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What I hear: Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype has talked to a handful of NBA players and asked who they think would win the title this year. Inquiry says!
UNITED STATES TODAY & # 39; HUI
After all of goalkeeper Kyrie Irving's Boston meetings on leadership and performance this season – and on the self-admitted faux pas along the way – he has delivered the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
The Celtics should be thrilled because their playoff success depends on Irving.
Irving was the best player on the field when sweeping the Celtics 4-0 series against the Indiana Pacers. He concluded with a 110-106 win over Boston in Game 4 on Sunday. In this sweep, the games were close, the series was not.
It was the moment that Irving was waiting – his first playoff series with the Celtics since his injury last season – and if he was not always able to express that perfectly in words, he expressed it in playing.
Irving averaged 22.5 points and 7.8 assists and shot 42.3% at three points and 88.2% of the foul line. He made timely shots, sometimes took things in hand and knew when to let his teammates manage the score.
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In the fourth quarter, Irving, one of the best shooters in the NBA, averaged six points and 60% of his shots on goal. It was a microcosm of Celtic performance in the fourth quarter, when they defeated the Pacers by 23. In a series that saw the four games scored at 10 points or less, the absence of the injured Pacers star was amplified with the match. on the line.
Sunday was not Irving's best performance: 14 points on a 4-for-13 shot. But he remained involved with his defeat and defense and had only two turnovers. And he was part of a series of 18-5 in the fourth quarter that decided to play and acknowledged that the other players were better off the offensive. Seven Celtics scored two digits, with Gordon Hayward's top 20 points. Marcus Morris and Jayson Tatum added 18.
When the Celtics play like that and use their depth without the individual agendas interfering with the team's success, it reveals why many were optimistic about the Celtics. This first round success is why the Celtics are still considered a final caliber team. They started the season with the expectations of the final, but have never been so consistent to finish better than 49-33. The Pacers series has eased concerns for the moment.
Nevertheless, Boston has a difficult road to the finals; the four seeds are fraught with danger.
It is likely that the Celtics will face Milwaukee, seeded, in the semifinals of the conference. As impressive as the Celtics were against Indiana, the Bucks were more impressive with three easy wins against Detroit. They can close the series in match 4 on Monday.
Milwaukee presents a much bigger challenge. He finished with the best record in the league and has an offensive and defense among the top five MVP-led defensive player of the year Giannis Antetokounmpo.
And Irving will have more difficulties against Eric Bledsoe, the leader of the Bucks.
But that's what Irving brings to the playoffs: experience, success and clutch performance. He is 43-13 in the playoffs and has produced in the biggest moments of the final – 41 points against Golden State in a 5th match to win and the three pointers of the championship in Game 7 against the Warriors in 2016
That's what Irving wanted – he left Cleveland to lead a team – and now we see what he can do with higher stakes against a better team. If the first round was an indication, the semifinals of the conference should be fantastic.
Follow the current US columnist Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt
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