Category: Sports News

After exceeding expectations during the regular season, the Boston Celtics ultimately fell short, underperforming in a seven-game series loss to the seventh-seeded Philadelphia 76ers.  

The disappointing end to the season brings renewed scrutiny to the roster, but it also shifts attention to the organization’s financial positioning. Last offseason’s tax-saving moves now provide the Celtics with added flexibility as they approach a consequential summer.  

The Celtics’ decision to trade Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis started a wave of deals driven by cutting costs. Holiday was on a contract that carried a 2025–26 cap hit of about $32.4 million, while Porzingis was set to earn just over $30 million in the final year of his deal. Boston was able to execute additional roster moves both in the offseason and ahead of the trade deadline, ultimately maneuvering itself below the luxury tax line and out of both apron thresholds. 

Those moves have given Boston multiple avenues to pursue free agents and execute trades with significantly fewer restrictions. By dropping below the first apron, the Celtics gained access to the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, valued at just over $15 million and usable either on a single player or divided among multiple signings, an advantage unavailable to teams operating above the apron thresholds, where exceptions are far more limited. In addition, Boston still retains several trade exceptions (TPEs), further enhancing its ability to absorb salary in future deals without matching outgoing contracts. The chart below illustrates this newfound roster-building flexibility in greater detail. 

With all that being said, one area where many fans believe improvement is still needed is at the center position. 

Neemias Queta enjoyed a breakthrough regular season in his first year as a full-time starter, emerging as a steady interior presence and finishing fourth in the NBA’s Most Improved Player voting. However, once the playoffs arrived, we saw him really struggle to stay on the court. He did close the season out on a good note with a monster Game 7.

Luka Garza effectively showed everyone that he can be a serviceable big in this league after not playing much at all with the Minnesota Timberwolves. In the playoffs though, his impact wasn’t the same and only averaged eight minutes per night.  

Nikola Vucevic never quite got in a sustained groove in green and while he had some moments vs Philly, not playing a single second in Game 7 may impact his free agency decision.  

With the possibility of needing additional depth in the frontcourt, here are three bigs the Celtics could target who should realistically fall within their range of acquisition. 

Day’Ron Sharpe  

9pts | 7rebs | 2.3asts | 1stl | 60/23/68 | 62 games | Nets  

In November of last year, HoopsHype’s Micheal Scotto reported that the Celtics showed interest in signing Day’Ron Sharpe before the Nets resigned him. 

Sharpe is a physical, high-motor 24-year-old center who brings value primarily through rebounding, interior efficiency, and effort-based play. Standing around 6’9″ with a strong, wide frame, he operates as a traditional big who does most of his work in the paint. Offensively, he’s good around the rim, scoring mainly on putbacks, dump-offs, and short-roll opportunities rather than self-created looks.  

His most defining skill is his elite offensive rebounding, where his instincts, positioning, and persistence consistently generate second-chance opportunities. Sharpe rebounded 15.8% of his teammates misses putting him in the 92^nd percentile. He also shows underrated passing ability for a center, making quick, unselfish decisions out of the short roll or after securing rebounds, which helps keep the offense flowing. His 2.3 rim assists and 10.2 potential assists per 100 possessions rank in the 90^th percentile.  

Sharpe may also have a case for possessing some of the best hands among centers when it comes to disrupting passing lanes, based on his production last season. He recorded 6.5 deflections per 100 possessions ranking in the 100th percentile for his position, while his 2.9 steals per 100 possessions placed him in the 99th percentile, underscoring his unusual activity and instincts on the defensive end for a player of his size. 

Day’Ron Sharpe is currently on a $6.2 million team option that the Brooklyn Nets are widely expected to exercise, meaning Boston would likely need to part with assets to acquire him. Given that prior interest has already been established, it would not be surprising to see Brad Stevens revisit those discussions and explore a potential deal. 

Robert Williams  

7pts | 7rebs | 1.5blks | 71/39/60 | 59 games  

Old friend Robert Williams just produced his healthiest and best season since being traded from the Celtics.  

