Tag: 2023 NBA Playoffs

Longtime Boston broadcaster Mike Gorman puts 2022-23 Celtics in context

Boston “winning as much as they did last year has nothing to do with how far they might go this year,” suggests Gorman.

When it comes to a comprehensive knowledge of the Boston Celtics in the postseason, few among us can claim to have witnessed more such games with a critical eye than longtime Celtics broadcaster Mike Gorman. And the veteran play-by-play announcer had some strong feelings to share about this iteration of the team he covers regarding Boston’s postseason odds.

Speaking on a recent episode of 98.5’s “Toucher and Rich” show, Gorman said via Heavy’s Adam Taylor that the “Celtics winning as much as they did last year has nothing to do with how far they might go this year. Nothing.”

“It will depend upon who is healthy, who’s who is playing well, and who they draw in the playoffs,” he added.

“It has nothing to do with the fact that they have a right to be in the championship because they got as far as they did last year,” continued the Celtics broadcaster.

“That is all unfair pressure to put on any coach, team, or individual. In the upcoming playoffs, the Celtics will find themselves in situations where the other side will be as good as they are. Or maybe it’s better.”

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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How much does playoff seeding matter for the Boston Celtics?

The Boston Celtics are currently looking at a three-way push for the best seeding possible in the NBA’s Eastern Conference.

The Boston Celtics are in a three-way battle for the best seeding possible in the NBA’s Eastern Conference. The Celtics are within a few games of both the Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks. For the moment, the Bucks have the upper hand with a few games’ lead on Boston for the top spot, and the Sixers in third place but are breathing down the Celtics necks.

The race for No. 1 is going to intensify because all three clubs play one another near the end of the season. Just how important is the seeding they are fighting for in the first place?

The hosts of the CLNS Media “Vitamin Cs” podcast recently debated how much (and how deep) home court advantage is for the Celtics in the 2023 NBA playoffs, as well as where they think the Celtics should aim to finish.

Take a look at the clip embedded above to hear what they had to say.

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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Former Celtic Evan Turner has no doubt who would win in a Boston-Philly series

“I think, with this history, the Boston Celtics have their number,” observed Turner.

When it comes to which of his former teams he would favor winning a head-to-head matchup, former Boston Celtics wing and assistant coach Evan Turner has no doubt at all.

“I’m taking the Celtics every single day,” said the former Ohio State standout in a recent interview on Fan Duel TV via Heavy’s Adam Taylor. “Twice on Sundays.”

“I think, with this history, the Boston Celtics have their number,” observed Turner. “Besides the fact that I like the Celtics’ top eight better than I like the Sixers’ top eight, but the way (Joel) Embiid‘s been playing this past year, you have to take into consideration something occurring.”

“But you know, Jayson Tatum, he’s been through this a lot. The team has been playing hella defense,” Turner said. “And at the same time, Marcus Smart, if he has to shut down Embiid, maybe he can do it. He’s done it before.”

Clearly, a Smart defense of Embiid is not an optimal matchup, but the Flower Mound native knows how to guard bigs like few players his size have ever been able to manage.

As for the matchup, while this version of the Sixers appears to be the best of their current rebuild by a fair amount, we’re with ET on favoring Boston — if perhaps a hair less than the former Celtics assistant.

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 projected to be part of two biggest series draws in 2023 NBA Playoffs

The Boston Celtics may be stumbling a little bit as they get to the finish line of the 2022-23 NBA season, but that does not mean that there is a lack of buzz about the team heading into the postseason.

The Boston Celtics may be stumbling a little bit as they get to the finish line of the 2022-23 NBA season, but that does not mean that there is a lack of buzz about the team heading into the postseason. In a recent article by Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale in which he ranks anticipated playoff matchups, Boston figures prominently in not one but two of the most anticipated postseason pairings.

The teams most looked forward to being seen battling it out in the looming 2023 NBA Playoffs include familiar names such as the Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, Phoenix Suns, and Memphis Grizzlies as well as some surprising ones like the Minnesota Timberwolves and New York Knicks.

But let’s see what Favale has to say about the series he believes Boston will be drawing the lion’s share of postseason attention.

Boston’s Danilo Gallinari gives update on ACL rehab ahead of the postseason

Could injured Celtics forward Danilo Gallinari still make a return to the court this season?

Could injured Boston Celtics forward Danilo Gallinari still make a return to the court this season? The veteran swingman has been rehabbing a torn ACL for about six months now and seems hopeful it could happen according to recent reporting from NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg, but acknowledges a lot of things would have to break right for it to go down.

“Playoffs, it’s still in my head. So that’s something that I’m looking forward to,” shared the Italian after a Celtics off-day practice. “I don’t know if it’s going to happen or not, but, (from) a motivation standpoint, it’s always something that motivates me more. But I don’t know if it’s going to happen or not.”

The level of intensity of a basketball game in the NBA is such that players need to ramp up activity to avoid further injury, and playoff basketball is considerably more so.

