Re: NBA Playoffs - 2022

by **worcester** Wed Apr 13, 2022 2:44 pm

It is so good to soak in your basketball wisdom once again, Bob.

by **dboss** Wed Apr 13, 2022 3:42 pm

worcester wrote:Rip Van winkle here. I took a long nap in December when the Celtics were doing a great job tanking. I don't know why since we don't have a draft pick, but anyways they were tanking to beat the band. Now I wake up, and we are 2nd in the East with the best defense and point differential. Ime is coach of the month for February, March, and April???? Ime, the guy everyone wanted to jettison in December? What Happened? Brooklyn in 7th place? What?

One thing is for sure. I won't be taking any more naps until after the dust has settled in June. After we win #18.

Welcome back my friend. You were definitely missed, missed, missed!

by **Ktron** Wed Apr 13, 2022 4:28 pm

dboss wrote:
worcester wrote:Rip Van winkle here. I took a long nap in December when the Celtics were doing a great job tanking. I don't know why since we don't have a draft pick, but anyways they were tanking to beat the band. Now I wake up, and we are 2nd in the East with the best defense and point differential. Ime is coach of the month for February, March, and April???? Ime, the guy everyone wanted to jettison in December? What Happened? Brooklyn in 7th place? What?

One thing is for sure. I won't be taking any more naps until after the dust has settled in June. After we win #18.

Welcome back my friend. You were definitely missed, missed, missed!

Yes Yes Yes!

by **cowens/oldschool** Wed Apr 13, 2022 4:58 pm

worcester wrote:It is so good to soak in your basketball wisdom once again, Bob.

Welcome back buddy

by **jrleftfoot** Wed Apr 13, 2022 5:09 pm

worcester wrote:Rip Van winkle here. I took a long nap in December when the Celtics were doing a great job tanking. I don't know why since we don't have a draft pick, but anyways they were tanking to beat the band. Now I wake up, and we are 2nd in the East with the best defense and point differential. Ime is coach of the month for February, March, and April???? Ime, the guy everyone wanted to jettison in December? What Happened? Brooklyn in 7th place? What?

One thing is for sure. I won't be taking any more naps until after the dust has settled in June. After we win #18.

I have been wondering where you were. Was just about to ask if anybody knew Although we have never met personally, its great to hear from you.

by **willjr** Wed Apr 13, 2022 5:46 pm

The Doctor is in, welcome back Worcester!

by **gyso** Wed Apr 13, 2022 10:25 pm

Brooklyn Nets' Kevin Durant irked by Bruce Brown's critique of Boston Celtics' big men

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33727973/brooklyn-nets-kevin-durant-irked-bruce-brown-critique-boston-celtics-big-men

Nick Friedell
ESPN Staff Writer

NEW YORK -- Brooklyn Nets star forward Kevin Durant has been in the league long enough to know it's not wise to give a playoff opponent any extra motivation before a series begins.

So when Durant heard Nets guard Bruce Brown's critique of the Boston Celtics, saying that the Nets can attack them down low in their upcoming Eastern Conference quarterfinals series because of the absence of Celtics big man Robert Williams III, Durant was quick to rebuke his young teammate's comments.

"We respect our opponents," Durant said after the Nets finished off a 115-108 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Tuesday night's play-in game. "We don't need to talk about what we're going to do to them. I just don't like that, but that's how Bruce is. He comes in and keeps the same energy throughout the whole season so -- but we don't need to say s--- like that. Let's just go out there and hoop."

Brown's comments came after he was asked what he felt the biggest key will be to slowing down the Celtics in the series, which starts in Boston on Sunday afternoon.

"We can't let [Jayson] Tatum get 50," Brown said. "We got to be physical with them. Now they don't have Robert Williams, so they have less of a presence in the paint, and we could attack Al Horford and [Daniel] Theis. So them not having Robert Williams is huge."

Durant, who took the dais for the postgame news conference after Brown did, had already been tipped off that Brown had said something he wouldn't appreciate.

"What did Bruce Brown say when he got up here?" Durant asked the assembled media. "He said something I didn't like, somebody just told me."

