Boston has them right where they want them. TNT spent all night pointing out Boston's record at home over these last two playoffs runs but never once mention that the C's have the best playoffs road record during that same stretch at 12-6.
Nor did they mention that Boston has won 6 out of the last 8 games played in Miami which included 3 of the 4 games in last years ECF against this very same team.
It sucks losing two home games to start the series but I have plenty of faith that Boston will come back from this.
That is as long as someone tapes that idiot Grant's mouth. Maybe Jaylen can force him to wear his mask with the mouth covered. Its crap like that that has the coaching staff not giving him minutes most games.If it wasn't with Jimmy it could have easily been aimed at the refs instead. Moron.
i'm sure none of my friends who are C's fans are gonna be thrilled to read this, but this sports talk after all, so i'm gonna opine. keep in mind that i'm just an unbiased, yet interested dummy who watches a little hoops.
here goes.
i think your team is in big trouble. and it's not because of the obvious 0-2 hole they're in. my reasons extend well beyond the first two games of this series. playing at home, for whatever reason, has proven disadvantageous to the Celtics. i know i sound like a broken record, but i just cannot believe how many winnable games they've completely ralphed up on their own turf. i saw it a few times during the regular season, i've seen it multiple times in the playoffs prior to this series, i saw it three nights ago, and i saw it again last night. they now have a losing record at home in the playoffs, which is extremely difficult to fathom from a #2 seed in the conference finals.
which leads to the next problem: they don't have a Jimmy B on their roster when the aforementioned home bleeding commences. i hate to pile on Tatum because after all it is a team game, but seeing as he's primed to be Boston's version of Jimmy Buckets, he just does not show up and show out on a consistent basis when his team needs him most. for the second consecutive game, he didn't make a shot from the field in the 4th quarter. just a handful of free throws. even if this take pisses someone off, i'm sure you can agree that that simply is not good enough. when the Celtics were up 12 in the 4th and everyone could feel the inevitable push from Miami coming, that was the time for Jayson Tatum to channel his inner 4th of G6 and all of G7 against the Sixers. but it was nowhere to be found. sure, if you look at his stat line from last night it has the look of a great game, but the reason it wasn't truly great is because he was a no-show in the 4th when the noose was starting to tighten around his team's neck. bottom line: when it really matters, Jimmy Butler is so much better than Jayson Tatum.
next let's talk about the Heat. confidence is everything in life, and that holds true in sports as well. i'm not sure it would be figuratively possible to infuse more confidence in Miami right now. there's no room for it, because the team is clearly brimming with it. someone forgot to tell them that they are the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference: 10-3 in the playoffs and undefeated at home. why should they fear anyone? they've just been better than everyone they've played, period.
there is a glimmer of hope, however. big trouble doesn't mean dead. but from now until G3 tips off, there has to a rock-hard reset. Boston has to figure out a way to win 4 out of the next 5 at worst, with three of those on Miami's undefeated home court and two of them in their own inexplicable house where absolutely nothing is guaranteed. it's not impossible, but damn that's daunting. if they pull it off it'll most certainly be because they earned it. and right now, to my old ass pair of eyes, Boston just doesn't have the look of a team that's ready to earn anything. know what they look like to me, truthfully? they have the look of a team that has a natural flight reaction to every threat to survival.
@galaxy27 said:
i'm sure none of my friends who are C's fans are gonna be thrilled to read this, but this sports talk after all, so i'm gonna opine. keep in mind that i'm just an unbiased, yet interested dummy who watches a little hoops.
here goes.
they now have a losing record at home in the playoffs, which is extremely difficult to fathom from a #2 seed in the conference finals.
From a Celtics perspective it has been an issue but this is far from just being a Boston thing. These were just off the top of my head and I'm sure I could find plenty more examples going back a handful of seasons.
Milwaukee was the #1 seed and lost 2 of their 3 homes games.
Cleveland was the #4 seed and lost 2 of their 3 home games.
Sacramento was the #3 seed and lost 2 of their 4 home games.
Go back to the 2021-22 playoffs:
Milwaukee was the # 3 seed and lost 3 of their 6 home games.
This same Heat team,led by Jimmy Butler & Erik Spoelstra, lost 3 of 4 home games in the ECF.
While the C's home record has been been somewhere around .500 in the playoffs in recent seasons their road record during that same stretch has been phenomenal. For some reason they play better when they're on road in a hostile environment.
The players have even ackowledged this but have no answer for why their so successful away but not so much at home.
which leads to the next problem: they don't have a Jimmy B on their roster when the aforementioned home bleeding commences.
They do,its Marcus Smart, and where he's not the guy on this team he doesn't have the same type of "climb on my back and I'll carry us to the finish line" rapport that Butler has with the Heat.
Believe me when I say this,we're all waiting for Tatum or Brown to be that guy and they've shown glimpes of it numerous times but obviously not when the team needed it in these two games at home.
next let's talk about the Heat. confidence is everything in life, and that holds true in sports as well. i'm not sure it would be figuratively possible to infuse more confidence in Miami right now. there's no room for it, because the team is clearly brimming with it. someone forgot to tell them that they are the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference: 10-3 in the playoffs and undefeated at home. why should they fear anyone? they've just been better than everyone they've played, period.
