a No. 7 seed. Philly has been Boston’s lap canine for 60 years. The No. 8 seed Heat took care of No. 1 Milwaukee, guaranteeing Boston homecourt.
Perhaps Mazzulla the Celtics can provide “The Town” yet another peek earlier than Friday evening.
Here’s yet another quote for his or her consideration. It’s from MacRay on the finish of the movie.
“No matter how much you change, you still have to pay the price for the things you’ve done. So, I got a long road.”
Bill Speros (@RealOBF and @BillSperos) may be reached at [email protected].
Source: www.bostonherald.com
