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The Celtics have not reacted to adversity since the start of the season. There is therefore no reason to expect that they will leave now. The only appropriate end for this lethargic group of star players who had to fight their way through a grueling season is an early exit to the playoffs, which they are about to reach. . The Bucks of 60 wins are a much better team. Let's hope they finish out of five, so we can all move to the other and blow up the basketball equivalent of the chicken and beer teams.
At this point, it's not surprising to see Josh Beckett banging on Popeye's thighs with Kyrie Irving in the tunnel. That's where Irving ended up with about 10 seconds left in the 4-0 defeat of the Bucks in Game 4 of 113 in Boston, putting the Celtics in a seemingly insurmountable hole in the 3- series. 1.
Garden worshipers booed the Celtics several times on Monday, potentially dismissing Irving with the same negativity that he has spread in the locker room this season. Earlier this year, Terry Rozier admitted that Irving's bad mood was affecting the Celtics game.
"Kyrie is our leader. When he's in a good mood and feels good, we're harder to beat, "Rozier told NBC Sports Boston in February. "It's contagious, it affects everyone. Sometimes, when it's not like that, everyone is comfortable. "
Entering this series against Milwaukee, the Celtics claimed to have changed. Irving is praised by Jackie MacMullan for not worrying anymore about what people think; Rozier and Jaylen Brown talked about their personal growth.
During the second half of the season, after almost every maddening defeat – 28 points ahead of the Clippers, a pathetic loss Saturday night in Charlotte – Irving did not stop repeating that the Celtics would be ready for the playoffs. He ended the regular season and seemed indifferent to the team's ongoing struggles. This is the opposite approach that we usually want from our athletes, to whom we spend hours watching games. But after five games in the playoffs, Irving may have been right.
The C's were 5-0, sweeping the Pacers and embarrassing the Bucks in the first game. Last week, Paul Pierce said the series was over.
Eight days later, it does not seem that Pierce could have been more wrong. Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was only 7 shots out of 21 in the first match, has scored 100 points in his last three games. The Celtics can not stop him, or anyone else on the Bucks. George Hill and Eric Bledsoe have combined 83 points in the last two games, mocking Irving on both sides. In addition to not playing in defense, Irving is 19-in-62 off the floor in the last three games.
For my buck, the Celtics nadir was delivered Monday with 4:49 remaining in the fourth quarter, when Irving threw a three-pointer early in the clock, then slumped on the other end while Hill was heading to the basket for an easy shot bucket. The Bucks' lead was reduced to two digits after an unfortunate "hero's ball" attempt without any defensive effort. Unlike previous Brad Stevens teams, this group stops when their shots do not fall.
That's why the Bucks were able to run away with games in minutes. In the second game, Milwaukee scored 24-2 in the third; The third match was marked by a 12-0 run at the end of the third period. The fourth game was the show of a 10-0 Bucks race in the third quarter with Giannis on the bench. The Celtics were trailing 59-58 when Giannis was replaced with 8:18 to go in the third. Their deficit was raised to 80-72 when Giannis returned to competition early in the fourth.
The Celtics are royally screwed up in the air. It was supposed to be the penultimate season of Danny Ainge's dynastic plan, which ended with an NBA finals race to bring in the star pair of Irving and Anthony Davis. But it is obvious that the Celtics can not stay on the pre-established path. Last year's team, which led the LeBron Cavaliers to game 7 of the Eastern Conference final, played without Irving and Gordon Hayward. This year's team has them both and they stink. The first is a leader from another world whose basketball genius seemed to torpedo the club; The latter is a rotting All-Star who can not overcome his terrible ankle injury last year.
Jayson Tatum, Brown and Al Horford, an aging, may not be the favorites of the Eastern Conference, but at least they would be fun to watch. It was the other sad reality about Monday night and the bulk of this season: these matches were a depressing stomp.
When Irving was asked about his terrible 7-22 performance, he said he should have thrown the ball 30 times. Well. Hoping he's doing this Wednesday. Maybe this thing could be finished at halftime.
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