I do agree that the Heat are feeling skyhigh right now which will make the rest of this series even harder for Boston but If we're being honest here, Miami isn't your typical #8 seed. They were #1 seed just a year ago and brought back everyone but PJ Tucker. Miami finishing with 9 less wins and going from a #1 seed to #8 wasn't because they lost PJ Tucker,they severely underperformed this season compared to last.
While they should be feeling very confident right now playing like they to start this series, they're also the same team that started that previous ECF series out great too then lost their next 3 home games in it.
there is a glimmer of hope, however. big trouble doesn't mean dead. but from now until G3 tips off, there has to a rock-hard reset. Boston has to figure out a way to win 4 out of the next 5 at worst, with three of those on Miami's undefeated home court and two of them in their own inexplicable house where absolutely nothing is guaranteed. it's not impossible, but damn that's daunting. if they pull it off it'll most certainly be because they earned it. and right now, to my old ass pair of eyes, Boston just doesn't have the look of a team that's ready to earn anything. know what they look like to me, truthfully? they have the look of a team that has a natural flight reaction to every threat to survival.
I still have faith in this Celtics team. Will it be easy coming back from an 0-2 hole? Hell no,they put themselves in this position and its all on them getting out of it. If they can't manage to do it,so be it. I'd be disappointed for a day or two but thats it.
Everyone is acting like they just lost back to back home games like it was some bottom of the league team that beat them. Miami is a damn good team with a future HOF coach led by an ultimate competitor in Jimmy Butler who will end up in the HOF himself. IMO there's no shame losing to that team. The only way that I feel the Celtics should feel shamed is if they lay down and go out in 4 games.
While saying all that, I do think that there's a ton of recency bias going on right now because Boston lost two home games to start a series. They haven't done that since 2016-17 when Jimmy Butler & Dywane Wade got a 2-0 lead against them....then those two lost the next four games. We'll see if history repeats itself. 😎
@galaxy27 I do appreciate your write-up. At times its hard being a fan of this Celtics team when we know how talented they are then have mental lapses at the worst possible moment.
Last night I loved seeing the fight come out in Grant Williams but he chose the absolute worst time to do it,imo. Had that happened during quarters 1-3 it might have motivated Boston but riling up Butler with 5ish minutes left in the game was all that Miami needed to get going.
We'll now see what these Celtics players are made of,do they go out with a fight or a whimper? 🤷♂️
Like many things with this C's squad, you won't know what will happen until it happens.
this is what would drive me bonkers if i was a Celtics fan:
50% from the field, not exceptional but not terrible from downtown, one missed FT out of 12, damn near a trip dub
overall, a really good game
except,
why do you forget you're a stud when we need you most, Tatum?
dude is quickly turning into the most interesting man in the association
I totally agree and thats what the team and us fans have been waiting on, for it to finally click with him and he has his Neo moment. I am confident that it will happen its just comes down to when.
His overall game has come so far since he was drafted and I'd bet not many people outside of Tatum's family and Celtics front office thought that his development would eventually lead to top 5 in MVP voting and 1st team All NBA selections.
He just needs to make that next step from current superstar to all-time great level. Just like leading your team to a title,not many players are able to take that next step and most of NE is waiting to see if Tatum can do both.
Aside from his lack of timeout usage,I have two gripes with Joe Mazzulla that involve Tatum.
The first is when Miami is doubling Tatum late so someone else has to beat them, Joe really needs to find more ways to get Brown more/better looks if Tatum is forced into a facilitator role at that point. While we've seen a couple games where Tatum has had zero or very few shot attempts in the 4th quarter,this is why you have a second great scorer in Jaylen Brown. Let him be the guy instead.
Our offense has been so much more efficient under Mazzulla, he just needs to find other ways to put points on the board when the opposing team is trying to make someone other than Tatum beat them.
The second is why are we seeing Grant WIlliams and Brogdon covering Butler in crunchtime and not Tatum or Brown? Both players defend on an all-defense level,especially Tatum, and outside of possibly being in foul trouble, one of those two should be on Jimmy late not those other players. I get that their defensive strategy is to be able to switch one thru five but at some point if you really want to stop the other team's star from scoring,use your best wing defenders on him.
With players like Giannis or Embiid its more of a team effort but Jimmy isn't taller than all five Celtics players on the floor. He'd be tough to guard regardless of who ends up on him but Tatum has a 6-11 wingspan,Brown 7-0 and both have the athleticism and length to make it difficult for Jimmy.
Some players shine in crunch time, elevate their play and take over (Jimmy Butler is a current example of this type of player).
Some players wilt in crunch time, defer and do not take over.
Some players can shine in crunch time in one game; and in the next game they wilt.