Rob is still an elite defensive center whose impact is defined by his rim protection, vertical athleticism, and instinctive play on the back line. At around 6’9″ with a long wingspan and exceptional explosiveness, he plays much bigger than his height, functioning as a true defensive anchor when healthy. Williams is one of the league’s premier shot blockers, combining timing, anticipation, and leaping ability to alter or erase shots both at the rim and as a help defender. His defensive versatility stands out as well. At his peak, he has shown the ability to play a roaming “free safety” role, reading the floor, jumping passing lanes, and covering teammates while still recovering to protect the rim.  

This season Rob averaged 4.1 blocks per 100 possessions, which ranked in the 98^th percentile. Even when he’s not just blocking shots, he’s defending the rim well as opponents shot 14% worse at the rim when he defended it (92^nd percentile).  

Offensively, Williams operates almost entirely within the flow of the game, thriving as a low-usage, high-efficiency finisher. He scores primarily on lobs, putbacks, and dump-off passes, using his vertical spacing to pressure defenses without needing touches called for him. There have been many flashes this year of his athleticism looking close to the 2022 version of him. He is also a very underrated passer for a center, particularly from the high post or on quick reads out of short rolls, which helps facilitate ball movement. Rob is also starting to stretch out his shooting range, but I don’t think that’ll be a big factor in his impact.  

The primary concern with Robert Williams III has long been, and likely will remain, his health. However, he is coming off a strong season and reinforced his value with an impressive playoff showing against the San Antonio Spurs, where he averaged 10 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.2 blocks per game. That performance has almost certainly elevated his market as he enters unrestricted free agency. 

Jock Landale  

10.6 pts | 5.7 rebs | 1.7 asts | 51/38/63 | 68 games  

Jock Landale, 30, is known for his physical play, high motor, and fundamentally sound offensive game. Standing around 6’11” he primarily plays as a center, using his size and strength to battle in the paint while also showing enough mobility to operate effectively in modern, up-tempo systems. 

Offensively, Landale offers the most versatility of the three options listed. He possesses soft touch in the paint, allowing him to score efficiently with a variety of finishes, including hooks and floaters. That same touch has gradually extended beyond the interior as his career has progressed, developing into a credible perimeter threat. This past season with the Atlanta Hawks, he averaged a career-high 2.8 three-point attempts per game while converting an impressive 38.3 percent, further underscoring his offensive range. 

As with the other two bigs mentioned, Landale is also an underrated passer at the five. That’s no coincidence as recent Boston Celtics frontcourt players have consistently shown an ability to facilitate at some level. In Boston’s system, it’s essential that the center can make quick, accurate reads to capitalize on the frequent two-on-one and three-on-two advantages the team creates. 

While he has the most offensive game out of the three, Landale offers the least defensively. Landale is a fundamentally sound but physically limited defender whose effectiveness comes more from positioning, effort, and awareness than from elite tools. He does have solid strength though and can hold his ground reasonably well against traditional post-up bigs and does a respectable job of contesting without fouling. He plays with good discipline, understands team defensive concepts, and is generally in the right place, which allows him to function within a structured system. He’s not going to block a ton of shots and doesn’t provide a ton of versatility from what I’ve seen, but he could be a nice change of pace offensive center that can hopefully knock down some shots.  

Landale will enter unrestricted free agency this summer after by far his most productive season in the league. I do believe he garners interest from some teams, but the price shouldn’t be out of Boston’s range. 

Honorable Mention :

Karlo Matkovic  

5.7pts | 3.7 rebs | 1blk | 60/42/73 | 62 games | Pelicans  

25-year-old Croatian big Karlo Matkovic has been someone I’ve looked at for the Celtics for some time now. Matković is a mobile, athletic big who offers an intriguing blend of energy, defensive activity, and developing offensive skill. Standing around 6’10” with good length and fluid movement, he runs the floor well and plays with a high motor, making him effective in transition and as a rim runner. Offensively, most of his work is done around the basket shooting 81.7% in the restricted area, but he has shown the ability to shoot from the outside. Matkovic shot 42% from deep this season with New Orleans only 1.5 attempts.  

