Tag: 2021 first round

Celtics Lab 47: On (not) ‘keeping it hoop’

Kyrie Irving asked fans to ‘keep it hoop’ for his return to Boston, but neither they nor he could entirely manage it.

Former Boston Celtics and current Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving poked the third rail of Boston sports ahead of his first appearance in front of fans since leaving the team in free agency by (rightly and justifiably) asking for a response from the fans coming to Games 3 and 4 free of casual racism.

In asking the fans of his former team to ‘keep it hoop,’ he seemed to breach his own social contract by symbolically stepping on the Celtics logo at midcourt, which may or may not be in some way tied to a fan throwing a water bottle and (rightly and justifiably) getting arrested and banned from the arena for life.

In this episode of the Celtics Lab, we take a quick look at those events and the general trend of terrible behavior around the league, and try and make sense of our thoughts on this complicated set of interrelated issues.

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However you feel about Irving’s choice of symbolism after Game 4, the trend of how players in arenas are being treated is a problematic and highly visible phenomenon the NBA needs to find ways to address more effectively.

We aren’t sure if upping the ante with increasingly aggressive criminal charges is the answer, but ignoring the problem certainly isn’t the answer either.

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This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Celtics Lab 47: On (not) ‘keeping it hoop’

Kyrie Irving asked fans to ‘keep it hoop’ for his return to Boston, but neither they nor he could entirely manage it.

Former Boston Celtics and current Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving poked the third rail of Boston sports ahead of his first appearance in front of fans since leaving the team in free agency by (rightly and justifiably) asking for a response from the fans coming to Games 3 and 4 free of casual racism.

In asking the fans of his former team to ‘keep it hoop,’ he seemed to breach his own social contract by symbolically stepping on the Celtics logo at midcourt, which may or may not be in some way tied to a fan throwing a water bottle and (rightly and justifiably) getting arrested and banned from the arena for life.

In this episode of the Celtics Lab, we take a quick look at those events and the general trend of terrible behavior around the league, and try and make sense of our thoughts on this complicated set of interrelated issues.

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However you feel about Irving’s choice of symbolism after Game 4, the trend of how players in arenas are being treated is a problematic and highly visible phenomenon the NBA needs to find ways to address more effectively.

We aren’t sure if upping the ante with increasingly aggressive criminal charges is the answer, but ignoring the problem certainly isn’t.

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.redcircle-link:visited {

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This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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KG, Big Baby, Kendrick Perkins react to Kyrie Irving’s stepping on Celtics’ logo

A number of former Celtics voiced their opinions about Kyrie’s seemingly symbolic logo stomp on Monday.

Whether or not it was supposed to be some sort of deep symbolic act or not, Kyrie Irving’s stepping on the Boston Celtics’ “Lucky the Leprechaun” logo at midcourt stirred up plenty of acrimony among former Celtics who took issue with the Brooklyn Nets star’s gesture.

Wrapped up in the controversy regarding Irving’s words after Game 2 in which he stated he wanted to avoid “casual racism” and “keep it hoop” while playing in front of crowds at his former home court of TD Garden for the first time since the pandemic, Irving seemed to contradict his own wishes with the act.

Among them was Hall of Fame center Kevin Garnett.

Grading the Boston Celtics Game 4 vs. the Brooklyn Nets, player-by-player

It wasn’t Boston’s best by a long shot, but perhaps it wasn’t far off from the best the Celtics could do with who was available.

The Boston Celtics just couldn’t keep up with the Brooklyn Nets in Game 4 of their first-round series on Sunday, falling 141 – 126 with several key players out and a more focused opponent taking full advantage of every mistake their young roster made — and they made plenty.

In grading the team’s Game 4 performance on a player-by-player basis, we tried to take into account each member of Boston’s roster who saw enough floor time to make an impact into context as well as where they are at in their career. We balanced that with how well they did the job at hand regardless of other details, and even with the gentle curve of an injury-depleted roster applied, several players came up wanting.

Let’s take a look at how they did.

WATCH: Jayson Tatum puts up 40 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists in Game 4 loss to Nets

Tatum might not have been able to carry Boston to a win on his own, but he certainly tried.

With three of their best five players out in Jaylen Brown, Kemba Walker and Robert Williams III, it was probably never in the cards for the Boston Celtics to win Game 4 of their first-round series against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday, but that did not stop All-NBA small forward Jayson Tatum from trying anyway.

The St. Louis native put up 40 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, a steal and 2 blocks in the 141-126 loss, shooting a very efficient 10-of-22 overall, 3-of-7 from beyond the arc and 17-of-17 from the line in 40 minutes of floor time.