Everyone playing NBA hoops, particularly playoff hoops is physically gifted to the nth degree. However, people are different. The psychological, mental and emotional aspect of each player participating in a game goes a long way to determine how each player will perform.
It is interesting to see how the best of the best perform late in a crucial game when a win or loss is determined by the slightest of things (making or not making a shot; making or not making a turn over; getting or not getting a rebound, etc.).
Everyone is acting like Jimmy Butler is this superhero right now that elevates his play to the nth degree every year come playoff time. He has some incredible games but he's had his share of clunkers when the team needed him the most.
Just look at the 2021-22 ECF:
he had two games of 40+pts,both wins.
he had two games where he had 35 & 29 both losses.
then he had three games where he scored a total of 8, 6 & 13pts. He made 10 out of 40 FG attempts during that stretch where Miami went 1-2.
It was him team getting smoked at home 74% of the time in that series.
Now go look at how he finished his only trip to the Finals and faced an elimination game where the team needed him to be Himmy Butler. He scored 12pts in 44 minutes.
Every star player has their ups & downs and Tatum is no exception. While we're on the subject of Butler & Tatum,just remember that Jayson Tatum has the same amount of trips to the Finals as Jimmy Butler has and the same amount of rings. He's also 8 years younger than Butler. Butler will likely win this series but he could easily be the gOaT the next time these two meetup in the playoffs.
Here's another playoff trip where he was a no show. 2020-21 playoffs, got swept by Milwaukee in the 1st round, Jimmy's points scored for that series were 17,10,19 & 12 with a 29% field goal percentage.
Earth to C's fans: If your post is longer than a ten-line paragraph. then your post won't be read (because you're simply an arrogant, know-it-all, blowhard). If you have a point to make, just say it (and don't act like you're a former NBA coach).
@charliej2356 said:
Earth to C's fans: If your post is longer than a ten-line paragraph. then your post won't be read (because you're simply an arrogant, know-it-all, blowhard). If you have a point to make, just say it (and don't act like you're a former NBA coach).
...
I'm quoting you so that anyone who has you on ignore can see your comment. I think that's how the system works.
@charliej2356 said:
Earth to C's fans: If your post is longer than a ten-line paragraph. then your post won't be read (because you're simply an arrogant, know-it-all, blowhard). If you have a point to make, just say it (and don't act like you're a former NBA coach).
...
I'm quoting you so that anyone who has you on ignore can see your comment. I think that's how the system works.
PS go kick rocks. 🤬
I have no time for front running trolls like him. Plus I really can't respect a grown man who admitted twice that baseball fans made him cry by booing another baseball player.
Homie is on ignore for a reason,please leave me him there.
i think your team is in big trouble. i know i sound like a broken record, but i just cannot believe how many winnable games they've completely ralphed up on their own turf.
i think your team is in big trouble. i know i sound like a broken record, but i just cannot believe how many winnable games they've completely ralphed up on their own turf.
Hey! I resemble that remark.
Feel free to come join our support group. With games going every other day during the playoffs we usually meet up after games 1,2 & 5. For some unknown reason we usually get to celebrate after game 7 though. 😉
i think your team is in big trouble. i know i sound like a broken record, but i just cannot believe how many winnable games they've completely ralphed up on their own turf.
Hey! I resemble that remark.
you know, come to think of it, i did see a lot of bricks in that last game
@erikthredd said:
I got LA winning tonight with big games from AD & Russell.
Hard to call this one tonight. Denver is a better team even up, especially if the refs don't let Joker be touched on offense. But Lakers at home down 2-0 could give them the kick in the ass they need.........
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
@erikthredd said:
I got LA winning tonight with big games from AD & Russell.
Hard to call this one tonight. Denver is a better team even up, especially if the refs don't let Joker be touched on offense. But Lakers at home down 2-0 could give them the kick in the ass they need.........
Jokic rarely gets favorable calls from the refs yet his arms look like he's out there battling with Wolverine most nights. he really doesn't get the respect that you'd think he'd gets after winning b2b MVPs. He should have won a 3rd in a row with this arguably being his best season of them all.
Like you said,LA will be get that much needed lift from being at home and I see Lebron trying to get AD & Russell going early then going to get his. They're gonna need big games again from Reaves & Hachimura too,imo.
@erikthredd said:
Everyone is acting like Jimmy Butler is this superhero right now that elevates his play to the nth degree every year come playoff time. He has some incredible games but he's had his share of clunkers when the team needed him the most.
Just look at the 2021-22 ECF:
he had two games of 40+pts,both wins.
he had two games where he had 35 & 29 both losses.
then he had three games where he scored a total of 8, 6 & 13pts. He made 10 out of 40 FG attempts during that stretch where Miami went 1-2.
It was him team getting smoked at home 74% of the time in that series.
Now go look at how he finished his only trip to the Finals and faced an elimination game where the team needed him to be Himmy Butler. He scored 12pts in 44 minutes.