Defensively, he stands out more using his mobility and timing to contest shots, protect the rim, and switch onto the perimeter in short bursts. While still raw in terms of strength and overall polish, Matkovic’s athleticism and defensive versatility give him upside as a modern rotation big who can impact the game without needing the ball. 

The Pelicans have a pending decision to make on Matkovic with his team’s option looming, but there is a slight chance they don’t pick him up as they look to develop Derik Quenn and Yves Missi who are younger options.  

Anyone claiming to know what Bilal Coulibaly will be is either lying or delusional. Through three NBA seasons, one number stands out: 68. That’s how many games he’s missed — 27.6% of Wizards games since they traded up to draft him seventh overall in the 2023 NBA Draft.

A few other numbers jump off the screen — 49.7% on two-point field goal attempts, 31.3% on threes, and 73.4% from the free throw line. All solidly below average.

But that’s topline stuff and not necessarily the whole story. That he’s missed 68 games is fact. How many he would have missed if the team hadn’t been trying to lose is an open question. My guess is it would have been a lot less, but it’s unprovable.

During his short career, Coulibaly has gained a reputation as a good defender, though it’s worth mention the team has been no better at slowing opposing offenses when he’s been on the floor. The “young players sometimes take some time” for their on/off stats to start matching up with their box score numbers factor may apply, as does the context that he’s had to share the floor with truly horrendous defensive teammates. That said, he made some strides towards being more disruptive this season — see upticks in his per possession steals and blocks. Perhaps positive signals for the future.

To call his offensive game a “project” would be an insult to projects. He’s shot poorly, struggled to finish in traffic, and been hampered by iffy ball handling skills. And, he also improved pretty significantly this season.

For example, over his first 20 games this season, Coulibaly’s offensive rating (points produced per 100 individual possessions) was 99. League average this season was above 115. Over his final 36 games played, his offensive rating was 111. Still a bit below average but also significant improvement.

The eye test was similarly inconclusive. I noted across multiple games later in the season that Coulibaly was more assertive offensively, that he was driving more frequently, and that opponents were having difficulty staying in front of him when decided to attack. He also had more than a few…interesting…attempts to score inside. Sometimes he used his vertical leap and long arms to go over defenders, others he did that weird slow-down Euro-step thing and blew the shot, and still others he threw up wild shots that had no chance (a few of which actually dropped).

Over his final 17 games, he shot 38.1% from three-point range, which might mean something. It was only 76 total attempts though, so there’s nothing conclusive. It might mean his shooting truly improved. It might also mean he was on something of a heater.

Coulibaly’s overall trend is clear from the PPA Performance EKG below. Like teammate Kyshawn George, he started great and cratered. But then Coulibaly steadily improved the rest of the way. Over his first 20 games, Coulibaly’s PPA was 72 (in PPA, average is 100 and higher is better). Over his last 20: 125.

Now, 125 isn’t great. It’s solidly above average, though. He also had multiple above-average 10-game stints, including two with a PPA of 150 or better. A significant factor in both stretches were outlandishly good games (above 400 PPA scores), so apply the appropriate measure of salt.

On the other hand, Coulibaly’s rolling season PPA hit a replacement level 47 (close enough — replacement level in PPA is 45) after his 13th game. He notched a 118 the rest of the way. Again, not great but not bad either.

If it feels like I’m veering from one extreme to the other here, it’s because I am. And that’s because it’s what the data is saying. In my Consistency Index, Coulibaly scored an astronomical 123 this season. A lower score means more consistency.

His great and awful games came in near equal measure. He had 11 200+ PPA games (20%) and 10 that scored in the negative. He had 19 games with a 150 or better, and 15 with a 45 or lower.

I was very much in favor of drafting Coulibaly before the Wizards selected him. I liked the move to get him on draft day. Zach Lowe’s Nerf gun to my head, I’d guess he’s going to be pretty good. But it’s mostly a guess and a hunch. His overall production has improved each season…and there’s enough really bad games to give me doubts.

