For the first time since the 2020-21 season, the Boston Celtics will not be in the Eastern Conference Finals. After winning the NBA Finals last year, the No. 2 seed Celtics were upset by the No. 3 seed New York Knicks in the conference semifinals, 4-2. To add injury to insult, superstar forward Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles in Game 4 — which leads to plenty of questions about how the Celtics will navigate the future.
What happened to Boston? The Celtics swept the regular-season series vs. the Knicks, 4-0, while averaging 125 points per game. During a recent conversation with NBA legend Steve Nash on “Mind the Game,” Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James asked the Hall of Famer if he thinks the Celtics got “bored.” After all, this was the fourth year in a row in which Boston finished in the top two of the Eastern Conference in the regular season.
“It seems like sometimes, it seems like they get bored sometimes with the — I don’t want to say the process. Because I mean, shit, they are who they are, and when you look at Tatum and [Jaylen] Brown, this is years and years and years and years, they’ve punched their 10,000 hours,” James said. “But sometimes it seems like they get a little bored because of how great they are. Not only as those two as individuals, but then as a team sometimes it looks like they get bored.”
Nash believes it’s a reason why Boston dropped the first two games vs. New York. In Game 1, the Celtics were up 20 points on the Knicks in the third quarter before eventually falling, 108-105 in overtime. Boston held another 20-point lead in the third quarter of Game 2 — and a 16-point lead with just under seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter — before Jalen Brunson’s clutch free throws earned the Knicks a 91-90 victory. The Knicks actually became just the second team in the play-by-play era to record three 14-point comeback wins in a playoff series.
“Then they stop maybe the details, the spacing, going too soon or not waiting long enough and not getting downhill, not touching the paint, settling for longer jump shots,” Nash said. “That’s just the story of their team. We know they have another gear, and then they show it in Game 3.”
Most would agree the Celtics were the more “talented” team in this series, but the Knicks clearly wanted it more. New York not only played better defense, but also made more clutch plays down the stretch in crunch time game after game.
This news was originally published on this post .
About the author
Thunder-Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards appears to have had enough of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s perceived foul baiting
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was second in the league to only Giannis Antetokounmpo in free-throw attempts this season, drawing criticism from some NBA corners that he's a "free-throw merchant." Is Anthony Edwards among the believers? He appeared to be fed up with Gilgeous-Alexander on multiple occasions in the first half of Tuesday's Game 1 of Western Conference finals between his Minnesota Timberwolves and Gilgeous-Alexander's Oklahoma City Thunder.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn one instance, Edwards drew a technical foul for tossing the ball in the direction of Gilgeous-Alexander's groin.In case you're unfamiliar, the "free-throw merchant" insinuation is that Gilgeous-Alexander exaggerates contact to draw fouls and get to the free-throw line. Gilgeous-Alexander spent a significant amount of time in the first quarter at the line, where he was granted seven attempts.Early in the quarter, Gilgeous-Alexander drew a foul on Jalen Williams that ended with Gilgeous-Alexander sprawled on the […]
Caitlin Clark dazzles with deep 3s in history-making performance, but supporting cast’s no-show dooms Fever
Getty Images Another night, another milestone for Caitlin Clark, who tied Courtney Vandersloot for the most games with at least 20 points and 10 assists in WNBA history on Tuesday. That was not enough, however, as the Indiana Fever fell to the Atlanta Dream, 91-90, due in large part to a no-show from Clark's supporting cast. After Rhyne Howard hit a pair of free throws to put the Dream in front with 9.7 seconds to play, Natasha Howard had two chances at the other end to win the game for the Fever. She missed them both, including an open mid-range jumper from the baseline just before the buzzer. Howard's misses summed up a brutal night for the Fever's new additions. Sophie Cunningham was sidelined again with an ankle injury while Howard, DeWanna Bonner, Sydney Colson and Brianna Turner combined for just […]
Red Sox’s Walker Buehler ejected for appearing to tell ump missed call was ‘right down the f—ing middle’
Imagn Images In looking at the box score for the Red Sox's 2-0 win over the Mets on Tuesday night, one will find that Red Sox starting pitcher Walker Buehler only worked 2⅓ innings. Generally speaking, in a circumstance like this, that could only mean injury or ejection. In Buehler's case, it was an ejection. And he got his money's worth. It was a 1-0 pitch to Juan Soto with Francisco Lindor stealing second that home plate umpire Mike Estabrook pretty blatantly missed a strike call. He was likely thrown off by the setup of Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez, but the bottom line is the call should have been a strike and instead was ruled a ball. It was a 0-0 game at the time with one of the most dangerous hitters at the plate, so one could easily understand Buehler's […]
Nick Saban adds new, unexpected award to his trophy case after smooth transition from Alabama sideline
Getty Images Nick Saban will have to make a little more room in his already crowded trophy case. On Tuesday, Saban won the Sports Emmy Award for "Outstanding Personality/Emerging On-Air Talent" for his work on ESPN's "College Gameday"Much like his days as the coach at Alabama, Saban had to beat out some powerhouses for the win. Former NFL players Jason Kelce, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Richard Sherman were also nominated in the same category, along with ex-Villanova basketball coach Jay Wright.After his retirement from coaching, Saban joined the "Gameday" crew at the start of the 2024 season. The seven-time national champion immediately brought an insightful perspective -- and a surprising amount of humor -- to his role as an analyst. Prior to his first season on the "Gameday" desk, Saban spoke with CBS Sports about his career change. At the time, […]