Every star player has their ups & downs and Tatum is no exception. While we're on the subject of Butler & Tatum,just remember that Jayson Tatum has the same amount of trips to the Finals as Jimmy Butler has and the same amount of rings. He's also 8 years younger than Butler. Butler will likely win this series but he could easily be the gOaT the next time these two meetup in the playoffs.
I gotta give you props, you dig pretty deep and put a lot if info out there to back up your posts, I think you would do a pretty damn good job with Sports Talk radio or ESPN or something, I'm being serious lol
@erikthredd said:
Everyone is acting like Jimmy Butler is this superhero right now that elevates his play to the nth degree every year come playoff time. He has some incredible games but he's had his share of clunkers when the team needed him the most.
Just look at the 2021-22 ECF:
he had two games of 40+pts,both wins.
he had two games where he had 35 & 29 both losses.
then he had three games where he scored a total of 8, 6 & 13pts. He made 10 out of 40 FG attempts during that stretch where Miami went 1-2.
It was him team getting smoked at home 74% of the time in that series.
Now go look at how he finished his only trip to the Finals and faced an elimination game where the team needed him to be Himmy Butler. He scored 12pts in 44 minutes.
Every star player has their ups & downs and Tatum is no exception. While we're on the subject of Butler & Tatum,just remember that Jayson Tatum has the same amount of trips to the Finals as Jimmy Butler has and the same amount of rings. He's also 8 years younger than Butler. Butler will likely win this series but he could easily be the gOaT the next time these two meetup in the playoffs.
I gotta give you props, you dig pretty deep and put a lot if info out there to back up your posts, I think you would do a pretty damn good job with Sports Talk radio or ESPN or something, I'm being serious lol
The only thing that I really pointed out is that Tatum isn't the only guy that has gone from looking like the GOAT one game then the gOaT the next. All of the best players in the NBA have all had their ups & downs.
Also It really doesn't change the fact that the team played like crap finishing out that game. Tatum gets the blame because that goes with the territory but they really lost because of the underwhelming play from Brown,Horford & Smart plus Grant Williams running his mouth.
If I ever get hired by ESPN I'm definitely asking for Stephen A Smith money. 😎
@perkdog
The only thing that I really pointed out is that Tatum isn't the only guy that has gone from looking like the GOAT one game then the gOaT the next. All of the best players in the NBA have all had their ups & downs.
Also It really doesn't change the fact that the team played like crap finishing out that game. Tatum gets the blame because that goes with the territory but they really lost because of the underwhelming play from Brown,Horford & Smart plus Grant Williams running his mouth.
If I ever get hired by ESPN I'm definitely asking for Stephen A Smith money. 😎
When I'm tired and thinking cold
I hide in my music, forget the day
And dream of the team I used to know
I closed my eyes and they slipped away
Da C's slipped away
@erikthredd said: @perkdog
The only thing that I really pointed out is that Tatum isn't the only guy that has gone from looking like the GOAT one game then the gOaT the next. All of the best players in the NBA have all had their ups & downs.
Also It really doesn't change the fact that the team played like crap finishing out that game. Tatum gets the blame because that goes with the territory but they really lost because of the underwhelming play from Brown,Horford & Smart plus Grant Williams running his mouth.
If I ever get hired by ESPN I'm definitely asking for Stephen A Smith money. 😎
Well the details of Jimmy Buckets raised my eyebrow a bit
@erikthredd said: @perkdog
The only thing that I really pointed out is that Tatum isn't the only guy that has gone from looking like the GOAT one game then the gOaT the next. All of the best players in the NBA have all had their ups & downs.
Also It really doesn't change the fact that the team played like crap finishing out that game. Tatum gets the blame because that goes with the territory but they really lost because of the underwhelming play from Brown,Horford & Smart plus Grant Williams running his mouth.
If I ever get hired by ESPN I'm definitely asking for Stephen A Smith money. 😎
Well the details of Jimmy Buckets raised my eyebrow a bit
He's been up & down throughout his career but he really is the ultimate competitor which made seeing this guy trying to get under his skin during crunchtime even more perplexing lol. 🤣
Officially the series isn't over yet but these guys might want to send out that group text to setup that fishing trip for next weekend.
That was just an ugly performance. How sad is it that your deep bench players scored 39pts in the 4th quarter when your top 8 players combined for 41pts in the 2nd & 3rd quarter combined? I'd start Pritchard,Hauser,Kornet,Grant Williams & Mike Muscala in game 4 just to see them play with some heart.
That was just an ugly performance. How sad is it that your deep bench players scored 39pts in the 4th quarter when your top 8 players combined for 41pts in the 2nd & 3rd quarter combined? I'd start Pritchard,Hauser,Kornet,Grant Williams & Mike Muscala in game 4 just to see them play with some heart.
a completely spineless performance
they basically waved the white flag after what happened in Boston
That was just an ugly performance. How sad is it that your deep bench players scored 39pts in the 4th quarter when your top 8 players combined for 41pts in the 2nd & 3rd quarter combined? I'd start Pritchard,Hauser,Kornet,Grant Williams & Mike Muscala in game 4 just to see them play with some heart.
a completely spineless performance
they basically waved the white flag after what happened in Boston
Yup, I got nothing when they're letting Duncan Robinson look like Kobe Bryant and Bam's posterizing half of the team.