He’s eligible for an extension this summer, which the Wizards would be certifiably nuts to give him, unless it’s a deal like the one Deni Avdija signed. Which Coulibaly would be certifiably nuts to sign. A big year next season could be lucrative for him.

At minimum, I think Coulibaly can be a defensive specialist. If the shooting comes around, he could be a highly valuable three-and-D type. If he develops an overall offensive package, he could be a star. It’s fascinating how little is sure with him after three NBA seasons.

Game 1 went down to the wire, the Spurs lost on a missed Champagnie buzzer beater. Afterwards, there was no heads hung, no self deprication, just an urgency to watch film and make the necessary adjustments before heading into Game 2.

Matthew Tynan of Corporate Knowledge reported that Spurs legend Gregg Popovich sat in on the film sessions. Victor Wembanyama referenced Pop in his post game presser, mentioning “you’re never as good as you think when you win and you’re never as bad as you think when you lose.”

Whatever was deciphered from the analysis of Game 1, the Spurs know that had to come out swinging. And that’s exactly what they did.

The Spurs defense stiffled the Timberwolves, limiting them to 17 first quarter points and just 35 at the half, giving the Silver & Black a 24 point advantage.

Two minutes into the second half, the Spurs expanded their lead to 29 points. By then, Wembanyama, Castle, and Fox each had scored 14 points. The balanced distribution shaped the team’s attack as they continued to dominate Minnesota.

Anthony Edwards, coming off the bench for the second game in a row, was limited to 12 points in his twenty-four minutes.

Julian Champagnie, who went scoreless in the first half, hit four three-pointers in the third quarter as the Spurs shut down Minnesota.

Early in the fourth quarter the Spurs lead grew to 40 and both teams emptied their benches. Jordan McLaughlin and Kelly Olynyk played the final 10 minutes of regulation. Lindy Waters III joined them with 8:23 left in the game. Even Bismack Biyombo and Mason Plumlee got in on the action relieving Carter Bryant anfd Harrison Barnes for the final 3:12.

Afterwards, head coach Mitch Johnson praised the team’s defensive “consistency, physicality, and contact” adding that the team was ready for tonight’s game despite losing home court advantage.

The team now heads to Minneapolis for Game 3 on Friday night. They will need to carry the win without resting on their laurels. As visitors, they’ll have an arena against them. Although they faced the Trail Blazers in Portland, the Minnesota crowd will be even more vocal and uninviting. They now need to prepare for the challenge ahead.

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OKLAHOMA CITY — The Lakers punched first, but the Thunder punched harder in their Game 1 victory on Tuesday to kick off the best-of-seven second-round playoff series.

Now, it’s on the Lakers to respond with a better counterpunch in Thursday’s Game 2 at Paycom Center to avoid falling behind by two games before the series shifts to LA for Game 3 on Saturday and Game 4 on Monday. 

“Obviously, it’s playoffs at the end of the day, so, I mean, even though it’s not necessarily win or go home, it leads to win or going home,” Jaxson Hayes said. “So, I mean, we gotta just come in as the more desperate team and with more urgency and just locked in and just ready to go.”

Here are three adjustments the Lakers need to make for Game 2:

Attack OKC’s defense better

It goes without saying that the Thunder are deploying different defensive strategies with Luka Doncic not available for the Lakers. 

The Lakers are seeing less hedging/aggressive pick-and-roll defenses from the Thunder, who used more drop coverages and switching in Game 1 compared to the regular-season games Doncic played in.

And they have to be better at attacking the Thunder’s strategies. 

They struggled against the Thunder’s drop coverage for most of Game 1 — which has been a season-long Lakers’ weakness regardless of opponent. 

And the things that worked — post-ups and inverted pick and rolls — weren’t used frequently enough as the game progressed. 

The Lakers’ defense wasn’t perfect against the Thunder, but it was good enough to keep the game competitive and potentially win.

Better shotmaking will help. 

But the process needs to be much better, too.  

