The Boston Celtics get their last chance at the top seed against the Toronto Raptors tonight
The Boston Celtics blew a great opportunity to control their own destiny for the number one seed last night. The Cleveland Cavaliers handled the Toronto Raptors with ease, and the Celtics fell just short of gaining a game on them against the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Celtics remain two games behind the Raptors, and the only reason they have any real chance at getting the top seed is because they play head to head tonight. It is unfortunate that the Celtics have to do it on a back to back, and they desperately need Terry Rozier to bring his energy back to the lineup.
If the Celtics won last night, they could have taken over that top seed tonight, but now they have to save their last chance. With a win, the Celtics are one game behind, and you cannot rule catching the Raptors out.
The Raptors really have not been playing well, especially in April, and there is a good chance they will drop another game. If the Celtics gain this game, then they both have to keep playing with meaning the rest of the way.
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If, however, the Raptors bounce back and get a victory, then the Celtics will be compeltely stuck into their position at the two seed. There certainly is not enough time to make up three games, so the Celtics know this is their last chance.
The weird part is that neither of these teams really know if they are better off as the top seed. Obviously, you want to control what you can, and home court throughout is the only thing either team can claim with certainty.
It is the position of the Cavaliers that makes this question so much more dynamic, because the top seed could have to play them in the Eastern Confernce Semi Finals, rather than the Finals. There is the logic behind the idea that you have to be able to beat them one way or another.
The problem, however, is with the idea that you have to play both the Cavaliers, and one of the Celtics and Raptors, while the other will only have to prepare for one of the two.
It gets even more complicated when you think about the first round matchups, especially for a Celtics team that is going to be missing Marcus Smart and Kyrie Irving for the first round.
The point is that the playoff scenario is too complicated to know where a team is better off, so the mindset of the Celtics will have to be get that home court, so they can know they at least get that advantage over the Raptors if they play.
The good news is that there could be some clarity after this one. A Raptors win will lock in those top two seeds, and give the first sign of clarity for matchups in the East. That being said, the Celtics always seem to create drama near the season end.
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They have a huge comeback to get the number one seed over the Cavaliers last year, and the Celtics have been playing better, despite so many Injuries, than the Raptors right now. On the other hand, the Raptors will remember the last time they played, and they do not want to go into the playoffs with two loses to a shorthanded Celtics team.