I was somewhat of a fan of Joe Mazzulla coming into this series but he looks like exactly what he is right now,an inexperienced coach who obviously can't connect with his roster. He's not the one (not)playing defense or missing threes but I can't really say that he's made any real adjustments that have worked in these playoffs,outside of starting Rob Williams in G6-7 last round.
Now its just about going out with some pride but,outside of that 4th quarter, I didn't see anything from them tonight to believe that might happen in G4.
I was somewhat of a fan of Joe Mazzulla coming into this series but he looks like exactly what he is right now,an inexperienced coach who obviously can't connect with his roster
agree 100%. i think they sorely miss Udoka's coaching, especially on D. they have the look of a team that has completely lost its identity on the defensive end. Miami has hung 362 on them thru 3 games -- and the Heat had the worst PPG of any team during the regular season.
I was somewhat of a fan of Joe Mazzulla coming into this series but he looks like exactly what he is right now,an inexperienced coach who obviously can't connect with his roster
agree 100%. i think they sorely miss Udoka's coaching, especially on D. they have the look of a team that has completely lost its identity on the defensive end. Miami has hung 362 on them thru 3 games -- and the Heat had the worst PPG of any team during the regular season.
I don't think that Udoka was anything great compared to Mazzulla, He certainly wasn't an X's & O's type of coach,he was more of coach that would hold them accountable when they were playing like crap. From what I've read Mazzulla had just as much to do with their defense under Udoka than Ime did. Basically when Ime told them to get their heads out of their ass it usually worked.
Eric & I were talking about their different coaching styles recently and the difference between the two. He pointed out how there isn't that one guy on the bench that has had head coaching experience at the NBA level. Its not only that but there's also a huge disparity in experience between the two also at the NBA level.
Udoka had experience as a journeyman player with 5 different NBA teams but then spent about 10-12yrs as an assistant coach with SA,BKN & Philly before coming to Boston. He's seen it all and also won a ring coaching with Pop.
Mazzulla didn't play in the NBA and was only in Boston as one of the assistants for a couple seasons before being asked to take over when Udoka got suspended. I've read that both Brad Stevens & Danny Ainge were real high on Joe's future here but he was given the keys much earlier than expected,imo. I don't want to make him the scapegoat for how the team has played but his first go around in the playoffs hasn't gone so well.
I was somewhat of a fan of Joe Mazzulla coming into this series but he looks like exactly what he is right now,an inexperienced coach who obviously can't connect with his roster
agree 100%. i think they sorely miss Udoka's coaching, especially on D. they have the look of a team that has completely lost its identity on the defensive end. Miami has hung 362 on them thru 3 games -- and the Heat had the worst PPG of any team during the regular season.
if Mazzulla keeps plagiarizing my thoughts i'm gonna start charging his ass
Comments
OHH! - The dreaded 3rd quarter
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Grant %#$*&)@ Williams!
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
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Wow! Now who predicted Denver - Miami?? He may have made a great call!
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
I'm going to bed.
Boston has them right where they want them. TNT spent all night pointing out Boston's record at home over these last two playoffs runs but never once mention that the C's have the best playoffs road record during that same stretch at 12-6.
Nor did they mention that Boston has won 6 out of the last 8 games played in Miami which included 3 of the 4 games in last years ECF against this very same team.
It sucks losing two home games to start the series but I have plenty of faith that Boston will come back from this.
That is as long as someone tapes that idiot Grant's mouth. Maybe Jaylen can force him to wear his mask with the mouth covered. Its crap like that that has the coaching staff not giving him minutes most games.If it wasn't with Jimmy it could have easily been aimed at the refs instead. Moron.
Eric
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Da C's. :-(
The silence is deafening. Com'on Boston fans -- a little bit of chatter on this infield!
i'm sure none of my friends who are C's fans are gonna be thrilled to read this, but this sports talk after all, so i'm gonna opine. keep in mind that i'm just an unbiased, yet interested dummy who watches a little hoops.
here goes.
i think your team is in big trouble. and it's not because of the obvious 0-2 hole they're in. my reasons extend well beyond the first two games of this series. playing at home, for whatever reason, has proven disadvantageous to the Celtics. i know i sound like a broken record, but i just cannot believe how many winnable games they've completely ralphed up on their own turf. i saw it a few times during the regular season, i've seen it multiple times in the playoffs prior to this series, i saw it three nights ago, and i saw it again last night. they now have a losing record at home in the playoffs, which is extremely difficult to fathom from a #2 seed in the conference finals.