“Offensively, we’ve got to be a lot better,” coach JJ Redick said. “That obviously falls on me to make sure we’re organized. Some stuff falls on the guys. Like, we had too many possessions without getting our corners filled. That just requires you jogging across the floor. But, we certainly can be more intentional about what we’re trying to do and who we’re trying to involve. A lot of the stuff that we kind of identified prior to Game 1 was there for us. We just got to keep emphasizing those points.”

Alter Austin Reaves’ rotation

Austin Reaves was among the key Lakers players who struggled with their shotmaking in Game 1. 

He shot 3-for-16 from the field, including missing all five of his 3-pointers, for just eight points to go with six assists, five rebounds and four turnovers. 

It goes without saying that the Lakers need Reaves to be better to have a shot against the Thunder.

And he will be. 

“We need Austin to be Austin,” Redick said. “The reality is, ideally when you get to this time of year, your body is kind of in peak shape from a conditioning standpoint, from a fitness standpoint. When you’re out, it doesn’t matter what you do — echo bike, treadmill, running on the court, whatever — nothing can simulate playing in an NBA game, much less an NBA playoff game. So, there’s a little bit of a catch-up there for him, and then as a staff, we got to help … put him in positions to be successful.”

One way the Lakers could help Reaves, who’s just three games back from a monthlong absence because of his left oblique injury, is shortening his playing-time shifts to help preserve his legs instead of having him play the longer stints to start the first and third quarters and close the halves. 

Reaves has shot 2-for-17 on 3-pointers since returning in the Game 5 loss to the Rockets on April 29.

He’s still getting his legs back after a long layoff. 

“We’ve looked at that,” Redick said about shortening Reaves’ shifts. “We’re looking at ways to help him. Being undermanned, it’s hard to. We’re trying our best with the rotation.”

Defensive details

One of the defensive details the Lakers could clean up is being tighter with their rotations after double-teaming or sending help toward NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

And knowing who to close out hard against and who isn’t as much of a priority to leave open. 

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Well, we’re now several days removed from the end of the Boston Celtics season, and I think I’m finally ready to talk about it.

First thoughts: It definitely still stings. I wish I was still watching my guys play basketball.

If we are solely looking at the result of Boston’s series against the Philadelphia 76ers, it’s hard to look at it as anything but a disappointment. Dropping three straight games, including two at home? On top of that, the Celtics have lost to three of their biggest rivals in all three of their playoff exits over the past four years – the Miami Heat in 2023, the New York Knicks in 2025, and Philly here in 2026.

The 2024 championship is doing a lot of heavy lifting for my mental health right about now. Without that ring, these pills would be a lot tougher to swallow. It’s not all bad, though. Let me take you on a journey through my mind, a ride on a rollercoaster of emotions that was the Celtics first round series against the Sixers.

The ride starts before Boston even played their first regular season. (Don’t worry, it speeds up pretty quickly from here.)

Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, Neemias Queta, Anfernee Simons, Chris Boucher, Josh Minott, Jordan Walsh, Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, Luka Garza, Xavier Tillman, Ron Harper Jr., Amari Williams, and Max Shulga. This was the Celtics active roster coming into the season, along with Jayson Tatum, who we weren’t entirely sure would return this year from his Achilles injury.

Looking at that roster, I expected Boston’s ceiling to be a Play-In tournament berth at best. The first six players on that list were certainly experienced, but I did not see the assembly of talent as one that could compete with the other playoff-caliber teams in the East, let alone across the league. Beneath them was three rookies, five players who never held a meaningful role on an NBA roster, and Xavier Tillman, who seemed to be falling behind after knee issues flared up over his last two seasons in the NBA.

Never could I have imagined that this roster would finish with 56 wins and the second-best record in the East. The sheer amount of fight and passion that these guys showed for 82 games was such a pleasure to watch. Walsh, Hugo, Baylor, Luka, Neemi, Ron – heck, even Anfernee and Minott – these guys made me fall in love with Celtics basketball all over again this year.

