I’ll protest it & beat this dead horse til the cows come home
“What led to the Maple Leafs lost season”
then it says “Inside Toronto’s Managerial Missteps & Miscalculations”
sports geniuses on Athletic label
if you see it, don’t waste your time reading it
Leafs finished 9th overall, a little below their norm, but were still one of the league’s top teams, and were one of nine teams to beat 100 points
no one anywhere thinks it was a lost season for them - would’ve been no surprise if to a man Broonz said after the 7th game that no series can be tougher than this one, & seldom are w/them
we have the good playoff record against them, yes - but hardly ever in less than 7 games & always w/little left afterwards
it was 3-1 last year, Fla won 7th game in OT
it was 3-1 this year, we won 7th game in OT - both series could have gone either way
i hate Tor, but also nod their way as one of the best, year in year out, esp this year
‘lost season’ watta crock
we gain tonite - everyone knows about Fla
🏒YAR🥅
Nesmith, Nemhardt, Mahurin off the bench, Turner in the pivot & his backup, O. Tshiebwe, obviously Halliburton…..
Paciz’ve beaten Mil twice this week, are uninjured & always on the verge of going off
that was then, this is now, nothing has changed
they’ve played good w/out Mahurin - top 6th man, 14.5 ppg
we’ve played OK w/out Kristaps - just a lucky thing Cleve’s C, Allen, also was out
had thought the long break would be a godsend for Kristaps, but he’s still injured, no timeline on return - last game was April 29
just saw a headline “Celtics heavily favored”
this is an uninformed opinion I can assure you
but still think we’ll prevail in 6-7 tough games - great series for the general fan, even w/both teams minus a key player
& hopefully one devoid of suspect outcomes like the 115-70 mail-in by Denver in their MN series
let’s go boys, maybe they’re Hoosiers but we got the green unis🏀
The boys will have #5 in their hearts as they look to close out Indy
1986 6th man of the year Bill Walton, Boston Celtics
Rest in peace Bill - the music never stopped
What happened to the NBA 2023-24 thread??? there were 2 posts, the most recent, not there anymore
realize how easily my sports posts can be lifted/hacked - yet I still continue to put it out there, so my screwup
@stephen: Kristaps Porzingas is a GREAT ballplayer. Unfortunately, I doubt he will ever be able to get through an NBA season without a serious injury. That's the chance the Celtics took when they traded for him. Hope it works out for you but don't get your hopes up!
yes, he didn’t play in May - this injury is far worse than thought, obviously - am surprised we’ve played as good as we have in his absence -
however said absence would be critical in this series
their tandems, Luka/Kyrie & Gafford/Lively, are every-bit that of Jays/Jayl
w/an intact Kristaps/Horford, we take em - Dallas is Very Good on paper, Very Great on the floor this postseason
let’s go Celts🏀
🏀It should’ve been this matchup on the sheet too
Fla is very good - we beat them all 4 reg-season games, they nicked us by a point for the Atlantic title - they have our # in the playoffs (Fla/TB)
🏒screwy season - led league most of it - finished 6th overall
set a team record for too many men on the ice penalties
lost more than 20 home games, probly another record
NYR won league w/114 points, five more than us
so the🏀side of it came to pass
just can’t believe it’s not Boston-Dallas, four teams, two finals
in pucks, it’s Broonz, only Bruins - why we stunk up the stretch run is a mystery
we can’t bank on Kristaps being fully back
nor on the fact that if he does return, it makes it a lock for Celtics ‘since we made the finals w/out him’ ….