which leads to the next problem: they don't have a Jimmy B on their roster when the aforementioned home bleeding commences. i hate to pile on Tatum because after all it is a team game, but seeing as he's primed to be Boston's version of Jimmy Buckets, he just does not show up and show out on a consistent basis when his team needs him most. for the second consecutive game, he didn't make a shot from the field in the 4th quarter. just a handful of free throws. even if this take pisses someone off, i'm sure you can agree that that simply is not good enough. when the Celtics were up 12 in the 4th and everyone could feel the inevitable push from Miami coming, that was the time for Jayson Tatum to channel his inner 4th of G6 and all of G7 against the Sixers. but it was nowhere to be found. sure, if you look at his stat line from last night it has the look of a great game, but the reason it wasn't truly great is because he was a no-show in the 4th when the noose was starting to tighten around his team's neck. bottom line: when it really matters, Jimmy Butler is so much better than Jayson Tatum.
next let's talk about the Heat. confidence is everything in life, and that holds true in sports as well. i'm not sure it would be figuratively possible to infuse more confidence in Miami right now. there's no room for it, because the team is clearly brimming with it. someone forgot to tell them that they are the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference: 10-3 in the playoffs and undefeated at home. why should they fear anyone? they've just been better than everyone they've played, period.
there is a glimmer of hope, however. big trouble doesn't mean dead. but from now until G3 tips off, there has to a rock-hard reset. Boston has to figure out a way to win 4 out of the next 5 at worst, with three of those on Miami's undefeated home court and two of them in their own inexplicable house where absolutely nothing is guaranteed. it's not impossible, but damn that's daunting. if they pull it off it'll most certainly be because they earned it. and right now, to my old ass pair of eyes, Boston just doesn't have the look of a team that's ready to earn anything. know what they look like to me, truthfully? they have the look of a team that has a natural flight reaction to every threat to survival.
........
Celtics in 7
From a Celtics perspective it has been an issue but this is far from just being a Boston thing. These were just off the top of my head and I'm sure I could find plenty more examples going back a handful of seasons.
Milwaukee was the #1 seed and lost 2 of their 3 homes games.
Cleveland was the #4 seed and lost 2 of their 3 home games.
Sacramento was the #3 seed and lost 2 of their 4 home games.
Go back to the 2021-22 playoffs:
Milwaukee was the # 3 seed and lost 3 of their 6 home games.
This same Heat team,led by Jimmy Butler & Erik Spoelstra, lost 3 of 4 home games in the ECF.
While the C's home record has been been somewhere around .500 in the playoffs in recent seasons their road record during that same stretch has been phenomenal. For some reason they play better when they're on road in a hostile environment.
The players have even ackowledged this but have no answer for why their so successful away but not so much at home.
They do,its Marcus Smart, and where he's not the guy on this team he doesn't have the same type of "climb on my back and I'll carry us to the finish line" rapport that Butler has with the Heat.
Believe me when I say this,we're all waiting for Tatum or Brown to be that guy and they've shown glimpes of it numerous times but obviously not when the team needed it in these two games at home.
I do agree that the Heat are feeling skyhigh right now which will make the rest of this series even harder for Boston but If we're being honest here, Miami isn't your typical #8 seed. They were #1 seed just a year ago and brought back everyone but PJ Tucker. Miami finishing with 9 less wins and going from a #1 seed to #8 wasn't because they lost PJ Tucker,they severely underperformed this season compared to last.
While they should be feeling very confident right now playing like they to start this series, they're also the same team that started that previous ECF series out great too then lost their next 3 home games in it.
I still have faith in this Celtics team. Will it be easy coming back from an 0-2 hole? Hell no,they put themselves in this position and its all on them getting out of it. If they can't manage to do it,so be it. I'd be disappointed for a day or two but thats it.
Everyone is acting like they just lost back to back home games like it was some bottom of the league team that beat them. Miami is a damn good team with a future HOF coach led by an ultimate competitor in Jimmy Butler who will end up in the HOF himself. IMO there's no shame losing to that team. The only way that I feel the Celtics should feel shamed is if they lay down and go out in 4 games.
While saying all that, I do think that there's a ton of recency bias going on right now because Boston lost two home games to start a series. They haven't done that since 2016-17 when Jimmy Butler & Dywane Wade got a 2-0 lead against them....then those two lost the next four games. We'll see if history repeats itself. 😎
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
@galaxy27 I do appreciate your write-up. At times its hard being a fan of this Celtics team when we know how talented they are then have mental lapses at the worst possible moment.
Last night I loved seeing the fight come out in Grant Williams but he chose the absolute worst time to do it,imo. Had that happened during quarters 1-3 it might have motivated Boston but riling up Butler with 5ish minutes left in the game was all that Miami needed to get going.
We'll now see what these Celtics players are made of,do they go out with a fight or a whimper? 🤷♂️
Like many things with this C's squad, you won't know what will happen until it happens.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
@erikthredd
this is what would drive me bonkers if i was a Celtics fan:
50% from the field, not exceptional but not terrible from downtown, one missed FT out of 12, damn near a trip dub
overall, a really good game
except,
why do you forget you're a stud when we need you most, Tatum?
dude is quickly turning into the most interesting man in the association
I totally agree and thats what the team and us fans have been waiting on, for it to finally click with him and he has his Neo moment. I am confident that it will happen its just comes down to when.