There were so many moments of pure joy, thinking a scrappy win against a top team was the best win of the season, only to be topped by another one just a couple nights later. Even through his down shooting year, Derrick was making incredible game-winning plays left and right. Pritchard gave us several amazing performances himself, along with a bunch more buzzer beaters. And of course, Jaylen put up an MVP-caliber season through so many career-highs, and silenced so many of the narratives surrounding him.

Now, when you fast forward to the last game of the regular season, everyone is healthy. Jayson Tatum is back to playing high-level basketball, and already looks like an All-Star again. The Celtics bench unit goes up against the healthy Orlando Magic who are fighting for seeding, and they squeak out a gutsy win on a heroic game-winning shot from Luka Garza.

What a high that was. Boston felt unbeatable at that time. I could not have been happier with their regular season, and I was preparing for a deep playoff run from them as well.

Given how I was looking at the team before the season, you would think that I couldn’t be disappointed with any result from here on out. Any playoff success could easily have just been a cherry on top. Well, as much as I shouldn’t be, unfortunately, I am disappointed.

Game 1 was a dream. The Celtics won by 32 points on their home floor, and they looked every bit as dominant as I’d hoped they’d be. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown played like the superstars we know they are. Pritchard had a great game off of the bench too. Tatum and Walsh did a fantastic job containing Tyrese Maxey, which was probably my biggest concern coming into the series. It seemed like smooth sailing from there.

Game 2 rolls around, and Boston got off to another fantastic start. With three minutes left in the first quarter, the Celtics were up by 13. I was getting way too ahead of myself in the CelticsBlog group chat talking about “mercy rules” and “dominating Philly.” Oh, how naive I was.

Philly took a timeout at that point, and when they came back from the break, they immediately went on a 10-0 run to flip the game on its head. Boston was still leading, but they were playing on their heels, and I knew I had spoken too soon. It was a tight back-and-forth battle for the rest of the quarter, but the Sixers closed strong, taking an 8-point lead into the half. The game was still well within reach, but I didn’t have a great feeling about it.

The Celtics ended up losing by 14 points at home. Now, Philly had taken home-court advantage in this series. My first disappointment.

But, not entirely unexpected. In 2024, the Celtics dropped the second home game of their first-round series with the Heat and the second round with the Cavs. In 2025, they dropped two home games against the Knicks. It seems that in recent years, home-court advantage hasn’t felt the same for Boston anyways.

I was definitely concerned. Heading into Philly for game 3, I didn’t want to see Boston drop another game; Then I really would have been panicking. I had confidence that the Celtics would bounce back, but the nerves started creeping in.

But then, Boston took care of business on the road, and that too with Embiid returning in game 4. An 8-point victory in game 3 and a 32-point victory in game 4 sent my nerves packing. Little did I know that they booked round-trip tickets.

I was feeling good at the time. The Celtics had a chance to close things out at home now, and they had dominant victories both with Embiid on and off the court. Again, I got cocky. I was talking about how the Celtics have dominated the Sixers since “The Process” began, and how this year would be no different. I even sent the Embiid “they always kick our ***” quote graphic to my basketball group chat with my friends. I think Boston may have fallen into the same false sense of security that I did.

From the tip of game 5, it felt like the Sixers were simply outworking the Celtics. They were playing great defense, and were having a much easier time creating open looks for themselves. The game was close for a while, and the Celtics even held a 13-point lead early in the third quarter, but things just never felt comfortable. And, like in game 1, Philly managed to turn the tides. After Boston took their 13-point lead, the Sixers responded with a 15-3 run to make it a 1-point game.

The Celtics pushed their lead back up to 8 with around two and a half minutes left in the third, but they allowed another 12-5 run to end the quarter, once again cutting it to a 1-point lead heading into the fourth. At that point I had little faith the Celtics to close the game out. They were not nearly as engaged as they needed to be, and they seemed to be lacking a sense of urgency. On top of that, they just weren’t consistently getting high-quality shots, and weren’t converting enough of the ones that they did manage to generate.

Boston only scored 11 points in the fourth quarter. Philly scored 28. A 13-point third quarter lead turned into a 16-point loss. It was devastating.

