Category: .Podcasts

WNBA star Brionna Jones on playing at TD Garden, the Celtics’ succes and more

Jones sat down with us to talk playing at TD Garden, and what she thinks about Boston so far this season.

When it comes to basketball in New England, TD Garden is the epicenter, and soon, the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun will play there for the first time. When that momentous news broke, star Sun center Brionna Jones made the trip to take in a Boston Celtics game at the Garden to celebrate, and ended up exchanging jerseys with star Celtics forward Jaylen Brown.

Jones, currently on the mend from an Achilles injury, sat down with the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast to talk over her team’s historic tilt on Boston’s home court. She also talked about what she thinks of the Celtics this season as they dominate the NBA, and what she thinks of the rise of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, and more.

To hear that conversation in full for yourself, as well as some Celtics news and analysis as the league’s 2023-24 trade season starts to heat up, check out the clip embedded below.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Celtics Lab 235: On the Sun at the Garden, Boston’s season so far and more with Brionna Jones

This pod, we linked up with the Connecticut Suns’ Brionna Jones to talk her team playing at the Garden, the rise of the Jays, and more.

There’s a lot of basketball to be a fan of in New England. The Boston Celtics stand as the premier hoopers in the region, but greatness can also be found among the UConn Huskies women’s and men’s programs and the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun in recent years. That history will become even more entangled as the Sun are set to play at TD Garden this summer for the first time ever as the Boston landmark arena hosts its first-ever WNBA tilt.

On the night the news broke, the Celtics played at the Garden, and Sun center Brionna Jones and All-NBA Boston forward Jaylen Brown swapped jerseys. To hear the story behind that exchange, the first-ever WNBA game at the Garden, what she thinks of the rise of the Jays, and Jones’ thoughts on this season’s Celtics, the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast linked up with the Sun star.

We also got into the state of Boston’s All-Star vote, the latest details on the Celtics’ trade deadline plans, and more.

The Celtics Lab podcast is brought to you by FanDuel.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Brad Stevens hints at Boston Celtics’ trade plans ahead of the NBA’s 2024 deadline

Stevens acknowledged the challenges the team faces in making trades due to limited assets compared to previous years.

Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens recently addressed the media, shedding light on the ball club’s potential trade plans as the NBA’s 2024 trade deadline approaches. With the trade deadline set to arrive on February 8th, there has been much speculation about whether the Celtics, currently the best team in the NBA in terms of record, will make any significant moves to bolster their roster.

Stevens acknowledged the challenges the team faces in making trades due to limited assets compared to previous years. He emphasized that the Trade Player Exception (TPE) is their primary method for improvement but highlighted the difficulty in finding impactful players within the $6.2 million budget, hinting at the difficulty of navigating the restrictions the league’s new collective bargaining agreement places on second apron teams like Boston.

The hosts of the CLNS Media “How About Them Celtics!” podcast weighed in on Stevens’ words and what they might mean for Boston’s trade plans.

Check it out above!

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Boston alum Gordon Hayward on his growing love for chess

Nikola Jokic is evidently a favorite opponent in the game Hayward has gravitated towards since he has gotten older.

By now, fans of the Boston Celtics have heard or read former Boston star forward Gordon Hayward’s take on why the 2018-19 Celtics squad performed so poorly as a unit despite being so talented on paper. But in the same interview with Los Angeles Clippers star and sometimes podcaster Paul George on his “Podcast P” show, Hayward also revealed a new facet of his usually reserved personality.

Known off the court for his love of gaming, the Butler alum let it slip that he has found a new passion in terms of his game of choice recently. That is, if you can call the ancient game of chess “new” in any meaningful sense.

Denver Nuggets star big man Nikola Jokic is evidently a favorite opponent in the game Hayward has gravitated towards since he has gotten older.

Check out the clip embedded above to hear more about his appreciation for chess, his time in Boston, and more.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Celtics Lab 234: Why Boston is probably not making big moves at the deadline with Yossi Gozlan

Boston probably won’t stand pat, but isn’t likely to make major moves – so what IS on the table?

With the Boston Celtics rolling and their path to hanging Banner 18 looking more possible than it has in many years, you can’t fault fans of the storied ball club for hoping for a reunion with former Boston big men Daniel Theis or Kelly Olynyk. Or failing that, team president Brad Stevens getting a deal done for rumored target Isaiah Stewart to fortify the team’s frontcourt.

Even fairly modest trades like these are probably not in the cards for the Celtics this season, who can’t follow through with an offer that makes sense given the exigencies of the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement or the team’s current structure.

But the team will almost certainly make at least a few lesser moves to get better ahead of the NBA’s 2024 trade deadline in Early February, so the hosts of CLNS Media’s “Celtics Lab” podcast linked up with Cap Sheets‘ Yossi Gozlan to try to project what it is Boston actually will end up doing.

We also get into why those fun but unrealistic deals bringing back Celtics alumni or Beef Stew are unlikely or impossible, and get caught up on the last Boston news of 2023.

The Celtics Lab podcast is brought to you by FanDuel.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Miami’s Bam Adebayo tries to do damage control after Udonis Haslem disrespects Bill Russell

Still, even with the mediocre mea culpa, the apologies rang shallow at best in many corners.

