Tag: NBA Playoffs

Four Takeaways from the Celtics First Round Playoff Sweep of the Pacers

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After winning just one road playoff game last season on their way to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Celtics have already won two this postseason after sweeping their first-round series with the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.

For all the worry and concern many had heading into the postseason, I have to say it was very refreshing to see the way this team has played over the past week. While I wouldn’t say they blew doors on Indiana, there’s no doubt about who was the better team. They also finally learned how to play together as a team, which is something we saw them struggle to do for most of the year.

Now the team is likely going to square off in Round 2 against the NBA’s winningest team in Milwaukee, who can close out their series with Detroit on Monday night. (Even if the Bucks lose, they’ll still be up 3-1, and it would take a pretty epic comeback by Blake Griffin & Co. to pull off the upset.)

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The Greek Freak is likely up next.

But, before we get into that, Dom and I are here to bring you four of our biggest Celtics takeaways from the first round:

The Brotherhood is Back

MATTES: All year long, I’ve said there have been two big things missing with this team: aggressiveness and cohesiveness. While there was no doubt the Celtics have had easily one of the most talented rosters in the league, from top to bottom, the problem was they didn’t know how to play together as a unit. Whether it was due to big egos, being buried on the depth chart by surrounding talent, or just poor rotation management on Brad’s part, it was difficult for most guys to settle into a defined role this past season. Hence the rampant inconsistency we saw on many levels.

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In the four games against the Pacers, the Celtics had four guys (Kyrie, Tatum, Horford, and Hayward) who all averaged over 30 minutes per night, and all four of which put up over 11 points per game. Jaylen Brown and Marcus Morris, two other big contributors, both personally averaged between 26-29 minutes and combined to average about 23 points per game. While you wouldn’t know it from the assist totals or anything like that, just from the simple eyeball test alone it was clear to see this team was finally trying to win together. That was easily the best team basketball I’ve seen from this squad all year.

Brad Coached the Hell out of this Series

DOM: My first take really goes off of Mattes’s point about cohesiveness. This time of year, coaches need to put egos aside and play the hot hand. And that’s exactly what Brad did. Specifically, he didn’t use a rotation but instead weaved Morris, Brown, and Hayward in and out so that the hottest players were on the floor for the most amount of time in the fourth quarter.

To examine this closer, here’s how the approach looked game by game:

  • (Game 1): After a ridiculous third quarter, Brad allowed Al and Kyrie some time to rest. They each played the last five minutes or so in the fourth, while Morris, Hayward, and Tatum played just over seven, eight, and nine minutes, respectively.
  • (Game 2): This time, we were down 11 going into the fourth. No messing around for Brad this time. Horford and Tatum played the whole quarter, Kyrie played 7.5 minutes, Brown 9.5 minutes, and Morris only 2.5. Tatum and Kyrie combined for 19 points in the fourth and won us the game, as that’s exactly how much we outscored Indy by as a team in the quarter.
  • (Game 3): Once again, our defense played great in the third, this time getting us up seven heading into the last quarter. Being on the road and with a chance to go up 3-0, Brad knew how important this was. He’s seemingly getting a much better sense for who his closers are. Hayward, Tatum, and Al played more than 10 minutes each in the final frame, and he made sure Kyrie got a few extra minutes of rest before playing the last nine. Morris and Brown essentially split the quarter, with Brown scoring a few important buckets to keep us up.
  • (Game 4): The Celtics could smell blood and went into attack mode, handling everything the Pacers threw back at them. It was a close one, but we pulled it out for the sweep. Tatum again played the whole fourth, scoring nine points on 7-of-10 from the line. The Celtics shot an amazing 21 free throws as a team in this quarter, more than they usually do in an entire game. Horford was a +10 in over nine minutes of fourth-quarter action; Morris played 11 and scored eight; Hayward added nine minutes and didn’t miss a shot; and Jaylen played less than one minute.
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Hayward continued his ascension back into the game’s upper echelon with his performance in Round 1.

Celtics Were Able to Control the Pacers’ Big Men

DOM: Before this series started, I said we needed to make sure Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis were kept in check. Turner led the NBA in blocks this season, and allowing him and Sabonis to dominate the offensive glass and paint would pose major trouble for us. Luckily, Baynes and Horford were more than up for the task.

(Gordon Hayward not so much):

Game by game, the Pacers’ bigs combined to put up 12 points and 17 boards in Game 1. Then they only put up nine and eight in Game 2 (!!), 25 and 14 in Game 3, and 27 and 15 in Game 4. Not surprisingly, their best game was the closest. Turner did have his fair share of blocks throughout the series, but not enough to discourage our guys from attacking. He’s not Shaq after all.

