2025 NBA PLAYOFFS East Semifinals: #2 Boston Celtics vs #3 New York Knicks (NYK leads 1-0)

[The Corey's]

Look at you. Flexing regular season wins. I expected better

What you didn't expect was a game 1 win and it shows.

I mean, no one SHOULD expect to steal home court in game 1. By definition, the expectation was that Boston would win given the higher seeding and it being in Boston.

They won the Superbowl. Haven't you noticed?

[LFGK]

This is going to be an interesting series. Not a pretty performance from the Celtics. But they also kept New York 9 points worse than their RS average team ORTG, which is promising.

If they can keep that up, minding that Boston was the 5th-ranked D in the league, then they will be able to purchase the time they need to figure out their offense. OG isn't going to be 6/11 from 3 every game, nor is Brunson going to shoot 5/9 from 3 the whole series.

Obviously, they took way too many 3s. Tatum, Brown and White combined to shoot 10/41 from 3, which was brutal. Horford and Pritchard combined for 3/10 off the bench and Jrue was 2/7. Just... bombing it from 3. The team smashed the O boards but they just kept bricking from 3 and didn't pivot their strategy, which was obviously a mistake.

Game 2 will be very, very telling from Boston in terms of their approach, and performances from their main guys. Jaylen Brown and Jrue Holiday in the second quarter should have been the template, really. That was the best quarter for Boston all game, and they walked into half-time with a 16-point lead. Then they crapped themselves in the 3rd and were even worse somehow in the fourth. Especially Tatum, just chucking from 3.

New York shot quite poorly on the game as well, but Boston was just far worse. They posted what, 19% FG in the 4th?

Game 2 will probably look quite a bit different for both teams.

he's been close to 43 percent from 3 the last 2 months. Celtics need to figure out OG or they are in a world of trouble, he held the opposition to 2/17 last night, man is Absurd

[bronxknicksfan1]

What you didn't expect was a game 1 win and it shows.

I mean, no one SHOULD expect to steal home court in game 1. By definition, the expectation was that Boston would win given the higher seeding and it being in Boston.

They won the Superbowl. Haven't you noticed?

And Celtics choked away an easy win. Disappointing for defending champs

[The Corey's]

I mean, no one SHOULD expect to steal home court in game 1. By definition, the expectation was that Boston would win given the higher seeding and it being in Boston.

They won the Superbowl. Haven't you noticed?

And Celtics choked away an easy win. Disappointing for defending champs

I wish I cared half as much as you guys but when you win this often it gets pretty mundane.

I'll worry about loses when they reach 4.

[tsherkin]

he's been close to 43 percent from 3 the last 2 months. Celtics need to figure out OG or they are in a world of trouble, he held the opposition to 2/17 last night, man is Absurd

Sure, but that's big volume and 54.5%. He isn't gonna do that every game.

[bronxknicksfan1]

They won the Superbowl. Haven't you noticed?

And Celtics choked away an easy win. Disappointing for defending champs

I wish I cared half as much as you guys but when you win this often it gets pretty mundane.

I'll worry about loses when they reach 4.

[The4thHorseman]

Great win for NY. Never thought Boston would choke that 20pt lead.

[2weekswithpay]

Read on Twitter

[LFGK]

he's been close to 43 percent from 3 the last 2 months. Celtics need to figure out OG or they are in a world of trouble, he held the opposition to 2/17 last night, man is Absurd

Sure, but that's big volume and 54.5%. He isn't gonna do that every game.

fair but I expect some of those 3's to go to KAT(he's not taking 1 3PT Game 2).

[tsherkin]

he's been close to 43 percent from 3 the last 2 months. Celtics need to figure out OG or they are in a world of trouble, he held the opposition to 2/17 last night, man is Absurd

Sure, but that's big volume and 54.5%. He isn't gonna do that every game.

fair but I expect some of those 3's to go to KAT(he's not taking 1 3PT Game 2).

Maybe, yeah. But we'll see how things go defensively.

[bisme37]

The Knicks are towards the top of the teams in the playoffs for 3PT%, held Detroit 4-5% less then their reg season avg. Celtic fans gonna be in for a rude awakening man they think they have a cakewalk but this series is going to be a battle.

I'm not expecting a cake walk. I'm expecting to win a tough series. I think it will be easier for the Celtics to score in this series than our last one, but the Knicks are much better than Orlando offensively, and your Clutch Player of the Year will def give me stress down the stretch of close games.

Will be just as hard to score this series, 6 games forsure but KNICKS in 6

Talk your ****, man. I'm a Celtics fan but I'm way too nice to the point of annoying myself, and Knicks fans have good reason got be excited today. You've put yourself out there as the most boastful/confident Knicks fan, and if the Knicks got creamed last night you were def going to hear about it haha, so congrats and enjoy the win.

