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MILWAUKEE – The Boston Celtics should aim higher than the Milwaukee Bucks or even the Golden State Warriors.
Like maybe Thanos.
And they will probably have finished in less than three hours, if the start of the Eastern Conference playoffs is an indication.
They finally set up a consistent basketball game that was seen only in the shadows and spots of the regular season, taking into account the promise of an alignment that should continue until June, at to meet expectations and to be pointed out.
No longer competing with the hard-working but talented Indiana Pacers, the Celtics' harmony was sparked against a team that played better together longer than any other NBA team, the Milwaukee Bucks.
<p class = "canvas-atom web-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "The result was & nbsp;a spectacular victory 112-90 at the Forum Fiserv& nbsp; Sunday afternoon, in the first game of the semifinal of the Eastern Conference, which seemed terribly easy. A Celtics team that seemed to have too much talent suddenly seemed to have pieces that fit perfectly in dismantling a team that, according to many people, will represent the East at the finals. "Data-reactid =" 40 "> The 112-90 win at the Fiserv Forum on Sunday afternoon in the opening match of the Eastern Conference semifinals, which seemed a staggering ease: a Celtics team that seemed to have too much talent suddenly seemed to have pieces that fit perfectly in the good sense dismantle a team that many believe will represent the East in the final.
The team that could not win on the road in the final playoffs suddenly looks like road warriors, highlighting why it was so big for the season. The Celtics lift goes to the NBA penthouse, a place accessible by the heavyweight from the Bay Area.
Al Horford (left) and Jayson Tatum make life difficult for Giannis Antetokounmpo in the third quarter of Sunday's first game. (Getty Images)
Many paused – including inside the Celtics' locker room – the nights they played as if they belonged to the dungeon.
But if it's really more than a mirage, the Milwaukee Bucks may be in the wrong place at the wrong time, spaces reserved for a Celtics team that seems to be reaching its full potential.
Celtics coach Brad Stevens exclaims about Giannis Antetokounmpo in the pre-game, claiming he was the most valuable player in the league. He did not get the praise with which he planned to turn Antetokounmpo's life into a miserable life, putting big corpses in front of his length while using the length of Celtics on Bucks shooters.
Aron Baynes and Al Horford have been employed to carry out this task, thus preventing the game's best internal scorer from reaching his unstoppable places and leaving him open where he is most vulnerable: the perimeter.
Antetokounmpo tried to get rid of this mistake by scoring 3 attempts out of 3, but the game was out of control and Boston will play the percentages on the underdeveloped aspects of Antetokounmpo's game as long as he can.
The Celtics' frustrating exterior look has been passed on to an opponent who knows very little about adversity this season, a team of Bucks who have lost only two consecutive games once. When the plans and execution of Stevens' staff combined in the first half to create a 15-point lead, the Celtics could feel the frustration and panic at the limit in their opponents while recognizing their own growth.
Gordon Hayward seems comfortable in his role as a Reservist and he looks fresh, as if he had not spent 82 days of detox. Jaylen Brown feels like Iguodala-lite, a Swiss army knife that can do anything from solid to spectacular, taking on the added responsibility of escalating after Marcus Smart's injury and running with her.
Has anyone noticed that Jayson Tatum was barely registered in the box with four points and six rebounds? Probably not, but keeping the tracks of Antetokounmpo blocked while preventing the star player Khris Middleton to take over, will not go unnoticed in the movie theater or in his teammates.
The small problems that can cross a season of 82 games, the boredom of the process to get to this point, all seemed to fade.
"I would just say that a lot of people have left behind things that they have experienced during the season and that we all watched this awesome goal at the end, so we click on," said Terry Rozier III at Yahoo Sports after the win. "We had a lot of things going on during the season … with a lot of guys competing for places and stuff. But I have the impression that we put everything behind us. "
Commercial rumors and free speculation invaded the Celtics' locker room, and Kyrie Irving's future was often at the center of it, fueled by slippery comments from the guard about the general maturity of the team.
But he always left the door cracked, saying not to judge them completely before the playoffs.
"Maybe there was a bit of foreshadowing through the regular season," Irving said. "We've had to deal with ups and downs naturally, but I think we can only appreciate the group we have."
The struggles have not been imagined by anyone. Too many parties, they did not seem organized for long periods or interested in playing with each other. They have accumulated only 49 wins in a team as talented as they lost control of their opponent in the playoffs.
But they have passed all the tests since the games really counted and their star has been an orchestrator and a virtuoso performer. In Stevens' system, Irving found the perfect place to play: play within the structure but play freely and keep his teammates full of opportunities.
He had better nights in the playoffs and the regular season, but he felt he was giving the game what he needed as mature as his change of address from Cleveland to Boston.
Irving had 26 points with 11 assists and seven rebounds with a record of 20 points. Antetokounmpo, the presumptive MVP, was the worst of the game, minus 24.
Irving has long been considered close to the prime minister, but if he adds a touch of rhythm to his resume, the rest of the playoffs will provoke an even more tempting conversation about his immediate future – and the Celtics' desperation to keep him. .
For the moment, the team that seemed to have no identity throughout the season still did not, according to Rozier. But this is a good sign for no one else.
"We have a lot of guys who can do so much, I do not really know who we are," Rozier told Yahoo Sports.
"I can not say it in one word. I would say that we are … very interesting.
'Nuff said.
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