The Boston Celtics are breezing right along towards this year’s postseason with tremendous momentum and, to some, they are even viewed as legitimate title contenders.
Frankly, it’s rather hard to disagree with the notion that this team has the potential to raise banner No. 18 come year’s end, for, since the start of 2022, the C’s boast a 25-9 record, the fourth-best mark in the NBA during this span, roll out a lineup consisting of arguably the best Big-3, rank as the fourth-seed in the standings, and are led by a legitimate dark-horse MVP candidate in Jayson Tatum.
That said, even with all of these pluses and positives, there are still those who aren’t convinced that a Larry O’Brien Trophy is in the cards for the surging shamrocks.
In fact, if you ask the folks at Bleacher Report, they’d go on to tell you that Boston’s most likely outcome for this season is a second-round exit.
Now yes, while writer, Zach Buckley, did admit that the team’s best-case scenario was, in fact, seeing their first title since 2008, considering the fact that the race out east is so tightly contested, B/R believes there are a bevy of ball clubs in the running for the conference crown that could very realistically take down the Boston Celtics before even reaching the third round:
"When there’s only a seven-game gap between the Nos. 1 and 7 seeds—and the No. 8 seed is a Brooklyn Nets team that might be the best of the bunch at full strength—it’s not a stretch to imagine anyone beating anyone else.Having said all of that, the Celtics are in a good enough groove to think that one series win is more likely than not.This depends on matchups, though, because Boston could have a hard time handling the Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers or Nets. But the Celtics probably should be favored against either the Bulls or Cleveland Cavaliers, and a matchup with the Miami Heat might be a coin-flip."
Buckley would later go on to state that, while the Boston Celtics may have bigger aspirations than a mere second-round exit, considering where they found themselves early on in the season (out of the playoff picture entirely and submerged well below a .500 record) seeing even one series win during these upcoming playoffs should be viewed as somewhat of a moral victory.
While we at HH, along with the entire Celtics fan base are obviously hoping to see at the very least a Finals berth this year, when thinking back on where they once were, even a Conference Semifinals berth would be overall impressive.