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Hangin’ Tough

MATTES: No, this has nothing to do with NKOTB. Rather, I’m referring to the fact that the whole team finally played with a sense of toughness and attitude that we hadn’t really seen before.

Like I said in my first takeaway, they blended so well together as a multi-faceted unit. But even more important than that, a few key guys stepped up immensely when the team needed someone to take over in the game’s biggest moments. As Dom mentioned above, it might not have been the same player each game, but the quartet of Kyrie, Tatum, Hayward, and Morris acted like a flawless closer by committee for Brad in this series. (Alex Cora’s gotta be pretty jealous.)

Finally, the Celtics were not out-rebounded in ANY of the four games in the series. The only game they did not out-rebound Indy was in Game 4, when both teams finished tied with 43. In total, the C’s pulled down 30 more boards than the Pacers did in the series, only further demonstrating Dom’s point about how surprisingly well the team played down low. (And HUGE ups to Al Horford for his work on the boards all series long.)

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Al was particularly huge on the glass in this series, as he averaged 10.3 per game.

So now we play the waiting game, as the Celtics were the only team to sweep in the first round of the playoffs this year (so far at least). Be sure to stay tuned to The 300s for all your Celtics coverage this postseason!

Jayson Tatum Looks Ready to Dominate Postseason Once Again

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After rallying back with a ferocious 31-point fourth quarter on Wednesday night, helping to secure a 99-91 victory, the Celtics are now up 2-0 on the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

Game 1 was a dog fight, with both teams playing below their typical standards. And while last night’s contest was prone to some of the same dull play for certain stretches, a few key guys finally woke up for the Celtics at just the right time – most notably Jayson Christopher Tatum.

For those who have followed The 300s for a while, you know that, for the most part, we’ve shown the young fella nothing but immense love and support ever since he broke onto the scene last year. Especially after last year’s postseason run, during which he averaged 18.5 points per contest as a 20-year-old rookie, I think all of us were expecting him to soar in 2018-19.

But, to be honest, things didn’t go quite as well as anticipated. He still put up points, averaging almost two full points more per game this season (15.7) than he did as a rookie (13.9). However, both his field-goal percentage and three-point percentage dropped off, with the latter falling significantly (he shot over 43% from deep last year compared to just 37% this season). His win shares also fell by two, and he just didn’t seem to be playing with the same fire he displayed last spring.

Yet on Wednesday night, he hit another level. In almost 39 minutes of play, Tatum put up 26 points on 55% shooting, including 50% from three-point land. He also finished +8 and turned the ball over just twice. While Kyrie was the team’s high-scorer with 37 and is arguably just as responsible for last night’s win as Tatum, it was really Tatum’s performance at the end of the game that sealed the deal.

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Kyrie had a pretty monster performance on Wednesday night, too.

After heading into the final frame down by 11, the Pacers looked like they had the Celts dead to rights. Two quick buckets from Al Horford got the team going again at the start of the fourth, but then it was Tatum (and, yes, Kyrie too) who lead the charge the rest of the way, putting the team on their back to take a hold of the series.

In all, Tatum scored 10 points in the fourth quarter (including six in the final minute), which was 40% of his total for the game. And while Kyrie also hit some big shots, including two HUGE threes – the second of which finally gave the Celtics the lead with 5.5 minutes left to play – I was still happier with what I saw from Tatum in the final moments.

While he missed more shots than he made over the final 15 minutes, the simple fact that he took nine shots in the quarter (10 if you include the free throw on the and-1 dunk at the very end) is what really stood out to me. FINALLY, he once again displayed the aggressiveness and confidence he was playing with last April/May, which was vital in helping to bring the C’s all the way to Game 7 of the conference finals.

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Tatum treated the Garden crowd with a little rim-rocker to cap off the win.

Maybe the rush of postseason play simply ignites a fire within Tatum, as he put up almost five points more per game in the playoffs last season than he did during the regular season. He also played pretty well in Game 1 on Sunday, putting up 15 points, again on 55% shooting (including 100% from deep), and finished +11. Especially when it mattered most last night, Tatum was not going to sit back and let the game slip away. I guess he does have some ice in those veins after all.

Look, we need to be careful not to get too excited from such a tiny two-game sample size, but it’s a good start for the Green and, most importantly, the kid looks ready to take off once again. Whether Kyrie comes back next year or not, Tatum made sure Celts Nation knew who the true future of the team was last night. Let’s hope he keeps it up.

Game 3 of the series will tip off on Friday night at 8:30 p.m. in Indianapolis.

