2024 NBA Playoffs: East Semifinals: #1 Boston Celtics vs #4 Cleveland Cavaliers (BOS WINS 4-1)

[bmurph128]

Oh and definitely not overreacting. I thought it would be a 5 game series, now maybe 6.

Props to Mobley - this is his potential.

But we need at least two of him/Garland/Levert to show up like tonight in every game, and I'm not confident that will happen.

After tonight though, I think it's a guarantee that we end up running it back next year and seeing if we can get better injury luck coupled with improvement from Mobley and Garland

Sent from my Pixel 6 using RealGM mobile app

[Zeno]

Simmons is right

Read on Twitter

?s=46

Yeah, he isn't wrong. They will spout the same old bullsh#% instead of showing some fire.. outside of maybe Mazzulla saying something weird/unhinged.

Unhinged is always good. Way better than just saying that he like the shots they were getting and that their process was good.

[jbk1234]

Simmons is right

Read on Twitter

?s=46

Simmons says a lot of things. He also had the Cavs as the easier matchup for the Celtics.

[Mk0]

Can you win a championship if your offense is based so much around making threes? The defense tonight was disheartening. That should not be happening.

People are gonna point to the Dynasty Warriors but they drove the lane and shot the mid-range as well as anyone. Barbossa and Livingston were always in the paint.

Celtics shot profile is the reason Houston couldn't go all the way. You are playing the numbers instead of the game. If you can't buy a shot drive the f#%king lane. Get to the line. Find a rhythm. Something.

[cgf]

I’ll see y’all in the mavs - thunder game thread…

Avs - Stars thread you mean...wait a minute...

[Michael Jackson]

Money line lol

Check out HardRock...not sure where you live but I got +900. They boost random games everyday. I like the software also.

Congratulations to the both of you.

I only bet on NBA Playoffs because a series is easier to read and even at that I bet what a cup of coffee costs on something with odds, like this game but yesterday it was Siakim had odds on .5 blocks and he got one

[JJ_PR]

I'm not surprised at the result. The Cavs have a lot of firepower, & some nice bench pieces.

LeVert showed up, he's the heart and soul of this team.

Boston is the superior team in terms of star power, but Cleveland has some good depth and star power themselves.

[picc]

This game is a good reason why Tatum is not a tier 1 player. He’s not built to carry the load

Is it possible he's as close as you can get to being a superstar without actually being one?

I don't know what to make of Tatum. He has 3 level scoring, he can pass, but it never seems to come together fluidly according to whats happening in the moment. He doesn't seem to be able to randomly adapt his plan.

He doesn't really control games and manipulates defenses. And his handle is good, but not good enough to just navigate the court freely and at will. Watching Mitchell do that makes it obvious how lacking Tatum is in the skill.

I don't consider Mitchell a superstar either, and I'm still undecided on which of them is better. But its undeniable Mitchell is a more dynamic player on the offensive end.

The damning part for Tatum was that while Mitchell was cooking and the Cavs were pulling away, I had zero expectation of Tatum bringing them back. Or even attempting to.

Maybe thats because of how egalitarian the Celtics have become with their talent, but maybe its because I just don't believe in him. I don't know.

I'm really curious what Celtics fans make of Tatum though.

[CelticSooner]

Can you win a championship if your offense is based so much around making threes? The defense tonight was disheartening. That should not be happening.

People are gonna point to the Dynasty Warriors but they drove the lane and shot the mid-range as well as anyone. Barbossa and Livingston were always in the paint.

Celtics shot profile is the reason Houston couldn't go all the way. You are playing the numbers instead of the game. If you can't buy a shot drive the f#%king lane. Get to the line. Find a rhythm. Something.

When your best player is afraid of contact it’s kinda of hard to ever expect them to consistently attack the rim.

[tooler]

Imagine losing to the Cavs at home in the playoffs.

[cgf]

Simmons is right

Read on Twitter

?s=46

Simmons says a lot of things. He also had the Cavs as the easier matchup for the Celtics.

FWIW I think he might've been right. They couldn't light them up like you did tonight and you guys earned that game 7 win...but they'd be able to beat them up inside even more than you and their defense is even nastier / more physical.

[azcatz11]

This game is a good reason why Tatum is not a tier 1 player. He’s not built to carry the load

Is it possible he's as close as you can get to being a superstar without actually being one?

