Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Boston Celtics, fresh off a dominant regular season, face the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 6 after a series that has lasted longer than expected.
- Despite their overall success, the Celtics have shown a troubling tendency to let opponents stay competitive, mirroring past playoff struggles.
- While Boston remains the favorite to advance, their inconsistent performance raises concerns about their ability to close out games effectively.
Ever since Jayson Tatum miraculously returned from a torn Achilles and somehow managed to look like some semblance of himself, everyone has pinpointed the Boston Celtics as the top dog out East.
Unlike the Detroit Pistons, they probably aren't in danger of an obscene first round exit. But as they prepare to travel to Philadelphia for Game 6, there is no question that this series has gone a lot longer than anyone reasonably expected.
The Philadelphia 76ers deserve their flowers for this. Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, V.J. Edgecombe, and Joel Embiid are an excellent quartet, and they have been semi-healthy for the first time this season (all of them have played in the last two games). The Celtics have dared them to shoot a ton of pull-ups (only the Celtics and Phoenix Suns take more per game than them), and in their wins, they are hitting them at a high rate (53.2% effective field goal percentage).
Still, the Celtics are back to an old habit that it had seemed like they have finally kicked.
The Celtics are playing with their food (again)
Ever since Tatum and Jaylen Brown reached their prime, the Celtics have been one of the most successful organizations in the league. Over the last five years, they have finished first in net rating twice, and in the top five in all of those seasons.
The only real criticism you can have about them is that their teams tend to play with their food and let teams hang around longer than they probably should. For instance, to me, this series is analogous to their first round matchup against the Atlanta Hawks.
Those Hawks, much like this 76ers were largely unspectacular. Those Hawks finished the 2022-23 regular season with the 18th-best net rating in basketball. And what do you know? That is exactly where the 76ers ranked in that category at the end of this season.
Anyway, in that matchup, the Celtics stormed out to commanding 3-1 lead, but instead of putting them away in Game 5, Boston let one slip away, and then had to sweat out an 8-point win on the road in Game 6.
They ultimately didn't have to pay for their sins back then. However, a couple rounds later, the Cinderella Miami Heat finally made them face the music for being inconsistent with their inspiration, defeating them in seven games to move on to the NBA Finals.
I'm still taking the Celtics to win the East. Yes, they have had moments of weakness, but no one in the Eastern Conference looks pretty good. The Pistons are one game away from elimination. The team that is beating them, the Orlando Magic, didn't qualify for the postseason until the last possible day. The New York Knicks look old at times and will always have issues defensively with Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns on their roster. The Cleveland Cavaliers have their hands full with the Toronto Raptors. What about them right now makes you think they can handle the Celtics?
However, what we have seen from Boston in the first round is a little disheartening. After watching them march through the regular season without their best player and look just as good as ever, it felt like the days of them underperforming were a thing of the past. But I guess old habits die hard.
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