The 300s 2019 NBA Playoff Predictions

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With the NBA playoffs now underway, a handful of The 300s team members have taken the NBA bracket challenge. The picks are in, and here’s what we’ve got for finals predictions. We’ll routinely check in after each round is finished and see who actually knows what they’re talking about. Here’s what we’re looking at for finals predictions:

GRENGA

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FINALS: BUCKS vs. THUNDER
WINNER: THUNDER

The Bucks were the best team in the NBA this year, and Giannis is unstoppable. They are getting healthy at just the right time, and although last years ROY Malcolm Brogdon will miss the first round, they won’t need him. I think the Celtics will give them some trouble in the second round, but I’m just not sold that the Celtics can play consistent enough to beat the NBA’s best team, especially since they only finished the year one game over .500 on the road. The Bucks dominated Toronto in the regular season, so I don’t think they’ll have a problem with them when they eventually meet up in the ECF. As for the Sixers, that process is still going.

In the West, the Thunder have a long road to the championship, but I think this is their year. Paul George is playing out of his mind, and when you combine his MVP-caliber play with constant triple-doubles from Westbrook and a defensive post-monster in the form of Steven Adams, I think they have what it takes to beat anyone in 7. They swept the season series against Portland, the Nuggets are set up for an early exit with the youngest team in the playoffs, and I think they matchup against the Bucks as well as anybody. The biggest question is whether or not they play the Warriors in the WCF. I have the Rockets topping the Warriors because they won the season series, but I might be falling for a trap. Honestly, I’m just sick of the Warriors and want any excuse to root against them. We’ll see how it goes.

BIG Z

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FINALS: RAPTORS vs. WARRIORS
WINNER: WARRIORS

“Short and sweet here. I’m going with the Warriors. The NBA is a top-heavy league and there’s no reason not to take the favorite. As for the Celtics, I think they’ll make it past the Bucks to the Conference Finals because they’ve got so much talent. I think they’ll fall to the Raptors in the conference finals though, because when the going gets tough I think they’ll ultimately pack it in. This will mark 3 straight championships and 4 outta 5 for Dubs.”

JIMMY LIPS

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FINALS: BUCKS vs. ROCKETS
WINNER: BUCKS

“Milwaukee — the league’s best team in the regular season — has a cupcake path to the Finals. The Bucks went 14-2 against their division this season and neither of those 2 losses were at the hands of the Pistons, who lost all four contests by an average of 14.75 points. Being that I have the Victor Oladipo-less Pacers beating the Celtics in Round 1 (in 7 games), the Bucks 14-2 record against the Central still applies here. Now, the Pacers did top the Bucks back in late December, however that was Milwaukee’s third game in four nights. When the Bucks meet the Raptors in the ECF, it’ll be the first time they’ve been there since George Karl was at the helm in 2001. In games in which Mr. Leonard played, the teams split the two meetings but haven’t played since January 31. That shouldn’t matter overall and Milwaukee should advance to its first Finals appearance since the 70s.

Out West, spoiler alert: the Rockets are beating the Warriors in Round 2. This is a healthy Rockets squad and they will get the Warriors a round earlier, assuring they are fresh. Houston took 3 of 4 during the regular season, including the classic at Oracle on January 3 that went to OT thanks to The Beard. They’ll meet Denver in the WCF because there isn’t a strong enough case to build for OKC beating a formidable and hungrier team like the Nuggets in a 7-game series. The Beard and CP3 get the Rockets to their first Finals appearance since 1995 when they won back-to-back chippers with some guy named Olajuwon at center. Rejoice, NBA fans. We will get to see this season’s top two MVP candidates face off in June. Milwaukee swept the season series. And yes, I know, CP3 didn’t play in one of those games.

Bucks in 6. The Greek World Order begins this summer.”

RED

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FINALS: CELTICS vs. WARRIORS
WINNER: WARRIORS

“I’ve got the Celtics making it through the toughest road in the East, going through the Pacers, Giannis and the Bucks, and Kawhi and the Raptors before falling to the Warriors in the NBA Finals. The Celtics match up with the Warriors better than any other team in the NBA, but its hard to pick against the team that is one Kyrie Irving circus shot away from being back to back to back to back champions. Warriors in 6.”

 

Celtics End of the Year Check In and Seasonal Awards

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(Mattes and Dom are back to give their take on where things stand with the Celtics heading into postseason play. With a first-round playoff matchup against the Indiana Pacers on tap for Sunday at 1 p.m., here’s their two cents on the State of the C’s along with their picks for a few seasonal awards.)

(MATTES): The regular season is officially over, and we are now just a few days away from NBA playoff action, my man. While the Celtics have gone just 6-4 since our last check-in about three weeks ago, there are definitely a lot of areas in which I’ve seen some improvement. Yeah, I’m still pretty disappointed that this team couldn’t even lock up a top-three seed in the East, but it’s not like Milwaukee, Toronto, or Philly are anything to sneeze at. Also, we’ve seen what this team can do when they play full-out, so maybe we’ll see them hit another gear over the next couple weeks. I’m done trying to predict what to expect from these guys, but I am at least a bit more hopeful.