While it’s no substitute for a playoff win, Celtics fans can take some solace that Tatum seems to have unlocked an ability to get to the line at will, and can get the ball to others consistently when doubled.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6c-QANc42zQ

We’ll have to wait until next season to see these new skills in action with a team that can truly support him in the postseason — in the meantime, enjoy this highlight video put together by YouTuber Tomasz Kordylewski.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Celtics can’t keep up with nets without Kemba Walker, Timelord; fall 141 – 126

The Nets were simply too much for a depleted Celtics to handle.

The Boston Celtics have fallen to within a game of elimination and a 3 – 1 deficit in the first round of the 2021 NBA Playoffs after losing to a more focused Brooklyn Nets 141 – 126 Sunday evening.

Despite the near-capacity crowd, the Nets were able to assert their elite offensive game on a banged-up Celtics roster with little functional resistance. Boston keenly felt the absence of both Robert Williams III and Kemba Walker joining All-Star wing Jaylen Brown on the injury list, and little in the way of answers for the Nets on either end without the pair.

While the Celtics would lead by as much as 9 points early, things began to unravel late in the first quarter, and Brooklyn fended off every attempt of Boston to regain some footing.

The Celtics were led by 40 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists from All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum, 16 points and 9 assists from veteran guard Marcus Smart, and 16 points from shooting guard Evan Fournier.

The series now returns to Brooklyn on Tuesday, June 1 at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time, with a potential loss spelling the end of Boston’s 2020-21 NBA season.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Stevens, Fournier, Nesmith talk excitement, impact of playing for near-full Garden crowds

The trio shared their thoughts on how it will feel to play for the first packed house in the Garden in a very long time.

The Boston Celtics are set to have a packed house in their next tilt with the Brooklyn Nets, with a near-capacity crowd cheering on TD Garden’s home NBA team for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the state government having lifted restrictions on arena capacity the day before.

The increased crowd presence clearly gave a lift to the Celtics in Game 3 to help hand them their first win of three games played in the best-of-seven series so far, and that with just 5,000 fans compared to the roughly 17,000 who will be present for Game 4 on Sunday night.

Speaking to the media after practice on Saturday, Head Coach Brad Stevens emphasized the potential impact of the boosted fan presence; “There’s a reason why people play for homecourt all year,” he explained.

Nets at Celtics: Live stream, lineups, injury reports and broadcast info for Game 4

Everything you need to know for Sunday’s home tilt with Brooklyn.

The Boston Celtics hope to seize their momentum Sunday evening and combine it with a near-capacity home crowd in Game 4 of their series with the Brooklyn Nets after a big Game 3 win at TD Garden on Friday with 5,000 fans in attendance brought the series to 1 – 2, advantage Brooklyn.

If you happen to be looking for a way to watch the action live on television or a streaming service, keep reading while we get you up to speed. The Celtics may see a pair of key players have to sit for this contest, and for the Nets, a key rotation player will remain out.

This is Boston’s last, best chance to seize an improbable advantage in the series.

Grading the Boston Celtics Game 3 vs. the Brooklyn Nets, player-by-player

The report card always looks better in light of a historic performance, but several players had plenty of room for improvement.

With a historic postseason performance from one of the Boston Celtics’ star wings and a peppering of intense (but mostly respectful) boos keeping former Celtic Kyrie Irving out of his game most of the night, Boston easily had its best game — and first win — of their 2021 first-round series against the Brooklyn Nets.

Grading individual players is always an easier task when presented with such circumstances, but the Celtics were far from perfect despite bringing the series record up to a 1 – 2 score. There were some solid supporting acts to the masterclass in offense put on by a certain St. Louis native, but also a few duds.

With that said, let’s take a look at all the players who left an imprint on this game, with playing time north of 10 minutes.

Tristan Thompson is ‘super excited’ to play in front of fans at TD Garden – and it shows

The veteran big man took it to another level with a home audience to cheer him on for Game 3.

Boston Celtics veteran big man Tristan Thompson was a force to be reckoned with in the team’s 125 – 119 win over the Brooklyn Nets in Game of their first-round series Friday night, easily having his best game as a Celtic to date, spurred on by the energy of the crowd.

Thompson recorded 19 points, 13 rebounds, and an assist on 8-of-13 shooting including going 3-of-4 from the free-throw line in a high-energy outing that hearkened back to his championship days with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Asked what he thought of the game and the atmosphere with fans in the arena, the Canadian big man was ebulliently anticipatory in his reply.

“It was good, but I can’t [expletive] wait until Sunday,” he exclaimed.