[cgf]

Read on Twitter

Chemistry takes time…but with the way we stacked wins early, I have to wonder how much Thibs kept up his sleeve for the playoffs. We complained about how basic so much of what we did this season was, but we ran away with a top 6 seed early enough to get guys fit & rested for the playoffs. Even with Indy’s scorching finish and Brunson’s injury, we would’ve had to have lost that last game to Brooklyn to lose the 3rd seed.

[LFGK]

I'm not expecting a cake walk. I'm expecting to win a tough series. I think it will be easier for the Celtics to score in this series than our last one, but the Knicks are much better than Orlando offensively, and your Clutch Player of the Year will def give me stress down the stretch of close games.

Will be just as hard to score this series, 6 games forsure but KNICKS in 6

Talk your ****, man. I'm a Celtics fan but I'm way too nice to the point of annoying myself, and Knicks fans have good reason got be excited today. You've put yourself out there as the most boastful/confident Knicks fan, and if the Knicks got creamed last night you were def going to hear about it haha, so congrats and enjoy the win.

fresh breath of air compared to other dude that thinks this is a matchup(even after game 1) between a top in the league and a high school team.

[Catchall]

Celtics missed 45 3PAs in order to blow a 20pt lead and lose in OT. Last night was cool, but the Knicks are unlikely to manufacture three more wins.

[cgf]

Sure, but that's big volume and 54.5%. He isn't gonna do that every game.

fair but I expect some of those 3's to go to KAT(he's not taking 1 3PT Game 2).

Maybe, yeah. But we'll see how things go defensively.

That will be the big question, but I was encouraged by Jrue looking so old / limited in game 1. Like Hart he does too much for them not to be on the court for a shooter like Pritchard / McBride, even if a team is sagging off him…but just like Hart he’s not going to bury you the way the other four guys can. And Brunson isn’t helpless defensively, he’s just small & an average athlete.

Which is especially encouraging given the way OG & Bridges have been defending this postseason. Derrick White going off on Hart/McBride could be crucial for them to light us up…especially if Towns & Robinson can outperform KP / Horford / Kornet through the rest of the series.

[Capn'O]

Knicks missed 14 FTs last night. 54%. Still at only 66% minus Mitch. Knicks were one of the better FT teams this past season at 80%.

So while we're talking about things that likely don't repeat, there's that.

[cgf]

Celtics missed 45 3PAs in order to blow a 20pt lead and lose in OT. Last night was cool, but the Knicks are unlikely to manufacture three more wins.

The non-Robinson Knicks also shot 14-21 from the FT line; Towns got into foul trouble the moment he started to cook; Bridges didn’t give us any scoring; Brunson had a slow start…though it isn’t uncommon for Brunson to need a quarter or a half to dial in, we usually have towns to pick up the slack, like he was starting too before those three quick fouls…and we lost the rebound battle in a game with all those bricks.

Both teams have a lot of low hanging fruit they can clean up. So we’ll see how they continue adjusting to one another through the series…or if Boston will just keep waiting to get hot. And at some point we’ll be the team getting the home cooking.

[cgf]

Will be just as hard to score this series, 6 games forsure but KNICKS in 6

Talk your ****, man. I'm a Celtics fan but I'm way too nice to the point of annoying myself, and Knicks fans have good reason got be excited today. You've put yourself out there as the most boastful/confident Knicks fan, and if the Knicks got creamed last night you were def going to hear about it haha, so congrats and enjoy the win.

fresh breath of air compared to other dude that thinks this is a matchup(even after game 1) between a top in the league and a high school team.

Bis has horrible taste in his favorite team, but is too great a dude to hold that against him.

[cgf]

Knicks missed 14 FTs last night. 54%. Still at only 66% minus Mitch. Knicks were one of the better FT teams this past season at 80%.

So while we're talking about things that likely don't repeat, there's that.

I’m not one to complain about the refs so have no qualms with some of the home cooking Boston got, but when it’s our fans screaming at the refs each play, it’ll be us who benefits from some the 50/50 calls that tend to go the home team’s way when the stadium is rocking at playoff intensity.

So it’s not just the clip we hit them at that could swing more in our favor, but the quantity of FTs our non-Robinson guys take. Boston has been very disciplined with Brunson this year, but home cooking happens every year and the garden is a special venue.

[knicksstuff]

wtf were the Mavs thinking breaking up Luka and Brunson

Brunson was a UFA and he didn't even take the Mavs' call.

Brunson needed to get away from ball dominant Luka to become all he could become.
.

Brunson and his team went to Mavs and said they would accept 4/55 deal before the trade deadline and the Mavs told him no. they brought the same deal back to the table after the deadline and Brunson team said they were worth more than that now. Mavs had plenty of opportunites. But thats their history letting elite guards get away add him to the nash, kidd, doncic pile