The Celtics remodeled a 32-point lead over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 1 right into a collection of nagging questions regarding their final destiny within the NBA playoffs.
“Does Boston have the killer instinct to win a championship?”
“No,” till additional discover.
“Who wants to carry this team on their back?”
The line varieties right here.
“Will there be any pre-game playoff guarantees?”
Don’t need to upset a fellow Nike athlete.
The names on the Celtics roster have mixed 5,135 regular-season and 678 playoff video games on their collective resume. None has gained an NBA championship. Gone, too, is the multi-banner pedigree of Danny Ainge within the entrance workplace.
Winning was as soon as the longest strand of Celtics DNA. For occasion, the 1986 Celtics had a mixed 11 rings on the roster earlier than they took the courtroom in Game 1 in opposition to the Rockets within the NBA Finals. Coach Okay.C. Jones added 9 on his dresser as a participant and coach.
Now the one Celtics’ ring-bearers at TD Garden reside within the proprietor’s suite, seated at courtside, or are on the broadcast desk.
Cedric Maxwell can solely play so many minutes lately. He is 67, in any case.
The 2023 Celtics want their very own model of a pre-Medicare-eligible Maxwell. Talk trash, play brash, and again all of it up with profitable.
The first three quarters of Saturday’s sport provided a team-press-release model of simply how proficient and deep this workforce might be at its finest. A wholesome Rob Williams was unstoppable inside. A wily Marcus Smart moved the ball at will and couldn’t miss. Jayson Tatum was not anxious about making pals or fetching likes on Instagram. Jaylen Brown excelled by means of no matter ache/discomfort was emanating from his gashed hand.
Boston led Atlanta 76-44 early within the second half Saturday. The sport had all of the makings of an old school, TD Garden, springtime rout.
What occurred? Bad photographs. Sloppy play. Poor protection. All performed an element.
“I just thought we lost our offensive purpose. Playing passive offense instead of keeping it moving, being aggressive, and maintaining that level of pace that we had in the first half,” Celtics’ head coach Joe Mazzulla mentioned of his workforce’s second-half efficiency.
“Being aggressive” is 2023 coach-speech for “stepping on their throats.”
Boston let a 32-point lead within the third quarter dissipate to 12 within the fourth.
That 32-point lead might have swelled to 4 dozen as simply because it shrunk to 1.
As regarding for some followers over 21 was the truth that Tatum wanted to make his first two free throws of the sport with 1:05 to play to place Boston up by 15 and ice the 10-point cowl.
And let’s be clear, we’re not right here to fulfil some kind of obligation concerning the potential of the Hawks. The emphasis stays on whether or not the Celtics can win one other title, not merely attain the second spherical.
“We can’t take our foot off the gas,” defined Derrick White.
White not often shows emotion or alters his facial expressions, at all times an excellent signal when in search of a possible champion or a serial killer. He delivered 24 factors, added seven dishes, 5 rebounds and threw in a pair of blocks, simply because.
“We gotta be a little better in those situations when you have a lead like that. Human nature plays a part, but we don’t want things like that to haunt us coming up,” added Tatum, “there’s a lot of things we can learn from.”
Green Team audio porn.
Tatum stays the photo voltaic epicenter of the Celtics universe. That he was lower than 100% happy Saturday is indicative of progress, nonetheless small, within the correct path. Now, if he calls his teammates “sisses” after their subsequent playoff loss, we’ll lay apart our issues about his willingness to crush the competitors above all else.
The Celtics fizzled within the Finals final yr partly as a result of they had been caught within the star gaze of Steph Curry, the cruel willpower of Andrew Wiggins and metal lure of Steve Kerr.
In addition to these 100 turnovers, the Celtics had been crushed within the “head game” division.
We gained’t plot the result of this collection based mostly on Game 1. Nor do Game 1 blowouts at all times end in final victory.
The Memorial Day Massacre of 1985 involves thoughts. Back then you might check with sports activities occasions as “massacres” with out absorbing the wrath of social media. The Celtics beat the Lakers 148-114 contained in the OG Garden. Six Boston gamers scored in double figures. Those Celtics had no downside in beating opponents with out mercy or favor. Their trash discuss continues to echo 4 many years later.
Still, Boston fell in six video games. Partly as a result of the 1985 Lakers had been among the many high three NBA groups of all time. And partly as a result of Larry Bird slugged a bouncer after the Celtics went up 2-0 within the Eastern Conference Finals and mangled his proper index finger within the course of.
Bird’s goal was off throughout these Finals, the ailing digit undoubtedly wrecking simply sufficient havoc to assist deny what would have been Stage 2 of a Boston three-peat The fact about Bird’s involvement in that fracas was not publicly acknowledged till the next November.
Brown suffered a deep lower on his proper hand, allegedly after selecting damaged glass from a vase whereas watering his crops. We’ve come a great distance from bar fights at Chelsea’s. Maybe by the autumn, we’ll get the total story on that one, too.
Hopefully it’s going to come solely after the Celtics spent three months celebrating their 18th championship. And not making excuses for lacking it.
Bill Speros (@RealOBF and @BillSperos) might be reached at [email protected]
Source: www.bostonherald.com