I don't know what to make of Tatum. He has 3 level scoring, he can pass, but it never seems to come together fluidly according to whats happening in the moment. He doesn't seem to be able to randomly adapt his plan.

He doesn't really control games and manipulates defenses. And his handle is good, but not good enough to just navigate the court freely and at will. Watching Mitchell do that makes it obvious how lacking Tatum is in the skill.

I don't consider Mitchell a superstar either, and I'm still undecided on which of them is better. But its undeniable Mitchell is a more dynamic player on the offensive end.

The damning part for Tatum was that while Mitchell was cooking and the Cavs were pulling away, I had zero expectation of Tatum bringing them back. Or even attempting to.

Maybe thats because of how egalitarian the Celtics have become with their talent, but maybe its because I just don't believe in him. I don't know.

I'm really curious what Celtics fans make of Tatum though.

Biggest issue with him is he’s not fast twitch. If he was - he’d be literally unstoppable but it prevents him from getting easy buckets.

[cgf]

This game is a good reason why Tatum is not a tier 1 player. He’s not built to carry the load

Is it possible he's as close as you can get to being a superstar without actually being one?

I don't know what to make of Tatum. He has 3 level scoring, he can pass, but it never seems to come together fluidly according to whats happening in the moment. He doesn't seem to be able to randomly adapt his plan.

He doesn't really control games and manipulates defenses. And his handle is good, but not good enough to just navigate the court freely and at will. Watching Mitchell do that makes it obvious how lacking Tatum is in the skill.

I don't consider Mitchell a superstar either, and I'm still undecided on which of them is better. But its undeniable Mitchell is a more dynamic player on the offensive end.

The damning part for Tatum was that while Mitchell was cooking and the Cavs were pulling away, I had zero expectation of Tatum bringing them back. Or even attempting to.

Maybe thats because of how egalitarian the Celtics have become with their talent, but maybe its because I just don't believe in him. I don't know.

I'm really curious what Celtics fans make of Tatum though.

Tatum reminds me of Tmac. He's not the same kind of playmaker and a better shooter, but both just seem content being as talented as anyone in the NBA without having that hunger to dominate that guys like Butler or Ant have.

[jbk1234]

Simmons is right

Read on Twitter

?s=46

Simmons says a lot of things. He also had the Cavs as the easier matchup for the Celtics.

FWIW I think he might've been right. They couldn't light them up like you did tonight and you guys earned that game 7 win...but they'd be able to beat them up inside even more than you and their defense is even nastier / more physical.

We're without Allen and with JB continuing to handicap us by playing guys like Niang and Morris.

[Bird4Three]

I think we’re looking at a Knicks v Timberwolves Finals

[cgf]

Simmons says a lot of things. He also had the Cavs as the easier matchup for the Celtics.

FWIW I think he might've been right. They couldn't light them up like you did tonight and you guys earned that game 7 win...but they'd be able to beat them up inside even more than you and their defense is even nastier / more physical.

We're without Allen and with JB continuing to handicap us by playing guys like Niang and Morris.

I know.

[10DayContract]

Any team blowing out the Celtics is not boring

Sure it is, when Boston plays like the magic on offense...

The Cavs never did this to us either. Lol.

To Boston fans, all of these posts from me in particular are not anti-Boston posts btw. I'm just defending my team who were trashed throughout the playoffs by media and fans. Sorry for catching you in the crossfire.

I mean, so far, the Magic defense was unequivocally better than what we've seen from the Celtics. So maybe hypothetically the C's can play better D than the Magic, but we haven't seen it this series.

[SOUL]

Porzingis is a big loss for their defense, but the Cavs are also missing JA. Will be interesting if him and Dean Wade come back.

[Blacksheep25]

The Celtics are a great team who will very likely win the series, but as a Cavs fan, it’s refreshing to not feel like we are starting the game down 12. Against any good coach, feel like JBB is a 10-12 point handicap. Not against Mazzulla though. He just inherited a great team.

[Buckeye-NBAFan]

I didn't understand the Jrue Holiday trade given how bad Holiday has been in the playoffs

The good news is Holiday is giving the Celtics exactly what he gave the Bucks, just with lower usage since the Celtics don't need him to shoot as much, so they have no one to blame but themselves