“A lot of steps that need to be done before you play an actual game,” explained Gallinari. “And even maybe after all those steps, you are not ready for a playoff game because when you don’t play the whole season and then be ready to play a playoff game.”

“(It) is not easy for anybody, not just body-wise but mentally-wise,” he finished. “But like I said, it might happen. So we’ll see.”

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 177: On Boston’s looming seeding battle with the Bucks and Jaylen Brown’s future with Dalton Sell

The Bucks loom large if the Celtics hope to have a chance at stealing the East’s top seed – and could end up the team between them and the NBA Finals.

The Boston Celtics are nearly done with their 2022-23 slate of regular season games, with only the tilts against the Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks remaining as games likely circled on the calendar for most Boston fans given the potential for each to impact the 2023 NBA Playoffs seeding.

The Bucks in particular loom largest if the Celtics hope to have a chance at stealing the East’s top seed, as Boston already owns the upper hand in the regular season record with the Sixers. And Milwaukee could very well be the team left standing in the East Finals that the Celtics will have to get past to get back to the 2023 NBA Finals.

To that end, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast (now powered by Fan Duel and Better Help) linked up with Dalton Sell of Behind the Bucks Pass to talk over all things Milwaukee, Giannis, and their potential meetings in what’s left of the regular season and beyond.

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We also get into the recent Jaylen Brown interviews and what they might mean for his future with the team, the Celtics’ recent play, and more.

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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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How can the Boston Celtics right the ship ahead of the 2023 postseason?

We have a few simple suggestions.

The Boston Celtics have been stumbling towards the finish line as the end of the 2022-23 NBA season comes into focus, and with much of the problems behind the downward spiral of the team being mainly self-inflicted, fans are starting to lose patience with the team.

Some of the issues stem from effort, focus, and dedication that has largely been missing since around the midpoint of the season. Others are a factor of the overall health of the ball club taking a dip with collateral damage keeping players out of the rotation or playing a diminished version of their game.

And individual issues ranging from Grant Williams’ contract situation and related slump and coach Joe Mazzulla’s admitted mistakes combining to see Boston fade as a cohesive unit at exactly the moment they ought to be doing the opposite.

How to address things in the 10 games left in the season? Here are a few ideas.

Celtics Lab 176: How we learned to stop worrying and love the Boston Celtics with Anna Horford

We’d be lying if we said we didn’t have concerns about the Celtics, but this team is good, and watching them should be fun…right?

The Boston Celtics have hit a late-season slump that has fans rightfully alarmed about how the club will respond in the postseason should they find themselves facing a moment of weakness against much more dangerous teams than they’ve been dropping games to of late.

However, they hold the NBA’s second-best record while having candidates for many of the league’s major regular-season awards. Many other projected contenders are also experiencing a little turbulence. Is it time to panic or enjoy what the Celtics are capable of when locked in against the league’s best clubs?

To answer that question, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast (sponsored by FanDuel and Better Help) linked up with Anna Horford of  “Horford Happy Hour” podcast fame to ground our tendency of being prisoners to the moment.

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And, hopefully, to help us get back to enjoying Boston on the court again given just how much the Celtics have done with a season many worried might have been upended before it even began.

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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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Why do the Boston Celtics continue to struggle closing games?

Is it fatigue and an intense start to a long regular season? Injuries and a lack of rest combining to create a general malaise hanging over the ball club?

Why do the Boston Celtics continue to struggle closing games against opponents they have built large leads against and against teams with rosters of inferior talent?

Is it fatigue and an intense start to a long regular season? Are injuries and a lack of rest combining to create a general malaise hanging over the club? Is it too much Mazzulla ball? Or is it head coach Joe Mazzulla’s favorite style of play not being executed right?

Whatever the issue, the Celtics have only a few weeks leave this unfortunate wrinkle in the past.

To try to get to the bottom of these questions, the hosts of the ESPN “Hoop Collective” podcast debated the state of Boston’s late-game execution woes.

Take a look at the clip embedded above to hear what they had to say.

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 175: On if the Boston Celtics are changing their tune after an extended funk with Matt Consolazio

This pod, we dive into how the Celtics have responded to recent struggles, and all things where indie music and the NBA intersect.

The Boston Celtics may be a band of brothers, but lately, they have been playing like that garage band many of us were in back in high school — fun, full of energy and new ideas, but sloppy and not quite putting all the necessary components together for success.

So, to figure out whether the team is finally getting their act together for the big tour into the 2023 NBA postseason, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast (brought to you by FanDuel, the exclusive wagering partner of the CLNS Media network) linked up with Indie Basketball’s Matt Consolazio to talk all things Celtics, indie music, and NBA basketball writ large.

We get into the Portland Trail Blazers win and how we’re feeling about the Celtics ahead of a long road trip, how news about Grant Williams playing through injury impacts our view of his play, Marcus Smart’s opinions on officiating, and tons more on the indie music side.

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We also touch on the arrival of sports betting in the state of Massachusetts and how that can impact the NBA as well as a look around the league’s Western Conference, so be sure to tune in to this episode.

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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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