A lot of players are taking advantage of any opportunity on the Boston Celtics right now
The Boston Celtics currently find themselves in one of the most fascinating positions since Brad Stevens took over. They have been decimated by injuries worse than ever before, and they are pretty much locked into that number two seed. They have no incentive to really push right now, and all the excuses they need to struggle given the circumstances.
And yet, they are on one of their best streaks of the season. It has not mattered that everyone is in and out of the lineup and top players will not be returning until after the playoffs, because anyone who sees the court is looking at every minute like an opportunity, and they are taking advantage of all of them.
The Celtics had a very unsettled rotation all year long, and the second unit has been an absolute mess. Now that those secondary players are able to play consistently, they are looking at all these meaningless games as the most important of their career.
It does not matter who they are playing with, or who they are going against, these players all have something to prove, and nobody wants to be the one that is left behind.
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The Celtics have spent this entire season looking for a true second scoring option, and this stretch is revealing how many options they have. Marcus Morris game hit the game winner and carried them on offense, Terry Rozier has come one three pointer shy of a record on a career scoring night, and they are not even the favorites to be that number two option.
Both Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum are being put into roles that were supposed to be saved for the future. They are both being given more responsibility than anyone expected at any point this season, and they are holding it together.
All of these players really want to make sure they maintain their roles during the playoffs, because these opportunities are not going to be there when everyone is healthy. Rozier and Morris also have to take into account their long term future. Brown and Tatum are well enough established with their talent and youth, but Morris and Rozier both want to prove they need to be a part of the future of this team.
A lot of strange things are going on with the Celtics right now, and it has been thrilling to watch all these players take advantage of all these opportunities. Instead of thinking these are meaningless games, the Celtics come out with playoff intensity, because the things they have on the line right now have nothing to do with the standings.
The Celtics need to make sure they are ready to win a playoff series without Smart and Irving, and that means all these remaining players need to step up like this. They also want to be in the best possible position once they return. We are discovering new things about these young players, and Stevens is surely finding things that he going to use come playoff time, that he would not be aware of without these opportunities.
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These injuries have really taken a lot out of this season, but the rest of this team has not let it change too much. These games are even more exciting because of how much more difficult it is, and as long as these players continue to take advantage of every game as an opportunity to showcase something special, there is going to be a lot of excitement as we get to the playoffs.