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The Boston Celtics are one of the most storied franchises in all of sports. They have 17 NBA championships and have come close to winning many more. They’ve also had some really bad years, too, like the time they won just 15 games in 1996-97.
While that was a really, really bad year for a team that was lucky to win that many games, what’s going on with this year’s team might be even worse. Yes, they’ve already won 16 games but what’s been going on recently tells what could be a very bad story for a team that just recently looked to have what it took to be contenders in the Eastern Conference for quite some time.
Last night the Celtics (16-19) lost at home, 91-82, to a Clippers team that is so depleted by COVID that they had two new guys show up to help out just a few hours before the game. One of those guys, James Ennis, played against the Clippers on Monday night.
The Celtics should have rolled over Los Angeles but instead they went down in some historic flames. They shot 4-for-42 from 3-point range, which is the second worst percentage ever for a team that shot over 40 3-point attempts in a game. They went 1-for-18 from 3 in the fourth quarter and missed their last 15 attempts. Jaylen Brown shot 13-for-36 and had no assists, which is the most shot attempts without an assist by a NBA player since Antoine Walker did it with 36 shots in 1998.
None of that is good!
The Celtics have now lost three in row, including a loss the other night to a Timberwolves team that has also been hit hard by COVID and were missing their top three scores. Boston, who has been without Jayson Tatum the past two games because of COVID, are playing the definition of uninspired basketball and it doesn’t feel like it’s going to turn around any time soon. They’re also now 10th East and free falling down the standings.
Could big moves be on the way? Might they break up the Brown-Tatum combo?
It’s going to be very interesting to see how things play out for the Celtics because right now they are bad and last night was an embarrassment.
Quick hits: Our favorite Madden players over the years… CFB Bowl predictions… 14 best Madden quotes.
– Mike Sykes and Charles McDonald break down their most favorite players to use on Madden over the years.
– Michelle Martinelli and Caroline Darney have their picks against the spread for the New Year’s Six bowls, including the playoff games.
– Here are 14 John Madden quotes that will never be forgotten.
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