When told of Brown's comments, Durant tried to walk them back.

"That's caffeine pride talking," Durant said. "He takes something before the game. Those two dudes [Horford and Theis] can do the same stuff. It ain't going to be that easy, I tell you that."

Aside from keeping Brown's words in check, Durant knows the bigger key in the series will be defending Tatum. The Celtics All-Star went off for 50 points in a win over the Nets in early March and continued to improve his game while leading the Celtics to the No. 2 seed in the East.

"It starts with really slowing JT down," Nets guard Kyrie Irving said. "He has a great feel playing against us, and everyone else around is very complementary to that attack; and when JT's getting doubled, Marcus Smart is pushing the pace, he's playing well hitting shots. Al Horford's dominating the offensive rebounds, and Daniel Theis filling in for Robert Williams, it's big."

How do the Nets plan to slow down Tatum? Durant knows that's easier said than done.

"That's a tough question," Durant said. "He's one of those players you just got to play hard and see what happens. He's just so talented and skilled and efficient at what he does. We gotta just play hard -- and I expect us to."

by **gyso** Wed Apr 13, 2022 10:32 pm

Series preview: Celtics await potentially powerful underdog as Nets emerge from Play-In

https://www.nba.com/news/series-preview-boston-celtics-2-vs-brooklyn-nets-7

Boston's big turnaround since the calendar flip has positioned the Celtics as a favorite, though the Nets could pop off for major points at any moment.

It’s not a huge surprise that the Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets are meeting in the 2-7 series for the second straight season. But it’s kind of stunning that the roles have been reversed, with Boston the higher seed and Brooklyn the team that needed to go through the Play-In Tournament.

The Celtics exceeded expectations and recovered from an underwhelming start. They were 20-21 (and in 10th place, six games behind the second-place Nets) at the midpoint of the season and 25-25 after 50 games. But from that point on, they were the best team in the NBA by a healthy margin, going 26-6, ranking first in both offensive and defensive efficiency, and outscoring their opponents by an amazing 14.6 points per 100 possessions.

The Nets obviously failed to meet expectations, struggling after a 23-9 start. Kyrie Irving’s vaccination status limited him to 29 games, Kevin Durant missed 27 games with injuries, Joe Harris was lost for the season in November, and James Harden was not his best self before being traded to Philadelphia.

But facing Brooklyn is not exactly a reward for finishing second in the conference. The Nets are as dangerous a low seed as you’re ever going to see, employing two of the most potent scorers on the planet. And — just maybe, — Ben Simmons could make his Brooklyn debut at some point in this series.

Three things to watch

1. 1-on-1 or 4-on-3? The Celtics switch more screens than any team in the league, and a switching scheme can flatten out opposing offenses and force them to play one-on-one. But no team is more comfortable playing one-on-one than the Nets; Durant and Irving are two of the five players who scored better than a point per possession on at least five isolation possessions per game, according to Synergy tracking. Even without Robert Williams III (knee surgery), the Celtics don’t have any real defensive weak spots in their top seven guys, but slowing down Durant or Irving is a challenge for any defender and there will be times when Boston brings two to the ball. Then it’s a matter of the Nets’ executing in four-on-three situations and the Nets’ role players (Bruce Brown in particular) making shots against a team that rotates and recovers as well as any defense in the league.

2. For how long can the Nets defend? Brooklyn ranked 20th defensively this season, a slight improvement from last year. And as they finished the regular season on a 12-5 stretch, the Nets ranked eighth on that end of the floor. But even in their most important games, their defensive effort has waxed and waned. Against a team like Cleveland, the Nets can get away with playing just 18-24 minutes of good defense. But Boston is a much tougher challenge, with more guys who can handle the ball and attack the basket. No Eastern Conference team scored more efficiently against Brooklyn this season than the Celtics, who scored 121.6 points per 100 possessions as they won three of the four meetings.