Then, last night, we got the awful news that Marcus Smart may be out for at least the first two rounds of the playoffs. That is NAHT good at all, especially for the team’s defense. However, The Boston Globe‘s Adam Himmelsbach is reporting that maybe it won’t be quite that long:

Either way, losing your best defender for any period of time in the playoffs isn’t great, but hopefully Smart – one of the league’s toughest players – is able to come back sooner rather than later. Stay tuned.

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No matter how long he’s out for, Smart’s top-notch defense and intensity on the court are going to be sorely missed.

Dom, besides the whole Smart news, what are some other things you’ve noticed over the past 10 or so games that are particularly noteworthy for you heading into a first-round playoff matchup with Indiana?

(DOM): Yeah, I think we’re all pretty disappointed with where this team finished this year. I think all of us expected too much out of Hayward right away, including Coach Stevens. He really shouldn’t have given him so many minutes, and I believe if given a second chance Brad would’ve handled it differently. At the end of the day, though, the top three in the East all played great. Milwaukee overachieved behind an MVP season from the Greek Freak, and Toronto continues to play great basketball, with Pascal Siakam a candidate for Most Improved Player and Kawhi Leonard on his way to another First-Team All-Defense honor. Philly is stacked and made some great moves, with Elton Brand staring an Executive of the Year Award in the face. So, although I think we should’ve been in that top three, the competition has definitely improved over years past.

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Giannis and his Bucks were truly a force to be reckoned with this season.

I’m with you when it comes to predicting where this team is headed. It all depends on what team shows up. I really wanted them to head into the playoffs riding a winning streak, but with the injuries sustained over the last several games, health is the top priority. Looking at the numbers, we actually don’t have much to be excited about. Although we picked up two big wins against the Pacers in the last two weeks, we haven’t played very well otherwise. Almost every statistical category is down compared to the rest of the season. Although the difference is pretty slight, we’re scoring less, and assists, rebounds, steals, and blocks are all down. The only positive stats are that our turnovers are down and our three-point percentage is up. This is just on paper, though.

In terms of the eye test, having Aron Baynes back from injury is huge. His physicality in the post and on the glass are exactly what a playoff team needs. I think he’ll be a huge part of our playoff run. I also see a much more aggressive, offensively minded Gordon Hayward. He’s been looking for his shot, attacking the hoop, and making smart plays with confidence. I wrote about both of these guys a few days ago, but they are my two X-factors in the playoffs.

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At least the big Aussie is back and ready to roll.

At this point, we know what we’re going to get out of Kyrie, Al Horford, and Jaylen Brown. Jayson Tatum is another story, but I actually think that Hayward being able to command the second unit is more important than Tatum going off with the first unit. There are enough other weapons in our starting lineup that Tatum scoring the 15-18 points a game that he usually puts up will be plenty. He just needs to take smart shots and he’ll be fine.

(MATTES): Like I said, while I’ve seen some improvements, I agree that they certainly aren’t world-beaters right now. However, I think you are really underestimating how stupid good Hayward has been playing lately. And I know I’m in the minority, but I can’t get on Brad for his insistence on using him this year. Since missing three straight in mid-March while in the concussion protocol, the man has been absolutely EN FUEGO. In our last piece, I mentioned this article from SB Nation, which highlights just how vital he had been to the team’s success the whole season, even before his recent hot streak. Yes, he was certainly prone to some clunkers; there is no doubt about that. But since March 24 alone, the dude is averaging over 16 per night with a 58/32/88 shooting line. He’s really starting to wake up at the perfect time.

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Look who finally woke up!

Outside of those solid numbers, though, which anyone could look up with a few quick clicks, inconsistency has still been rearing its ugly head. I’ve said all year long that this team has suffered from a severe lack of aggressiveness. No longer are we seeing the old “grit-and-balls” style of play that KG made so famous (save for maybe Marcus Smart), as most guys have been happy to settle for three-point attempts (7th-most 3PAs in the league) and other ill-advised jumpers. Rarely have we seen anyone on the Celts pinning their ears back and attacking the basket. As a result, the team is at the very bottom of the league in free-throw attempts per game (29th), severely limiting the amount of easy buckets they could have used, especially at the end of games.

Just take a look at this: On April 3 against Miami alone, Hayward had 13 free-throw attempts, and the Celtics as a team shot 31 of them. The game before that, also against Miami, they attempted 24 free throws as a team. But over the next two games, they shot a combined 30. To be fair, the difference in points per game between those two sets of games is nominal, and a higher amount of shots from the line does not necessarily correlate with direct success. But this team plays SO MUCH better when they’re being aggressive, which they are not too keen to be all the time, for whatever reason, and it drives me NUTS.