again, our C core, KP, Horford & Kornet, they can match w/Gafford, Lively & their backup, Powell
same Luka/Kyrie, Jays/Jayl
so imo the role players are as key as KP’s status - we got Derrick White, Payton Pritchard
…..& Jrue Holiday - he’s caused Marcus Smart’s absence to be almost negligible - great, Heady, CRUCIAL player
on or off the parquet, What A Team, Greatness In Green
They’ll pound the ball inside all night long knowing it’s just Big Al back there
Kornet & Hauser will have to step up-large
only a big night from Jays will prevent a loss - Dallas is far from done in this series - we gotta play tonite like it’s 2-2 not 2-0
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RIP, Jerry West - big loss, one of the greatest - forgot about his 60 foot buzzer beater that forced OT Gm 3 1970 finals
“I’m 95 ****ing years old w/one foot in the grave & I can can barely move - I know I’m in overtime” & paraphrasing now after the verbatim quote - nothing, he says, would give Bob Cousy more pleasure than wrapping this thing up & restoring our titles lead over LA - currently tied at 17
no one is complacent or assuming anything - they’re still a dangerous team, 3-0 or not
let’s get it for Cooz boys
They let it slide gambling on 1 of 2 chances to win it in Boston
no dfrnt from wasting a 3-0 pitch in baseball - have never/never will get the strategy behind either -
….they blew us out in 4th qtr of 3rd game - know full-well blowouts happen
in some of them tho the stench is too unmistakable - you can’t go from one end of it, up 3-0, to the other, a college team, overnight
blowouts are 1 thing, rolling is another
did we roll on the game? after all there was an article recently on bookies flexing their muscles of late in sports
we don’t know - but overall we‘ve played well less the non effort last game
lets go Celts
Weird series.......Mavs down 0-3, then they proceed to completely blow Celts out of the building in one of the most lopsided NBA Finals games I have ever seen. I actually predicted Mavericks in 6 before this thing started, but obviously Celts have shown their mettle. I predict Mavs confidence is so high after Friday that they will take game 5 tomorrow as well. After that, really tough to call. Celts had better wrap it up tomorrow...........SOME day, someone will come back from 0-3 and win an NBA Championship. Side note: Celts were stupid to ever pick up Kristaps Porzingas. GREAT ballplayer..........WHEN he can walk out onto the court, and that is seldom. They would have been much better drafting some other 7 footer with lesser skills but who can stay healthy and contribute every single night. Porzingas is FRAIL and has gotten hurt every single year going all the way back to his rookie season.
….hindsight of course is always 20/20 - Kristaps played most of the schedule (57 games up until April 29) - 20.1 ppg, we won the league
so calling it a stupid move to sign him, we now know, is inaccurate - ‘GREAT ballplayer’, more-so
also had those concerns about him being frail when we picked him up - glad they were largely unfounded
he did his part even tho missing the stretch run & playoffs - LARGE credit to coach Maz & the boys for that
agree that the mailin could Easily come back to haunt Celts w/an L tonite - the game 4 no-sho has yet to flush & could be costly
yes we’ll jubilate if we win tonite, But Only If We Play Celtics Basketball In A Hard-Fought W Over A Good Team
@stephen: So Porzingas missed the last 25 games of the regular season. Then he missed nearly every single game of the playoffs. Then he came back for game 1 of this series, couldn't even get through two games, and now he's hurt again. The Mavericks, on the other hand, have no less than THREE new big men this year: Daniel Gafford, PJ Washington and rookie Derek Lively. Of the three, Lively has missed only one game. Get my point? Those guys are on the court contributing every night. Celtics would have been better off pursuing one of them. I stand by exactly what I said. You have a chance to win it all tonight. Will Porzingas be out there? Very doubtful. And it may hurt you.
Agree w/most of your post - the woulda coulda shoulda goes by me tho, we won the league & he was a key part of it🤙
yes it could very well hurt us if he’s not out there tonite (unlikely as you said) - Dallas Is that good
so I can’t disagree w/the stats you posted - however we were 2nd to none this year, so signing Kristaps proved to be a smart move - another stat, or factor, the boys covered just great for him in his absences
yes, their 3 big men are on the court every night contributing - realize what you’re driving at bro
but C’a fans would counter w/a cryptic ‘what’s the scoah’ - mentioned Gafford & Lively frequently this year🤙
still pissed about the mailin - dishonest on the face of it - we’ve given them increased confidence as you pointed out
but anyone could’ve beaten us that night - that imo is what tonite’s outcome will prove
@stephen: CONGRATS! Celtics proved they are the best beyond ANY doubt. Must be awfully sweet both for you and any other Celtics fans for them to win it all on their home court. Miami knocked them out in Boston last year, Warriors did the same in 2022. Was really really impressed with Jason Tatum's game tonight, but the entire Celtics team was stellar. And Jalen Brown deserved the series MVP, he was incredible all series long. Now they have 18 Titles, passing the Lakers who have 17. And with the current state of the Lakers, I am not anticipating any more Titles for a long, LONG time. LeBron will most likely play one more year and Anthony Davis is just about as fragile as Porzingas is. After those two, it gets awful damn slim! Congrats again, must be SWEET!!