Lady Gaga’s ‘Hold My Hand’ wins Emmy for Outstanding Music Direction | FOX Sports
National Football League Video Details 'Hold My Hand,' performed by Lady Gaga won the Emmy for Outstanding Music Direction. 6 MINS AGO・National Football League・4:34 National Football League
Indy 500 polesitter Robert Shwartzman flows on and off the track
<!--> Robert Shwartzman made headlines this past Sunday after becoming the first rookie to win the pole for the Indianapolis 500 since Teo Fabi did so in 1983. The 25-year-old Russian-Israeli driver had never competed in an oval race, outran and then outlasted a host of INDYCAR veterans en route to achieving the feat. But Schwartzman doesn't just excel on the track.A well-documented music lover, the INYDCAR rookie is a published songwriter — most notably dropping his rap song "ACTIVE" in 2023 under the name "Shwartzy." According to a previous interview he did with "Autoweek," he developed his love of music from his father. "The music thing came a long time ago from my dad," Shwartzman said in the interview. "My dad was educating me quite a lot in music, mainly classic. Nowadays, it's rare you can see any teenager or a […]
Related
Thunder-Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards appears to have had enough of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s perceived foul baiting
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was second in the league to only Giannis Antetokounmpo in free-throw attempts this season, drawing criticism from some NBA corners that he's a "free-throw merchant." Is Anthony Edwards among the believers? He appeared to be fed up with Gilgeous-Alexander on multiple occasions in the first half of Tuesday's Game 1 of Western Conference finals between his Minnesota Timberwolves and Gilgeous-Alexander's Oklahoma City Thunder.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn one instance, Edwards drew a technical foul for tossing the ball in the direction of Gilgeous-Alexander's groin.In case you're unfamiliar, the "free-throw merchant" insinuation is that Gilgeous-Alexander exaggerates contact to draw fouls and get to the free-throw line. Gilgeous-Alexander spent a significant amount of time in the first quarter at the line, where he was granted seven attempts.Early in the quarter, Gilgeous-Alexander drew a foul on Jalen Williams that ended with Gilgeous-Alexander sprawled on the […]
Caitlin Clark dazzles with deep 3s in history-making performance, but supporting cast’s no-show dooms Fever
Getty Images Another night, another milestone for Caitlin Clark, who tied Courtney Vandersloot for the most games with at least 20 points and 10 assists in WNBA history on Tuesday. That was not enough, however, as the Indiana Fever fell to the Atlanta Dream, 91-90, due in large part to a no-show from Clark's supporting cast. After Rhyne Howard hit a pair of free throws to put the Dream in front with 9.7 seconds to play, Natasha Howard had two chances at the other end to win the game for the Fever. She missed them both, including an open mid-range jumper from the baseline just before the buzzer. Howard's misses summed up a brutal night for the Fever's new additions. Sophie Cunningham was sidelined again with an ankle injury while Howard, DeWanna Bonner, Sydney Colson and Brianna Turner combined for just […]
Red Sox’s Walker Buehler ejected for appearing to tell ump missed call was ‘right down the f—ing middle’
Imagn Images In looking at the box score for the Red Sox's 2-0 win over the Mets on Tuesday night, one will find that Red Sox starting pitcher Walker Buehler only worked 2⅓ innings. Generally speaking, in a circumstance like this, that could only mean injury or ejection. In Buehler's case, it was an ejection. And he got his money's worth. It was a 1-0 pitch to Juan Soto with Francisco Lindor stealing second that home plate umpire Mike Estabrook pretty blatantly missed a strike call. He was likely thrown off by the setup of Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez, but the bottom line is the call should have been a strike and instead was ruled a ball. It was a 0-0 game at the time with one of the most dangerous hitters at the plate, so one could easily understand Buehler's […]
Nick Saban adds new, unexpected award to his trophy case after smooth transition from Alabama sideline
Getty Images Nick Saban will have to make a little more room in his already crowded trophy case. On Tuesday, Saban won the Sports Emmy Award for "Outstanding Personality/Emerging On-Air Talent" for his work on ESPN's "College Gameday"Much like his days as the coach at Alabama, Saban had to beat out some powerhouses for the win. Former NFL players Jason Kelce, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Richard Sherman were also nominated in the same category, along with ex-Villanova basketball coach Jay Wright.After his retirement from coaching, Saban joined the "Gameday" crew at the start of the 2024 season. The seven-time national champion immediately brought an insightful perspective -- and a surprising amount of humor -- to his role as an analyst. Prior to his first season on the "Gameday" desk, Saban spoke with CBS Sports about his career change. At the time, […]
Lady Gaga’s ‘Hold My Hand’ wins Emmy for Outstanding Music Direction | FOX Sports
National Football League Video Details 'Hold My Hand,' performed by Lady Gaga won the Emmy for Outstanding Music Direction. 6 MINS AGO・National Football League・4:34 National Football League
Indy 500 polesitter Robert Shwartzman flows on and off the track
<!--> Robert Shwartzman made headlines this past Sunday after becoming the first rookie to win the pole for the Indianapolis 500 since Teo Fabi did so in 1983. The 25-year-old Russian-Israeli driver had never competed in an oval race, outran and then outlasted a host of INDYCAR veterans en route to achieving the feat. But Schwartzman doesn't just excel on the track.A well-documented music lover, the INYDCAR rookie is a published songwriter — most notably dropping his rap song "ACTIVE" in 2023 under the name "Shwartzy." According to a previous interview he did with "Autoweek," he developed his love of music from his father. "The music thing came a long time ago from my dad," Shwartzman said in the interview. "My dad was educating me quite a lot in music, mainly classic. Nowadays, it's rare you can see any teenager or a […]
Be the first to leave a comment