Again, perhaps they’ll kick it up a notch in the playoffs. And having a healthy Baynes back is huge, particularly in the rebounding department, which has been a glaring issue all season long. Hopefully he can help get the boys fired up, especially with Smart on the shelf.

(DOM): So when it comes to Hayward, most of my criticism of Brad is from the first couple months. He gave him too much too soon, and probably could’ve handled things differently. Brad readily admits that it’s been a work in progress with this quote:

“The one thing we haven’t done all year is talk about what Gordon can’t do. We talk about what he does well and try to put him in the best position to do that…We didn’t do a great job of that early on. And I think we’ve all learned how he can best help us. When he plays with the ball, he makes the right play over and over and over.”

For most of 2019, Hayward has been great. Every month we’ve seen his offensive efficiency improve, and I could not be more happy with Hayward’s performance. He played a great stretch at the beginning of January, went into a funk, then played great before getting hurt at practice right after the All-Star game. Then, as you mentioned, since the concussion he’s been lights out (pun intended).

As for your point about aggressiveness, I’m with you 100%. Kyrie is really the only one who attacks the basket with consistency, and he’s subsequently the only person on this team who should be chucking early-shot-clock jumpers. Tatum needs to cut the shit and stop settling for contested jump shots all the time. If he attacked the hoop more often, he would be Kevin Durant. Same game. Same body type. The difference is that Durant attacks the hoop to open up his outside game, not the other way around. Tatum needs to learn how to do that. Jaylen Brown is usually good at attacking the hoop and is surprisingly good at finishing, although he also struggles to attack with any consistency. It’s going to be super important for this team to attack the Pacers. If we can wear down Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis with our pace and aggressiveness and get them in foul trouble, too, this series will be a breeze.

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We need a lot more of this outta you, Jay!

(MATTES): You just absolutely nailed it with this little tidbit here: “Tatum needs to cut the shit and stop settling for contested jump shots all the time. If he attacked the hoop more often, he would be Kevin Durant. Same game. Same body type. The difference is that Durant attacks the hoop to open up his outside game, not the other way around.” Very well said. While I would never say Tatum has had a “bad” season – especially with how well he’s been playing lately – I will say that he has taken nowhere near the leap forward I’d thought he’d take in Year 2. With the way he finished last year, I thought this dude was truly ready to TAKE OFF, giving us bona fide top-20-player type of production. But honestly, I feel like he’s regressed a bit. Not so much in terms of his skillset, per se, but rather his mindset, as he just hasn’t been as confident as he was last spring/early summer. Whether it was a spending a bit too much time with “Mr. Shoot ‘Em If Ya Got ‘Em” Kobe Bryant this offseason, or maybe being a bit oppressed by Kyrie and the rest of the talent on the roster, Tatum just hasn’t shown the type of effort or chutzpah he needs to in order to get to level where he should be. At least not so far.

Jaylen has actually been one of the only guys on the team to get the line with any semblance of frequency this year. However, I think his inconsistent usage this season – something which I will get on Brad for – has hurt his further development. While the rotation has been a bit fluid at times this year, nobody has seen more fluctuation in playing time than Jaylen, and I honestly don’t know why. I truly feel like the more he plays the better he gets, and I do believe coaching has significantly held him back this year.

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I see you, Jaylen! I still believe in you!

OK, so we pretty much agree on the following:

    1. The team is still plenty talented enough to make a deep playoff run.
    2. In order to do so, they need to put their big-boy pants on and start being more aggressive in all facets of the game – especially Tatum.
    3. Having Baynes back is a lot more important than people think, particularly even more now with the Smart injury.
    4. Hayward is really starting to come alive and could be the team’s X-factor in the postseason.

Now, let’s hop into a few seasonal awards:

(TEAM MVP): Kyrie Irving – I mean, duh. Sure, he can be a bit of a pill sometimes, and I totally understand if people are fed up with his ego and, ummm, candid commentary. But he’s still the very best player on this team, bar none. Most importantly, he stayed relatively healthy this season and looks to be in top form heading into postseason play. He truly might be ready to hit another level entirely.

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Kyrie is still the king.