3. The minutes on. The minutes off. The Nets have been playing important games for a few weeks now, and they’ve been leaning heavily on Durant, who’s averaged 41.3 minutes over their last nine games (including the Play-In), playing the entire second half three times over that stretch. In the regular season, the Nets were 12.0 points per 100 possessions better with Durant on the floor (plus-6.5) than they were with him off the floor (minus-5.5); There’s a reason why Steve Nash doesn’t let him sit long (if at all) at the starts of the second and fourth quarters. Of course, one of the nine players with a bigger on-off differential than Durant was Jayson Tatum, with the Celtics 14.0 points per 100 possessions better with their All-Star on the floor (plus-12.0) than they were with him off the floor (minus-1.9). Bench minutes will be key for both teams, and the Nets will have to hope that Durant (assuming he plays 42-44 minutes a night) doesn’t run out of gas by the end of a long series.

The number to know

62-20 — The Celtics finished in a three-way tie for the Eastern Conference’s second best record, two games behind the first-place Miami Heat. But they had the East’s best point differential (plus-7.3 points per game) by a huge margin and the league’s biggest differential between a team’s “expected wins” (based on point differential) and its actual wins. The Celtics were 51-31 with the point differential of a team that was 62-20.

The positive is that the Celtics were, statistically, the best team in the East by a healthy margin. They had 18 wins (tied with the Memphis Grizzlies for the league lead) by 20 points or more. The negative is that they struggled in close games, going 13-22 (only the Indiana Pacers were worse) in games that were within five points in the last five minutes. Jayson Tatum shot 2-for-25 on clutch 3-pointers (the worst mark among 74 players who attempted at least 15), while Marcus Smart shot 5-for-17 (29%) on clutch 2s. In the 26 years for which we have clutch data, the Celtics had the third biggest differential between their winning percentage in non-clutch games (38-9, .809) and their winning percentage in clutch games (13-22, .371).

The Nets were 22-20 in clutch games, though Boston won the only head-to-head meeting that was within five points in the last five minutes (March 6), scoring 13 points on nine clutch possessions.

— John Schuhmann

The pick

Durant will be the best player on the floor, and there will be times when the Celtics can’t do anything to stop him. The Nets have the ability to win any game over any team in any arena, having picked up wins in Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and Miami after the All-Star break. But sustained success has been elusive, and the Celtics have simply been the better team over the last seven weeks. Tatum is the real deal and over a long series, Boston can probably defend Brooklyn better than Brooklyn can defend Boston. Celtics in 6.

by **worcester** Wed Apr 13, 2022 10:40 pm

Guys and Rosalie - it is good to be back. Best Celtics info and fans in America, Canada, or the entire world.

by **RosalieTCeltics** Wed Apr 13, 2022 11:25 pm

Just your avatar makes me feel good Worcester. I commented during one of our blow out wins just how much Sam would have loved this team. By the way, look at our new Logo designed by ???NYCelt? Gyso? Pete? Anyway, it is new.

by **cowens/oldschool** Thu Apr 14, 2022 1:53 am

Hornets got exposed, big difference between regular season and playoffs, they are weak everywhere except point. And as talented as he may be, he’s no where near ready to lead. Right now they are also too young for winning playoff basketball, imploding by one of their supposed building blocks. Good luck finding someone to take Hayward off your team, let him miss 3/4 of the regular season, like Kyrie, to have him fresh for next years playoffs.

by **worcester** Thu Apr 14, 2022 7:47 am

YES , ROSALIE, excellent new logo.

by **dbrown4** Thu Apr 14, 2022 7:52 am

cowens/oldschool,

You think that exposure was noteworthy. Come around Sunday...

I must have become spoiled watching the Celtics this last half of the season because these play-in games are absolutely AWFUL!! None of the play-in teams deserve to even sniff the playoffs yet this is what "we" want? I say, Come on, MAN!! Give Sam his wish and cut these playoffs down to the top 4 in each conference, or best 8 records in the league. This is trash and it's an embarrassment to all NBA fans. And yes, I'd say the same thing if we were on the outside looking in. Drop it, Mr. Silver!

db

by **worcester** Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:00 am

Hi Ho, Silver!

by **cowens/oldschool** Thu Apr 14, 2022 8:49 am

Ho Ho ho

by **gyso** Thu Apr 14, 2022 9:18 am

cowens/oldschool wrote:Ho Ho ho

?

by **NYCelt** Thu Apr 14, 2022 9:33 am

RosalieTCeltics wrote:Just your avatar makes me feel good Worcester. I commented during one of our blow out wins just how much Sam would have loved this team. By the way, look at our new Logo designed by ???NYCelt? Gyso? Pete? Anyway, it is new.