Miami Heat big man Bam Adebayo might understand where Udonis Haslem was coming from when his former teammate slandered legendary Boston Celtics big man Bill Russell, but that doesn’t mean he thinks it was wise. Speaking on a recent episode of Haslem and fellow Heat icon Mike Miller’s “The OGs” podcast, Adebayo said “It’s one of those things where we knew they were going to be upset.”

“We all respect Bill Russell for what he’s done for us as players and as Black people and all the stuff he had to go through,” he added. “Just to clear that air before people start talking about that, we all know we respect that man.”

“Listen, man. I got to apologize, it wasn’t about Bill,” said Haslem in conversation with Adebayo. “It was just about the rivalry and how I feel about the Celtics. But I will not take back my statement, you will never see a … jersey of a Miami Heat player hang in those (expletive) rafters.”

Still, even with the mediocre mea culpa, the apologies rang shallow at best in many corners given Russell’s No. 6 was globally retired at least as much for what the man did for civil rights off the court as for the 11 titles he won on it.

And as others have noted, someone should point out that Michael Jordan’s jersey is hanging in the rafters of the Heat’s arena — another player that never suited up for Miami.

And that he should maybe try relaxing a bit in retirement.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Celtics Lab 233: Boston beats the Lakers on Christmas Day, and making sense of trade rumors with Bobby Krivitsky

After the win, we make some decisions about what sorts of gifts we want to return from our holiday haul — basketball-related and otherwise.

The Boston Celtics beat the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day, the best kind of win for Celtics fans in the regular season if not the NBA Finals. And they did it despite in-game injuries, strong rallies from their opponent — and most importantly, an ego-boosting hot start that has tended to absorb their killer instinct in the past.

To celebrate the win (and what we saw in it that should reach well beyond the holiday tilt) with other Boston fans, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast linked up with Sports Illustrated’s and “Talkin’ Cs” podcast host Bobby Krivitsky to break down the victory.

We also get into recent Kelly Olynyk trade rumbles and what they mean with a closer look, get caught up on the news more generally, and even make some decisions about what sorts of gifts we want to return from our holiday haul — basketball-related and otherwise.

Join us for a special holiday edition of the pod, and felices fiestas to you all.

The Celtics Lab podcast is brought to you by FanDuel.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Celtics Lab 232: Celebrating Boston’s sizzling start with Max Lederman – and a Festivus for the rest of us

We won’t be doing any feats of strength (not screaming at refs calling techs for hanging on the rim counts, right?) on the pod, but we do air a lot of grievances,

The holidays are here and the Boston Celtics are amazingly good, so in true New England fashion, over at the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast, we decided to do what any other New Englander (displaced or in-region) would otherwise be doing. Complaining about stuff!

Of course, we will be doing so in our third annual Festivus episode with guest Max Lederman of NBC Sports Boston, and we did not limit ourselves to the 20-5 Celtics (it’s harder than you think to criticize a team doing this well) or even the wider NBA (which, unfortunately, has been a little easier to criticize of late), branching out into the bigger problems of the world.

We kid, but also not — and we also spend some time on recent trade rumbles, how the team has been playing and what might be coming down the pike.

We won’t be doing any feats of strength (not screaming at refs calling techs for hanging on the rim counts, right?) on the pod, but we do air a lot of grievances, so join us in a Festivus for the rest of us. And bring an aluminum pole if you have one, those things aren’t easy to find.

The Celtics Lab podcast is sponsored by FanDuel.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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Celtics Lab 231: Assessing the 2023-24 trade season around the NBA with A. Sherrod Blakely

Trade season is about to begin. How could the league change around Boston as it does?

The Boston Celtics might not be making any major moves at the NBA’s 2024 trade deadline after having had one of the most active offseasons in the league this summer, but the rest of the league is not going to stand still and let them waltz into the 2024 NBA Finals, either.

Teams like the Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, and Dallas Mavericks might take some big swings at players who could be on the move, and if the rumbles we are hearing about the Toronto Raptors and Chicago Bulls pan out, the pecking order of both conferences could be shaken up a bit. And though the Celtics won’t be trying to improve their core players, there might also be room for improvement on Boston’s bench as well.

With December 15th and all the fluidity that brings to teams in terms of available players for trades, the 2023-24 NBA trade season is about to begin. How could the league change around Boston as it does?

To that end, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast linked up with “The Garden Report” and “The Big 3” podcast cohost A. Sherrod Blakely to look at how the rest of the league may try to get better, how the team may fare in one of the toughest stretches of the season, and more.

The Celtics Lab podcast is brought to you by FanDuel.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

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‘I’m not doing enough’ to win a title, says Boston’s Jayson Tatum

“I did enough to get there, but it’s clearly some more you’ve got to do to get over that hump,” added the Celtics star.

You don’t have to win an NBA title to know how hard it is to accomplish. Just ask star Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, who got to the mountaintop with the Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals, but ultimately came up short against the more experienced and disciplined Golden State Warriors.

And it isn’t just skill, focus, and having been there before, either — a fair amount of luck is baked in as well. Injuries are almost certain to happen over the course of four, highly-intense seven-game series, so the question then becomes how important the player hurt is to the team’s title hopes, whether there’s enough depth to make up for that — and how long that injury might have them out.

The St. Louis native recently weighed in on the grueling ride that is the pursuit of a title on a recent episode of the “Point Forward” podcast, revealing how much he’s learned about what goes into winning it all.