As great as the Celtics have been in recent seasons, and as much as they’ve overachieved this year, they still have a tendency to make things harder than they need to be at times. Fans are all too familiar with this phenomenon, and while there have been far more good results than bad, it feels like the losses and close-call wins are never far from the top of the mind.
It’s a simple conundrum, but a vexing one all the same for the Celtics and their fans: when the Cs play their brand of basketball at a high level, they look unbeatable. But that seems to happen far too infrequently, and when their level drops, they look extremely vulnerable.
The Celtics are a better team than the 76ers. It’s not particularly close. With Joel Embiid out, the gap is even wider. And yet, Philly looked like the better team in their big Game 2 victory in TD Garden, and Game 3 was hanging in the balance until the final seconds. Luckily, the Jays stepped up in the clutch, and the Cs have a 2-1 lead, but why has it been so close?
There are no style points in the playoffs
For one thing, the playoffs are a lot harder. It’s almost an entirely different sport htan the regular season. The level of physicality and intensity on display Friday night in Philadelphia was a lot different from what the Celtics are used to in the regular season. You saw that the veteran stars rose to the occasion, but many role players struggled to meet the moment.
Things rarely go to plan, and games get bogged down and ugly. The key is to find ways to win when things aren’t going your way, and that’s exactly what the Celtics did in Game 3. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t the beautiful Celtics basketball we’ve grown used to. But ultimately, it was effective. The team got a win, and that’s all that matters.
Can Celtics hit their peak enough in these playoffs?
Everyone knows that for the Celtics to actually win the title, they are going to have to play a lot better than what they’ve shown in the past two games. But that’s okay. Each series, and even each game, is like its own unique event. The playoffs are truly minute-to-minute, and teams just have to find ways to navigate that, adjust on the fly, give the game what it needs, and do whatever it takes to win.
They’ve done it before, and they can do it again, but they have to be at their best - or close to it - much more consistently going forward. A lot of that has to do with Derrick White. If he can find his offense, everything will immediately start to look a lot better. The same goes for Payton Pritchard, who started to get it going in Game 3, but needs to be more consistent.
The center position is another area of intrigue. Neemias Queta was one of the best and most consistent players the team had all year long, but he has disappeared so far in this Philly series. He needs to get back on track and make his presence felt on both ends, as he has proven he can. If they need to rely this heavily on Nikola Vucevic, they probably aren’t a championship team.
One game at a time for Boston
Beyond that, they just need guys to step up. Maybe one night it’s Sam Hauser hitting 5 threes. Maybe it’s Jordan Walsh shutting down an opposing team’s star. Maybe it’s Baylor Scheierman doing a little bit of everything on both ends. Maybe it’s a steady mix. They’ve got plenty of options for Mazzulla; he just needs to press the right buttons (as he’s done all year), and the players need to take advantage of their opportunities.
Celtics fans were spoiled by the 2024 title run. Every game isn’t going to be easy, or a blowout, and it’s not a fair or reasonable expectation for fans. Even during that incredible run, the team had some head-scratching letdowns, dropping home games to the Heat and Cavaliers. But much like that team, this team does have the talent, and the path through the East is there for them.
It's not going to be easy. Teams are going to do everything they can to take them out of their game. The best path to winning may look different from game to game. But if they can solve problems and find a way to play close to their best more often than not, they’ll be in great shape to make the Finals for the third time in five years. If not, this may be a short, disappointing playoff run that leads the front office back to the drawing board.
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