The Celtics have done this many times over the past several years. They get comfortable, and when they build up leads, it feels like the focus is on protecting it rather than building on it. They stop going on the attack, and start going on the defensive. It makes for a very frustrating watch, and it allows teams that have their backs on the ropes to get back into a game, or even a series.

The Sixers certainly took advantage. Game 6 was one of the most frustrating games I’ve ever watched as a Celtics fan. I was squirming in my seat on the couch, yelling at the TV, and even debating turning it off altogether, all things which rarely happen when I watch sports. I usually pride myself on being more-or-less composed, if not just a little extra chatty. Game 6 took a lot out of me.

The lead tracker gives a glimpse into the devastation.

A pathetic performance after getting embarrassed on your home court. To make matters worse, Jayson Tatum was in clear discomfort starting in the third quarter, grabbing at his calf in the leg which he did not have surgery on. He was stretching it out, hopping on the bike, trying to play through it, but ultimately never got over it.

After Philly took a 23-point lead early in the fourth, Joe pulled the plug on all the starters. Pritchard and the “Stay Ready” group took the floor, and managed to make two big dents in the Sixers lead. They played the Celtics basketball we had seen all regular season long, and they even got some great looks which they weren’t able to convert, but could otherwise have really made the game competitive again.

Those last 10 minutes were the only time I could find any joy or relief in the game, even though we couldn’t pull out a win. I just love watching guys like Jordan Walsh, Hugo Gonzalez, Ron Harper Jr., and Luka Garza work their tails off as if they’re fighting for their lives. How could you not?

Still, while they subdued the sour taste in my mouth for a bit, I couldn’t help but come away from the game defeated. I had lost my faith in the Celtics to win the series, another extremely rare feeling for me. I didn’t even feel that way after JT went down in the Knicks series last year.

It just felt like Boston wasn’t ready for the challenge. Our big men could not keep up with Embiid, Derrick was having an abysmal offensive series, and with Mazzulla limiting the bench players’ playing time, it felt like we rarely had guys on the court who were willing to out-fight the Sixers.

The days leading up to game 7 were solemn. I was truly dejected, dreading all of the slander the Celtics would get, the trash that our rivals would be able to talk about us, finally letting Embiid get a win over the Jays, and most of all, the impending early end to an otherwise magical season. I hated all of it.

I can’t entirely explain why, but with maybe an hour left before tip-off something changed for me.

Maybe it had to do with our vets at CelticsBlog, Mike Dynon and Shirley Coshatt. Earlier in the series, Shirley reminded me that the 2008 Celtics went 7 games in the first round as well. We all know how that year went for Boston. Mike also came into the CB group chat talking about “when” the Celtics win, not “if.”

For the first time in the last 48 hours, I no longer had a feeling of dread. Instead, I had a feeling of hope, and excitement. The nerves turned to adrenaline. The Celtics were going to win the game. I let my friends know about my revelation.

Two minutes later, Tatum is ruled out from the game.

And you know what? I doubled down. I will admit that my confidence was shaken, and those feelings of dread peeked their head again, but I stood tall, and I re-committed. The Celtics were going to win the game.

Joe was almost forced to re-insert guys like Hugo, Baylor, and Garza back into the lineup after benching them for much of the series. I felt like we’d finally have some urgency and fight back on the floor. It was a bit of a rock fight to start the game, but the fight was certainly there. Even after falling back 17-6 in the first six minutes, the Celtics stayed in the game.

Jaylen Brown and Derrick White seemed like they were finally ready to take over again. White re-discovered his shot, a sight that could have brought tears to my eyes. JB stumbled a bit, but steadied himself and settled into the game. Even Queta was finally able to stay on the floor for longer than usual, and made a real impact too. The bench guys were hustling up and down the floor, and winning more of the loose balls that fell to the Sixers in previous games.

The score didn’t favor Boston, but my hopes were still well and alive. Every made basket felt electric. The Celtics were finally giving the TD Garden crowd something to cheer about, and were riding their energy too. We were chipping, and chipping, and chipping away at Philly’s will with small plays that had a big impact.