Thanks Rob!🤙 ya the boys were sol-id tonite - Jays had torched em for 39 & 32 in our 2 reg season wins over Dal - 31/11 assists/8 boards tonite - Jrue 15 pts, team high 11 reb - we skunked em on the boards tonite, every starter had at least 8 reb
Jayl as you said, great series - same Derrick
Big Al stood tall at the defensive end, as he did all year long - he’s 38 & schooled their pivotmen
🏀YA BABY🏀 - thx again bro, Stoked To The Nines
🏀Orlando has our number, they smoked us last year too
they’re W7 incl over Celts & Denver, have a pretty easy schedule leading up to their visit,
….& have the Wagner-pronounced-Vogner brothers
Franz, 6-10, and Moritz, 6-11, are making em forget even the Van Arsdale twins - they’re very good players
If Orl makes a regular thing outta playing the way they play us, look out - they have a 19 year old starting G
GOGA
i knew he’d make them scary if he got minutes - they’ve won 12 of 13
yep that kid guard, now 21, is the real deal - the Wagners are playing great, & Goga B., 6-11, has basically sparked their run - they visit later this month
envision similar in MN, if given the minutes, Luka, 6-10, could shine w/KAT now in NY
OKC 4 instance - no Chet no sweat - who coulda thunk that, but they’re thriving w/his replacement, veteran Isaiah H, 7-0
lets go Celts
@stephen: Kristaps Porzingas is a GREAT ballplayer. Unfortunately, I doubt he will ever be able to get through an NBA season without a serious injury. That's the chance the Celtics took when they traded for him. Hope it works out for you but don't get your hopes up!
the right call bro - yeah the Kristaps injury bug continues - heel issue now - good thing it was lowly Wash last night
yep, Kristaps only 7 games so far - ironically, the same number for Robert Williams III this season in Portland
….two players as mega talented as they are injury prone
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….they gave us hell last spring*, & Dallas Mavs again look like the team to beat in west
….he was part of the big 3 w/Curry & Dray in GSW
….now, in tandem w/Luka & Kyrie, Klay Thompson is in a new Big 3, & They’re Really Goin - GSW fans saw that last nite, & for the 2nd time this season too - Rob they started Kuminga & brought Draymond in off the bench, think they’ll stay w/that?
Mavs & OKC are top in west right now - Mr Doncic….nuf said
ups for Chet Holmgren’s full recovery - no one could have envisioned OKC going this crazy w/out him
AD - a beast (40/17) - obviously he more-than belongs w/Nikola J, Embiid & Giannis as a top all time C
….in East, we’re 1 GB Cleve - we’re playing good, YABABY, we got Jays/Jayl
in later eras they’ll talk about Jays/Jayl the same way we talk today about Russell/Cousy, Sam Jones & KC Jones, Havlicek/Heinsohn, Cowens/White, Bird & Parish, McHale & Maxwell…..right through to the great Paul Pierce
….the old song is Greensleeves, well, all these players wore their green unis on their sleeves & yep, in their hearts
*the 4th game of last year’s final was as fixed as the day is long - the scheme was to hand them one, and we did - it was straight corruption & has no place on our record, xcpt as a demerit in the hall of shame
🏀stay green boys🏀
Hey Stephen: Just wondering how you feel about Marcus Smart for Kristaps Porzingas?? Celtics trading Smart was really a shocker to me as I think it was to MANY NBA fans. Everyone talks about Tatum and Brown but wasn't Smart kind of their heart and soul? And a former NBA defensive player of the year? Seems they just lost a very inspirational player.
he was all that, our heart & soul - he never should’ve been traded, all it did was derail his career & cause upset in Boston
he was our most important guy - just as Jrue, more often than not, now is - yes, Jrue - one needed only look at last night - am not saying his absence is why we lost - Dallas did shoot lights out, Klay couldn’t miss 1st half
….but, like Marcus, Holliday is the consummate team player
whether Kristaps/Big Al or, yes, Jays/Jayl - we need Jrue out there
yes Memphis’ rotation is set & solid, but mayb Marcus will get healthy & suddenly be part of an incredible title run - they Are that good
🏀mentioned inconsistencies - getting waxed on the parquet like that - to repeat, these busts come from outta nowhere - the score was a lot closer than the game
Butler & AD return tmrw, Luka Monday
who will have the best chemistry/meshing/Records
which new lineup will ignite the most contagious ripple effect of Winning on the ballclub as a whole
LeBron/Luka, or AD/Kyrie
could Jimmy cause GSW to suddenly start playing like their title teams & records
there may be no room for Lively II, one of the 3 Texas Towers along w/Alperen & Wembayana, when he returns
good news, also returning, from his hip fracture, Chet Holmgren - very bad news for the rest of the league tho - OKC looks unstoppable, but most important, all these players are youngsters & don’t wanna see too-serious injuries
let’s go Celts, the crud is outta our system, grab these last few games b4 the break
@robslob you might enjoy this. That 2007 GS 8 seed at Oracle Arena was the most exciting team I've ever watched.