(MOST IMPROVED): Marcus Smart – At first I thought picking “Most Improved” was going to be difficult. But after consulting the numbers, it wasn’t. Marcus Smart is actually the only guy on the roster who has improved significantly this season. You can make a case for Irving, I guess, but Smart took a HUGE step forward offensively this year. He set career highs in field-goal percentage and three-point percentage as well as three-pointers made, steals, and games played. Both his FG% and 3P% were up by six percent over last year, his free-throw percentage was up nearly eight points. Basically, his entire offensive IQ is up. His shot selection has been so much better that he seems like a different player. He rarely chucks up shots before setting his feet, attacks more, and continues to do a good job of finding open teammates. His turnovers were also the lowest since 2015-16, when he only started 10 games. Marcus Smart is the heart of this team, and he always happens to be in the right place making huge plays at the right time. He’s the only guy that consistently gives 110 percent and never takes plays off. He’s the type of guy that wins you championships, and his new deal last offseason certainly seemed to propel him to his best season yet. Losing him for even a small amount of time this postseason could truly be a killer.

(MOST DISAPPOINTING): Terry Rozier – It was just NOT a good season for “Scary Terry.” After last season’s solid playoff performance, he just couldn’t settle into the rotation this year and finished with the lowest net rating per 100 possessions of any guy on the roster (-9.5) besides Robert Williams. He’s always been a poor shooter, but he’s hitting just under 39 percent of his shots this season and seems to be trying way too hard. To be fair, I think he’d thrive more in a spot where he’d get more volume, as the talent’s still there. But it’s pretty clear that the impending free agent is miserable here, and to be honest I don’t even want him in the rotation for the postseason. Thanks for everything, Terry, but I think it’s time to go, bud.

Be sure to check back into The 300s this weekend for a first-round playoff preview. And be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments below or on Facebook!

Celtics Lock Up Home Court in Round 1 of the NBA Playoffs

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Despite losing to the Magic, the Celtics have backed their way into the 4 seed thanks to a loss by the Pacers last night.

I know I’ve been slacking on the Celtics content lately, but I have my reasons. Firstly, there really hasn’t been much to comment on over the last two weeks. They’ve played pretty much the way I’ve expected: some stupid, disappointing losses mixed in with solid wins. Secondly, it has been harder for me to watch games. As you’d expect for someone living on the VA-DC line, the Celtics don’t get a lot of airtime at the bar, even when the hometown team is a red hot piece of trash that just fired their GM. Lastly, and this is the bigger reason why I haven’t been writing much, I’ve done a lot of drinking since I moved to Virginia.

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Maybe I’m just out of the loop because I’m from Massachusetts, but they have real happy hours down here. They’re amazing and probably my favorite thing in the world right now (unless my wife is reading this). From at least 5-7 at just about every bar, and with extended hours at a lot of them, you can get seriously discounted drinks and small plates in half the city. It’s incredible. Mass has a rip off happy hour where you get $1 off of nachos or some shit you can make at your house, but this shit is legit. And rest assured I’ve been taking full advantage of it.

As for the Celtics, although they had a 4-game losing streak in the middle of March, including a pathetic showing against the Hornets in Charlotte, they were able to come away with wins in the two most important games down the stretch: a home and away against the Pacers that has left me 100% sure we will make it to the second round. Although the game at the Garden was a close one, this last win in Indy without Brown and Morris proved that we are a legit force. With multiple games against the Pacers and a home-and-away mini-series against the Heat, the Celtics have actually had a little taste of the playoff format already. Al Horford said having games like this were good practice for the playoffs, and I’m in full agreement.

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This guy is going to be an X-factor in the playoffs.

The biggest factor in getting this team playoff ready for me is moving Morris to the bench and replacing him with All of Australia. Baynes brings toughness in the paint and relegates more scoring the to second unit, two things that were much needed. Playoff basketball is very different than regular season basketball, and something the Celtics have lacked since the days of KP43 is a force in the paint. Baynes, in the two games against the Pacers, put up 13 and 13 at home at 11 and 11 on the road with a few blocks mixed in. He’s also done it without fouling, something isn’t always able to avoid.

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Consistent scoring from Hayward is the key to a deep playoff run.

Another great sign in the blowout the other night was the perfect game (9-9 from the field, 3-3 from the line) from Gordon Hayward. This was the best such performance since Kevin McHale had 25 in a perfect game back in 1986. It was also the first time this season Gordon put up 20+ in consecutive games, pushing the Celtics to 6-0 when he hits that scoring mark. He’s been more physical and aggressive every game, and I think he’s really starting to show that confidence that was missing for the first several months of the season. I mean shit, he played 38 minutes last night. He may not have lit up the scoreboard, but he was very efficient. The more consistent he can be, the deeper we’ll go in the playoffs. If Gordon and Baynes play at a high level, and Kyrie, Brown and Al continue to play the way they have been, that will open up the floor for everyone else. Tatum looked to be back on track against Indy as well, leading the team in minutes and scoring.