We arrive at the final four minutes of the game. The Sixers hold a 99-98 lead, Boston carrying the momentum. Five straight missed shots between both teams. Several open looks for Boston, and a huge block by JB as well. Two minutes go by, and they weren’t able to break the seal. Maxey decided to take over the game, and gets himself two easy layups to put the Sixers up 5 with just over a minute remaining in the game.

My hopes are on their last legs. It won’t be easy, but a couple of the right plays and Boston can still win this.

Three more missed shots by the Celtics and an intentional foul. Philly goes up 7 with twenty seconds left.

My hopes are dead. Once again, I am devastated.

The dread fills in. Why did we have to lose to Philly? Why couldn’t we take care of business when we were the better team all season long? Why did Tatum have to get hurt and miss game 7? Why didn’t Joe trust the young guys more in the previous 6 games? Why wasn’t Derrick able to get his shot going until the last game? What am I supposed to do with no more Celtics basketball?

My friends rushed to the group chat to throw my words in my face. They almost all hate the Celtics, and were happy to pile on, even when their teams were already eliminated. At least my friends were thinking about me, right?

I think of myself as a pretty positive guy, and I had to try to find it again in that moment. But it was hard. I was happy to see the team go out fighting. I hated seeing the team go out at all. I was happy that we got an amazing regular season. I hated that it didn’t amount to much in the playoffs. I was happy that Tatum returned at all, let alone to a star level. I hated that he couldn’t be out there in the final game.

Even as I’m writing about this today, almost a week removed from the loss, I have so many conflicting feelings in my head and my heart. Maybe some of it is what NBA Twitter would call “cope.” Maybe some of it is having too much free time on my hands while being a chronic over-thinker. Probably a big part of it is seeing all of the rumors, narratives, etc. that fans and sports media alike have rushed to fill my timeline with.

It’s incredibly frustrating when people start to tear apart a team you love like a member of your family, watch over 82 games of, and spend over 200 hours with each season. Outside of the people in my life, I don’t think I have a greater love than basketball. I bleed green. I am a Boston Celtics fan until the day I die.

At this point, I’ve managed to forgive them for the disappointing end, and love them for all the exciting steps along the way. Now I just have to power through an offseason of hot takes, trade ideas, and probably a whole lot of online negativity.

But I’m excited for the future. I still love this roster. As much as I understand that we can’t just run it back and expect to win next year, it’s gonna hurt me to see any of these guys not with us anymore (except for maybe one or two of the late additions.)

There’s going to be a lot of blame going on, and I’m sure Brad Stevens will find ways to hold the team accountable, but as a fan, I’d like to just go back to appreciating all the good moments we had with the team rather than dwelling on the bad ones. Take a deep breath with me, fellow Celtics fans. It will all work out. Tomorrow will be a better day.

Every so often, pro sports seems like something straight out of junior high. Last week, there was the beef between former Duke star Wendell Carter and Detroit Pistons Jalen Duren. Carter is dating Angel Reese, who used to go out with Duren.

This week, we have the entertaining Austin Rivers-Draymond Green beef.

Those guys were in the same high school class, and recently, Green mocked Rivers on his podcast, saying that he peaked in high school, and that playing for his father Doc Rivers got him the biggest bailout in history.

Admittedly, that’s a funny line, but Rivers clearly didn’t appreciate it.

And then Rivers came back with this. He called Green the luckiest player in the world for playing alongside Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, aka the Splash Brothers, and later, also Kevin Durant.

We’ll give Green this: he’s carved out a remarkable career, and it’s largely due to his intelligent approach to the game. When he was drafted, we thought a lot of teams underestimated him, and time has proven that right. A 6-6 guy has thrived in the post in this era? Only a basketball genius could have done that.

But Rivers is right when he ridicules Green for saying Steve Kerr damaged his career. Kerr was a brilliant coach for Green, and found ways to make him incredibly effective. He has never been an offensive focus, though.

Anyway, it’s not exactly Bird vs. Magic, but it is an entertaining beef, and neither guy seems ready to back down, so it’ll probably go on for a while. So pass the popcorn!

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