Boston Celtics Need to Stop Giving up Runs

The Boston Celtics are finally back to playing like themselves, and the habit of blowing big leads has also followed

The Boston Celtics have finally looked like themselves against the Chicago Bulls. In fact, in one particularly disturbing area, they have looked too much like themselves. The Celtics built a reputation of blowing massive leads only to close the game out in the clutch this season, and that is exactly what has happened in their game three and four victories.

Brad Stevens has done a remarkable job of getting this team ready at the start of games. They have threatened to put the game out of reach in the first half of both these games. The Celtics have seen their leads climb all the way to 20 points, only to see it deteriorate in the blink of an eye.

Basketball is a game of runs, but the Celtics take that cliche way to far. At their best, the Celtics have made the Bulls look like they have no business being on the same court as them, but they have always followed that up by losing all their rhythm, giving the Bulls ample opportunity to get right back in the game. Sometimes its on the defensive end, when the Celtics allow the Bulls to get comfortable and easy looks. A lot of the time its just that they miss all the wide open shots and layups that they create. The problem with these last two games is that it has been a combination of both over an extended period of time.

If it wasn’t for the luxury of their big leads, the Celtics would be playing themselves out of these games with the terrible runs they have been giving up. That also happens to be a luxury that they can never take for granted in the playoffs.

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For the Bulls series, they may be able to get by playing like this. The Celtics are playing good basketball more often than bad, and that should be enough against a Bulls team that has no floor general, and has been forced to play away from their strengths. That being said, with two individual players as good as Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade, this problem could still come back and kill them in this series.

The Celtics want to avoid situations where Butler or Wade can take over for five minutes and have that be enough to get a victory. Butler and Wade have proven that they are good enough to take over like that, and if the Celtics are in one of those dreaded lulls, then those two will make up a lot of points really fast.

It may be unrealistic to expect the Celtics to break this habit. This is who the team has been all season long, and it can ultimately end up being their downfall. That being said, if there was ever a time to figure out why they cant hold onto big leads, now would great.

If the Celtics can come out of this series with just one game where they play their best wire to wire, that alone could be enough to give them the spark they need to put things together in a way that will allow them to go on an actual playoff run this season. The level of competition is transformed if the Celtics manage to get out of the first round.

It is comforting to know that the Celtics are in familiar territory giving up those runs. It is easy to see a 20 point lead disappear, and then let that destroy all confidence for the rest of the game. The Celtics have not let that happen to them this series, but a lot of that may have to do with the idea that no Celtics player will ever feel as though the Bulls are the better team on the court.

The Celtics are a team that feeds of of confidence and these runs they are giving up are the number one thing that can threaten that confidence. The Celtics went into this series feeling as though it was a massive mismatch. Then, the world collapsed. The Celtics reached an all time low and it would not have been a surprise if the confidence of every player on the team was shot.

The Celtics regrouped and are finally at a place where they can feel confident in their ability to go far in these playoffs, but the only thing that can threaten that confidence are those runs. It can be debilitating to think about what kind of run the Wizards or the Cavaliers could go on if the Bulls are able to do this.

Giving up those kinds of runs not only threatens what should be easy victories, but it could instill this mentality that the team is not good enough to put together a full four quarter performance. The Celtics have very few complete games this season, where they hold onto big leads and do not give up control of the game at any point.

Now is the time to get one of those performances against the Bulls. The Celtics have figured out how they need to attack the Bulls. The Celtics are getting a huge boost from their bench. Al Horford and Isaiah Thomas are often the two best players on the court. With all of these things being true, the Celtics should not be giving up these extended runs that usually ends up killing a team at some point or another.

At this point, the Celtics have put together two commanding fourth quarters, and that has prevented the Bulls from taking advantage of these comebacks. The Celtics have been comfortable closing all season long, and that has been the biggest difference in these last two games.

That confidence in their ability to close has been their all season long, and is not something they need to be reminded of. What they Celtics do need to be reminded of, is what is feels like to play a full four quarters without giving up a run that causes a 20 point swing. The Celtics know they are better than that, and yet is continue to happen on a regular basis.

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The Celtics are once again playing the way they did for the majority of the regular season that earned them the top seed in the East, but they know that is not enough. For the Celtics to take the next leap in this series, they need that full performance that would likely result in a 20-30 point victory against a Bulls team that is running out of options.