His overall game has come so far since he was drafted and I'd bet not many people outside of Tatum's family and Celtics front office thought that his development would eventually lead to top 5 in MVP voting and 1st team All NBA selections.
He just needs to make that next step from current superstar to all-time great level. Just like leading your team to a title,not many players are able to take that next step and most of NE is waiting to see if Tatum can do both.
Aside from his lack of timeout usage,I have two gripes with Joe Mazzulla that involve Tatum.
The first is when Miami is doubling Tatum late so someone else has to beat them, Joe really needs to find more ways to get Brown more/better looks if Tatum is forced into a facilitator role at that point. While we've seen a couple games where Tatum has had zero or very few shot attempts in the 4th quarter,this is why you have a second great scorer in Jaylen Brown. Let him be the guy instead.
Our offense has been so much more efficient under Mazzulla, he just needs to find other ways to put points on the board when the opposing team is trying to make someone other than Tatum beat them.
The second is why are we seeing Grant WIlliams and Brogdon covering Butler in crunchtime and not Tatum or Brown? Both players defend on an all-defense level,especially Tatum, and outside of possibly being in foul trouble, one of those two should be on Jimmy late not those other players. I get that their defensive strategy is to be able to switch one thru five but at some point if you really want to stop the other team's star from scoring,use your best wing defenders on him.
With players like Giannis or Embiid its more of a team effort but Jimmy isn't taller than all five Celtics players on the floor. He'd be tough to guard regardless of who ends up on him but Tatum has a 6-11 wingspan,Brown 7-0 and both have the athleticism and length to make it difficult for Jimmy.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Some players shine in crunch time, elevate their play and take over (Jimmy Butler is a current example of this type of player).
Some players wilt in crunch time, defer and do not take over.
Some players can shine in crunch time in one game; and in the next game they wilt.
Everyone playing NBA hoops, particularly playoff hoops is physically gifted to the nth degree. However, people are different. The psychological, mental and emotional aspect of each player participating in a game goes a long way to determine how each player will perform.
It is interesting to see how the best of the best perform late in a crucial game when a win or loss is determined by the slightest of things (making or not making a shot; making or not making a turn over; getting or not getting a rebound, etc.).
We can make pro and con arguments all day but the end result is a win or a loss, both can make previous arguments go away
Everyone is acting like Jimmy Butler is this superhero right now that elevates his play to the nth degree every year come playoff time. He has some incredible games but he's had his share of clunkers when the team needed him the most.
Just look at the 2021-22 ECF:
he had two games of 40+pts,both wins.
he had two games where he had 35 & 29 both losses.
then he had three games where he scored a total of 8, 6 & 13pts. He made 10 out of 40 FG attempts during that stretch where Miami went 1-2.
It was him team getting smoked at home 74% of the time in that series.
Now go look at how he finished his only trip to the Finals and faced an elimination game where the team needed him to be Himmy Butler. He scored 12pts in 44 minutes.
Every star player has their ups & downs and Tatum is no exception. While we're on the subject of Butler & Tatum,just remember that Jayson Tatum has the same amount of trips to the Finals as Jimmy Butler has and the same amount of rings. He's also 8 years younger than Butler. Butler will likely win this series but he could easily be the gOaT the next time these two meetup in the playoffs.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Here's another playoff trip where he was a no show. 2020-21 playoffs, got swept by Milwaukee in the 1st round, Jimmy's points scored for that series were 17,10,19 & 12 with a 29% field goal percentage.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Earth to C's fans: If your post is longer than a ten-line paragraph. then your post won't be read (because you're simply an arrogant, know-it-all, blowhard). If you have a point to make, just say it (and don't act like you're a former NBA coach).
...
I'm quoting you so that anyone who has you on ignore can see your comment. I think that's how the system works.
PS go kick rocks. 🤬
So, who are players (current or past) that you would want to have the ball in NBA playoff crunch time?
Besides Michael Jordan (who I think would easily qualify as such a player).
I have no time for front running trolls like him. Plus I really can't respect a grown man who admitted twice that baseball fans made him cry by booing another baseball player.
Homie is on ignore for a reason,please leave me him there.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Hey! I resemble that remark.
http://www.unisquare.com/store/brick/
Ralph
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Feel free to come join our support group. With games going every other day during the playoffs we usually meet up after games 1,2 & 5. For some unknown reason we usually get to celebrate after game 7 though. 😉
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
you know, come to think of it, i did see a lot of bricks in that last game
It's a universal image that can be used for everything,................................
BOSTON DOWN 0-2!
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
I got LA winning tonight with big games from AD & Russell.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Hard to call this one tonight. Denver is a better team even up, especially if the refs don't let Joker be touched on offense. But Lakers at home down 2-0 could give them the kick in the ass they need.........
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Jokic rarely gets favorable calls from the refs yet his arms look like he's out there battling with Wolverine most nights. he really doesn't get the respect that you'd think he'd gets after winning b2b MVPs. He should have won a 3rd in a row with this arguably being his best season of them all.
