If there’s anything the Houdini has learned since the beginning of the ongoing Boston Celtics-Brooklyn Nets Eastern Conference quarterfinals series, it’s that one star will never beat a Big 3 by himself.
Jayson Tatum led the way for the Cs in an 11-point loss to Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden in game one, but his 22 points were no match for the 82-point onslaught from the #ScaryHours trio.
The second game of the series had a quite different inflection because of Tatum’s early exit. While he is likely to return Friday night at the TD Garden, his absence in game two led to a 22-point blowout loss.
It’s going to take a miracle for Boston to take four of the next five games. Anything can happen, but betting that the series will even go six games will currently give you a 4x multiplier on your wager.
The Celtics are not knocked out, but there’s been two 10-8 rounds so far. Forgive me for looking ahead to the future while the present looks so bleak.
All of that said…the future will continue to look bright as long as Jayson Tatum is in uniform. Jaylen Brown has been guaranteed a return to green and white too, though his wrist injury complicates a lot. Isaiah Thomas is Exhibit A when it comes to how Danny Ainge deals with damaged goods.
What might the team look like when they are in the position the Brooklyn Nets are in?
Let’s explore 3 potential star trios the Boston Celtics could form:
Boston Celtics “Big 3” trio #1: Jayson Tatum, Michael Porter Jr., Karl-Anthony Towns
Boston Celtics great Cedric Maxwell recently raised the possibility of the Cs landing either Michael Porter Jr. from the Denver Nuggets or Karl-Anthony Towns from the Minnesota Timberwolves:
"“Karl-Anthony Towns is the person I’d like to see,” Maxwell said. “He’s a big that can rebound the basketball. If you don’t do that, maybe a team like Denver and make a move for [Michael] Porter Jr. who’s an unbelievable scorer and about seven feet tall.”"
What about both?
As unlikely as it may sound for Ainge to land both a top-5 pivot as well as a rising star on the wing, he has acquired two stars in a single offseason before, 14 years ago to be exact.
If the Los Angeles Lakers win a second consecutive ring or the Brooklyn Nets beat him to winning a title after the infamous Billy King trade of 2013, perhaps some drastic maneuvering by Boston could be the result.