One of the greatest rivals in the history of the Boston Celtics is counting the team out in their first-round series in which they are currently down 0-2.
Magic Johnson, the longtime Los Angeles Lakers legend that is perhaps best known for his head-to-head battles with Larry Bird and the Cs–as well as with the Michigan State Spartans against Bird’s Indiana State University in college in the 1979 NCAA Championship game–said he expects a sweep of the #7-seeded Cs.
Johnson not only wants to see the Brooklyn Nets take down his former rival…he expects it.
The 61-year-old former 5x NBA Champion and 3x regular season and NBA Finals MVP shared his thoughts via his verified Twitter page:
And I’ll be shocked if the Nets don’t sweep the Celtics!
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) May 27, 2021
It’s hard not to share the same sentiment with one of the league’s greatest on-court contributors in history (the same can certainly not be said of his career as an executive) after the results of the first two games.
Brooklyn has outscored the Celtics by 33 points in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals thus far, and without Jaylen Brown, it seems far-fetched to believe the Boston Celtics could close the gap.
Friday night’s Game 3 at the TD Garden has added intrigue because of Kyrie Irving’s recent comments about Boston Celtics fans that Kendrick Perkins has since denounced.
Johnson has showered praise on the Nets before, calling Kyrie Irving a video game simulation on the floor. He did stop short of calling Brooklyn title favorites back in January following the James Harden trade, though:
James Harden getting traded to the Brooklyn Nets to join KD and Kyrie will be special to watch... but I’m still picking the @Lakers to win the Championship 😁
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) January 14, 2021
Of course, Johnson bleeds purple and gold, so perhaps all of his comments about the Boston Celtics should be taken with a grain of salt.