Health will be a concern for sure, especially after last night. However, I don’t expect the shin contusion Tatum suffered to be all that serious. We’ll see about the hip injury to Marcus Smart, but he’s a tough bastard that will fight through it. I would expect Tatum, Smart and Irving at the very least to be out for tomorrow’s matchup against the Wizards, but only for a little extra rest. The only disappointing part about the rest is I will be at the game tomorrow rooting on….idk, Yabu I guess? I really don’t expect many people to play, and wouldn’t be surprised if those three I named aren’t the only ones missing time. Oh well. If all of the pieces fall where they should, this team can be the title contender that we all thought they’d be at the start of the season. I can’t wait to watch what they can do and find my hopes rising every day for this team.

Jaylen Brown Predicts the Celtics Will “No Question” Make the NBA Finals

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Yahoo – Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown says there is “no question” that his team will be the Eastern Conference representatives in the NBA Finals next season. Brown made his feelings known on CJ McCollum’s “Pull Up” podcast, when asked about Boston’s championship chances.

“Oh, we’re getting to the Finals. No question about it,” Brown said.

The Celtics are the odds-on favorite in the East to reach their first finals since 2010 now that LeBron James has headed out west to play for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Cockyyyyy. I normally wouldn’t love a dude from my team going into his third year proclaiming we’re going to the Finals. But this guy is Jaylen Brown and Jaylen Brown sounds pretty pissed that his toughest competition just skipped town.

“I hate how everybody is like, ‘Oh, LeBron’s gone in the East,'” Brown said. “I know he did have a strong hold on the East for the last seven years, but he barely got us out of there this year. And our mindset was like, ‘Man, he’s not beating us again.'”

Thats the sound of a guy who wants to destroy the competition not just survive the war of attrition that is the NBA playoffs. Thats a young guy brimming with confidence in not only his team but his own game, which only continues to improve. From his rookie to his sophomore season Brown improved his FG %, 3 Point %, Rebounds, Assists, Steals, and Blocks per game all while more than doubling his Points per Game from 6.6 and 14.5.

He probably won’t see the same 30 minutes per game he saw last year with Gordon Hayward out for the whole year, but that was a blessing in disguise for the Celtics. Brown was able to play a ton of minutes and develop his game, not to mention get some quality playoff experience, more than he ever would have been able to had Hayward played all year. So in theory his game should be a lot more efficient while now possessing the ability to put up 15-20 points on any given night when given the opportunity.

TLDR; Oct. 16th can’t come soon enough.

Here They Come. Celtics Look to Close Out LeBron James and Advance to the NBA Finals Tonight

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The biggest game of many Celtics’ players lives is tonight. Game 6 with the chance to go to the NBA Finals right in front of them. A team that nobody gave a chance after the injuries they suffered is 48 minutes away from reaching the championship round. Now all they have to do is go through LeBron James and his 7 consecutive trips to the Finals.

Every time the Celtics have a big game I am compelled to post this video; it is my favorite Celtics commercial of all-time.

It was a different time and it was a different team. Back in 2012 the Celtics were the aging veterans, the old heavyweight, the last samurai — whatever you want to call it. They were on their last legs and they knew it and thats what made them so dangerous. It took an absolute HOF God Mode performance from LeBron ironically enough to knock that team off, but they had him on the ropes with the opportunity to close him out in a Game 6. Just. Like. Tonight.

This Celtics team could not be any different than that one. This team is lead by 20 and 21 year old guys with only a couple of “real veterans” to round it out. Jayson Tatum is 20 years old and looks like he’s a 10 year veteran, but this is all a first for him. Jaylen Brown seems to have taken on the role of a calming force…in his second year in the league. Al Horford, and Marcus Smart, and Marcus Morris, and Terry Rozier, and Aron Baynes and…and well thats probably it, but thats who we’re rolling with.

Great moments are born from great opportunity and thats what you have here tonight boys. Thats what you’ve earned here tonight.

Celtics Remain Undefeated at Home and are Now One Win Away from the NBA Finals

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Think about that headline for a second. The Boston Celtics are one win away from the NBA Finals. No Kyrie, no Gordon Hayward, hell no Daniel Theis! Yet they are 48 minutes away from going back to the NBA Finals for the first time in 8 years.

Granted they still have to finish off LeBron James in Cleveland.

The C’s remain undefeated at home in the playoffs this year at 10-0 yet are only 1-6 on the road. It really is preposterous how much better this Celtics team is at home than on the road, and you could say the same exact thing about the Cavs. The home team in this series has won every game and won it running away. In the first five games the home team has won by 25, 13, 30, 9, and 13. Thats banana land.

So I would very much prefer to have the Celtics finish off the Cavs and drive LeBron out of Cleveland on his home court. BUT, recent history suggests that is unlikely. But I really, really do not want to have to go to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals to try and beat LeBron with a trip to the Finals (his 8th in a row) on the line. A game like that could go either way. Young guys like Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Terry Rozier could absolutely ball out and it wouldn’t surprise me. Or they could wilt in the face of a veteran championship winning team while LeBron turns on God Mode for 50 points. So lets just avoid that scenario and take care of business in Game 6.