Thanks Rosalie. The logo was designed by my wife, a graphic designer, who now works with communications for my business. We needed a unique logo we could trademark or copyright, so we wouldn’t be infringing on something that wasn’t ours. She may look at future tweaks on scale, because of forum size limitations that mostly hide features like Dick Dorr’s initials.

by **dbrown4** Thu Apr 14, 2022 11:43 am

So is PatBev the modern-day Dennis Rodman to a certain degree? No one will replace Dennis, but PB is pretty annoying like Rodman was!

db

by **worcester** Thu Apr 14, 2022 11:58 am

Justin Termine of Sirius XM is an announcer, Celtics fan, and Emerson grad, not a player, but he takes the cake for being annoying. Eddie Johnson has the patience of Job the way he deals with Justin everyday. Their interaction and bball knowledge makes it a great show.

by **gyso** Thu Apr 14, 2022 1:46 pm

dbrown4 wrote:So is PatBev the modern-day Dennis Rodman to a certain degree? No one will replace Dennis, but PB is pretty annoying like Rodman was!

db

I've read that Beverley is similar to Marcus Smart, both in the annoying to other teams and defensive departments. Is Marcus Smart a modern-day Rodman?

by **dboss** Thu Apr 14, 2022 1:50 pm

With the final games of the playin round coming up tomorrow it's time to weigh in.

Hawks @ Cavs - I am taking the Hawks
Nola @ Clippers - I am taking the Clippers.

Saturday features 4 playoff games.

Jazz @ Mavs - going with the Mavs to win a 7 game series 4-3. These teams are pretty evenly matched. I'm taking the Mavs because they have home court and the Jazz are a game below .500 on the road.

Timberwolves @ Grizzlies - Taking the Grizz in 6. Sota does not like to play defense.

Raptors @ Sixers - Every year the Philly connection will find a scapegoat to blame for losing in the playoffs. This year it will be Matisse Thybulle. Taking the Raptors to win in game #6 at home.

Denver @ Warriors - No Jamal Murray and no Michael Porter Jr. equals no win. Taking GSW in 6 games as Denver has no good way to defend them.

Sunday's matchup - still working on my evaluation.

by **dbrown4** Thu Apr 14, 2022 2:16 pm

See below.

by **dbrown4** Thu Apr 14, 2022 2:21 pm

I heard briefly on First Take today that indeed RWIII is waiting in the wings and could possibly be ready for G1 this weekend. The problem was this brief one sentence headline was immediately washed away with BS crap. Dang it!!! I cannot wait for us to sweep these clowns!!! I know, I know. It won't be a sweep but I just want our guys to go out and annihilate these idiots. SO tired of everything about the Lakers and BKN. And they just won't SHUT UP!! Celtics can take care of all that. PLEASE!!

db

by **dboss** Fri Apr 15, 2022 12:58 pm

Paul George has Covid and will miss the game tonight.

Too bad

by **Ktron** Fri Apr 15, 2022 2:06 pm

worcester wrote:Justin Termine of Sirius XM is an announcer, Celtics fan, and Emerson grad, not a player, but he takes the cake for being annoying. Eddie Johnson has the patience of Job the way he deals with Justin everyday. Their interaction and bball knowledge makes it a great show.

Justin can be annoying but what i like about him is that its obvious he puts a lot of work into what he does and is very knowledgeable. He works at being annoying on purpose. Took some getting used to but i can listen and enjoy his takes now. Eddie on the other hand knows the game but is very very arrogant. He calls people who don't agree with him “Stoop” and yells at some of the callers. If there is one thing I learned early in the profession is that you never ever insult your listener. I do agree that it does sound silly when Termine argues particular basketball topics which a former Pro who obviously knows more than he does about the game. Its also obvious to me that some of those arguments are staged. Another no no in my book.

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