Like you said,LA will be get that much needed lift from being at home and I see Lebron trying to get AD & Russell going early then going to get his. They're gonna need big games again from Reaves & Hachimura too,imo.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
I gotta give you props, you dig pretty deep and put a lot if info out there to back up your posts, I think you would do a pretty damn good job with Sports Talk radio or ESPN or something, I'm being serious lol
The only thing that I really pointed out is that Tatum isn't the only guy that has gone from looking like the GOAT one game then the gOaT the next. All of the best players in the NBA have all had their ups & downs.
Also It really doesn't change the fact that the team played like crap finishing out that game. Tatum gets the blame because that goes with the territory but they really lost because of the underwhelming play from Brown,Horford & Smart plus Grant Williams running his mouth.
If I ever get hired by ESPN I'm definitely asking for Stephen A Smith money. 😎
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
@perkdog
The only thing that I really pointed out is that Tatum isn't the only guy that has gone from looking like the GOAT one game then the gOaT the next. All of the best players in the NBA have all had their ups & downs.
Also It really doesn't change the fact that the team played like crap finishing out that game. Tatum gets the blame because that goes with the territory but they really lost because of the underwhelming play from Brown,Horford & Smart plus Grant Williams running his mouth.
If I ever get hired by ESPN I'm definitely asking for Stephen A Smith money. 😎
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
When I'm tired and thinking cold
I hide in my music, forget the day
And dream of the team I used to know
I closed my eyes and they slipped away
Da C's slipped away
Lakers are in the brink of elimination.
Denver looks really good.
Well the details of Jimmy Buckets raised my eyebrow a bit
He's been up & down throughout his career but he really is the ultimate competitor which made seeing this guy trying to get under his skin during crunchtime even more perplexing lol. 🤣
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Big game tonight for the Celtics. at 0-3 they would need 4 in a row - and that ain't gonna happen (just ask the Lakers
)
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Celtics in 7
What is wrong with sports writers today ?????????????????? How the hell stupid do you have to be to write this headline??
"Celtics need their 2 superstars to deliver in the clutch "
Really? I thought they could take the night off..............
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
OH - and just like that - Miami 51-33....................
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
I hope you tossed some scratch on this my friend
Boston looks completely disjointed. Poor shooting percentage and the Miami run is causing Boston to play some iso ball.
All I can say is BAM...... Ada BYE BYE.......Yo.
Allright - only down by 15 at the half - very doable!
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Officially the series isn't over yet but these guys might want to send out that group text to setup that fishing trip for next weekend.
That was just an ugly performance. How sad is it that your deep bench players scored 39pts in the 4th quarter when your top 8 players combined for 41pts in the 2nd & 3rd quarter combined? I'd start Pritchard,Hauser,Kornet,Grant Williams & Mike Muscala in game 4 just to see them play with some heart.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
a completely spineless performance
they basically waved the white flag after what happened in Boston
Yup, I got nothing when they're letting Duncan Robinson look like Kobe Bryant and Bam's posterizing half of the team.
I was somewhat of a fan of Joe Mazzulla coming into this series but he looks like exactly what he is right now,an inexperienced coach who obviously can't connect with his roster. He's not the one (not)playing defense or missing threes but I can't really say that he's made any real adjustments that have worked in these playoffs,outside of starting Rob Williams in G6-7 last round.
Now its just about going out with some pride but,outside of that 4th quarter, I didn't see anything from them tonight to believe that might happen in G4.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
agree 100%. i think they sorely miss Udoka's coaching, especially on D. they have the look of a team that has completely lost its identity on the defensive end. Miami has hung 362 on them thru 3 games -- and the Heat had the worst PPG of any team during the regular season.
I don't think that Udoka was anything great compared to Mazzulla, He certainly wasn't an X's & O's type of coach,he was more of coach that would hold them accountable when they were playing like crap. From what I've read Mazzulla had just as much to do with their defense under Udoka than Ime did. Basically when Ime told them to get their heads out of their ass it usually worked.
Eric & I were talking about their different coaching styles recently and the difference between the two. He pointed out how there isn't that one guy on the bench that has had head coaching experience at the NBA level. Its not only that but there's also a huge disparity in experience between the two also at the NBA level.
Udoka had experience as a journeyman player with 5 different NBA teams but then spent about 10-12yrs as an assistant coach with SA,BKN & Philly before coming to Boston. He's seen it all and also won a ring coaching with Pop.
Mazzulla didn't play in the NBA and was only in Boston as one of the assistants for a couple seasons before being asked to take over when Udoka got suspended. I've read that both Brad Stevens & Danny Ainge were real high on Joe's future here but he was given the keys much earlier than expected,imo. I don't want to make him the scapegoat for how the team has played but his first go around in the playoffs hasn't gone so well.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
I'm very disappointed. We sucked.
if Mazzulla keeps plagiarizing my thoughts i'm gonna start charging his ass