Boston got back to its winning ways and lead Cleveland by as much as 21 before ultimately winning 96-83. The Celtics had everyone chipping in with 5 players scoring in double digits, which is even more impressive when you consider the fact that Brad Stevens shortened his rotation to just SEVEN players. Only seven guys even got in the game last night: Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, Aron Baynes, Terry Rozier, Marcus Morris, Marcus Smart, and Jaylen Brown. Abdel Nader and Guerschon Yabusele each got 2 mins of garbage time at the end of the game so that doesn’t count. Don’t tell Yabusele that though as he jacked up two 3’s (and missed both) in the 120 seconds he was on the floor.

Jayson Tatum had a coming out party in Game 5 as he was pretty much unstoppable, save for some missed layups that he should have had. Tatum led the Celtics 24 points and was beating defenders off the dribble and pulling up for daggers going 3-7 from deep.

Al Horford was solid with a respectable 15/12 double double on the night and earned a new nickname from The 300s in the process.

As we predicted on this very site earlier this week, going back home was the perfect elixir for guys like Marcus Morris so he could continue to be the glorious dickhead that he is.

In all seriousness though, I don’t think that counts as an official win in the NBA history books because if you didn’t hear, LeBron was tired. The entire second half the ESPN broadcast team reminded everyone how tired LeBron looked.

So that’ll be the storyline everywhere today. Not the fact that the Celtics have pushed the Cavs to the brink of elimination, it’ll be that LeBron didn’t have enough Gatorade before Game 5 so he was too tired. Maybe he should be taking a nap instead of doing all that exhausting reading before the game.

The Cavs were on their heels all night long as we saw guys like JR Smith come back down to earth scoring 2 points going 1-6 from the field and 0-4 from deep. Smith was playing hero ball all night long and I loved it.

The crowd at TD Garden had its fangs out last night too. After Smith banged knees with a Celtics player he was slow to get up and the Boston crowd, remembering Smith’s cheap shot on Horford and prior to that Jae Crowder, had little sympathy busting out the “FUCK YOU JR” chant.

Kevin Love was even getting the business from the rich white guys sitting courtside.

Basically when the Celtics win its because everyone is contributing and they limit the Cavs supporting cast. In Game 5 the Cavs only had 2 players in double digits scoring with Tristan Thompson (1 pt), Smith (2 pts), Larry Nance Jr. (2 pts), Kyle Korver (7 pts), George Hill (7 pts) all falling back to earth.

If there was ever one graphic that summarized this Celtics vs LeBron matchup its this:

So the Celtics have a golden opportunity to close this series out and earn a trip to the NBA Finals in Game 6 on Friday night. Until then though Celtics fans can take their fingers off the panic button.

Is Tonight a Must Win for the Celtics?

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Despite what I said yesterday about not panicking just yet and how I think the Celtics aren’t in trouble yet, tonight is still an absolute hands down must win. There is zero chance this young Celtics team can go into Cleveland and steal a Game 6, especially after getting trounced there twice already, and then come back and take a Game 7 in back to back games.

Even The Truth agrees:

“The Celtics have to win in six,” he said. “They have to win in six. They have to win this game and they have to get the road win in Cleveland. I’m just not comfortable with having LeBron in Game 7 — no matter where it is . . . Unless you have the Truth on your side, I’m not comfortable with that.”

The Celtics need Jaylen Brown to stop getting stuffed by KYLE KORVER, they need Marcus Smart to stop cosplaying as Ray Allen, and they need Al Horford to play like the max player he is. Sprinkle in a little Scary Terry and just throw Marcus Morris and whoever else out to just make LeBron work and you have a good shot. However, if Brad Stevens doesn’t adjust from the last two thumpings and the Celtics continue to allow bums like JR Smith to bury them, then they’re in for a world of pain.

Thankfully the Celtics have been money at home in the playoffs this year and have yet to lose a game. LeBron can definitely smell blood in the water, but the guy is going to get his. If LeBron drops 45 and 15 and the Celtics lose I can live with that. What I cannot live with is Korver, Smith, George Hill and Tristan Thompson being the reason we lose.

I think getting in front of the home crowd will be an elixir for those young guys and give a little more ammo for guys like Smart and Morris to be the glorious dickheads that they are.

We don’t need another “young, overachieving” Celtics team playing its role as jester before stepping up to get its head cut off on national TV by King LeBron. We already saw that episode in 2015 and 2017.

Don’t forget, the Celtics have chased LeBron out of Cleveland before. Do it again.