Tag: celtics lab

Celtics Lab 241: Breaking down the good, bad, and irretrievably broken of All-Star Week with Clemente Almanza

What were the good, bad, and irretrievably broken aspects of the week-long event?

The NBA’s 2024 All-Star Game has come and gone, and with it the successes of the Boston Celtics who participated. The week of All-Star festivities saw some significant changes, but perhaps none more so than the actual All-Star Game itself.

Gone were the target score endings and charities for each quarter of the event, along with the East vs. West dissolving playground-style team choosing. The ostensible goal — stronger player efforts on both ends of the court — was decidedly not reached with a record-breaking offensive output. But it wasn’t all bad — what were the good, bad, and irretrievably broken aspects of the week-long event?

To talk through the state of All-Star Week, how the Celtics did in it, what needs to change and what was done right, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast linked up with Thunder Wire editor Clemente Almanza.

We also touch on the post-deadline order of the West, where OKC sits in it and who will come out of it in the 2024 NBA Playoffs, so buckle up for a bumpy ride into what All-Star was and can be.

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 239: Previewing Boston’s 2024 NBA trade deadline possibilities with Jack Simone

What can the Celtics do to get better? Which moves are more likely, and which make little sense?

The NBA’s 2024 trade deadline now perhaps better measured in hours than in days. And knowing what the range of possibilities that exists for the Boston Celtics to choose from to make moves to bolster their roster for a push to the 2024 NBA Finals is a good place to start.

What can the Celtics do to get better? Which moves are more likely, and which make little sense? Who are the likely targets, and which ones might surprise us? More importantly, what is off the table for Boston’s front office, and which trade targets should the Celtics be pursuing?

To get our bearings for what should be an impactful if comparatively quiet trade deadline for Boston, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast linked up with “How Bout Them Celtics!” cohost Jack Simone to talk ourselves through his recent trade deadline primer for Celtics Blog.

We also touch on the news, recent games, Marcus Smart’s return, Joel Embiid’s knee, and a ton more, so be sure to tune in.

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 238: A deep dive into the deep rotation’s Stay Ready Crew with Noa Dalzell

Which players matter most to the team’s title aspirations? Which might be on the move ahead of the 2024 NBA trade deadline? What talent does Boston have in the pipeline in Maine? And who will see the floor in the postseason?

The Boston Celtics have by most accounts the best top six players in the entire NBA to match their league-best regular season record. So, it can be easy to forget about the rest of the team. The so-called “Stay Ready Crew” mostly does just that — keep themselves in the right frame of mind and state of health in case their number is called.

And those numbers do get called, with players like Oshae Brissett and Lamar Stevens bringing energy and matchup-dependent options that have sparked wins for Boston, while the sharpshooting duo of Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser wreak havoc on opposing defenses. And if it were not for the likes of Luke Kornet and Neemias Queta defying expectations as reserve big men, you can be sure there would be less wins to the Celtics’ name this season.

Which players matter most to the team’s title aspirations? Which might be on the move ahead of the 2024 NBA trade deadline? What talent does Boston have in the pipeline in Maine? And who will see the floor in the postseason?

To answer all of these key questions not quite getting the attention they deserve, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast linked up with Celtics Blog’s Noa Dalzell.

The self-proclaimed Boston bench beat reporter who has a bead on a certain crew that stays ready, join us in a deep dive into the Celtics’ reserves. (Apologies for variable audio, wifi issues made for a few bumps).

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 236: Projecting season-long hardware at 2023-24’s midpoint with Kwani Lunis

We cover everything from Most Valuable Player to Executive of the Year and everything in-between,

Most of the teams in the NBA have played around half of their 82-game schedule, giving us enough of a sample size to get an idea of which players might be taking home some full-season hardware come April and onward.

And with the Boston Celtics currently the owners of the league’s best record, it is not unfair to expect the franchise to have at least a little bling headed their way at season’s end. To try to predict what awards Boston players and front office employees might be taking home come spring, the hosts of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast got together with NBC Boston 10’s and  “The Big 3 NBA” podcast cohost Kwani A. Lunis to sort out which Celtics might be adding to their trophy case.

We cover everything from Most Valuable Player to Executive of the Year and everything in-between, and even come up with some of our own, team-specific awards for Boston’s 2023-24 season.

We also get caught up on all the latest news, and look back at an intense week of Celtics games.

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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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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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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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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What’s behind the Boston Celtics’ hot start – and what can get better?

Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, and a more productive bench than the Celtics are accustomed to, with White’s play in particular shining for Boston.

The Boston Celtics are off to an impressive 25-6 start to their 2023-24 campaign, recently sweeping a homestand against tough opponents like the New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic while splitting the first two games of their annual West Coast swing, dropping a game to the Golden State Warriors and blowing out the Sacramento Kings.

What’s behind the Boston Celtics’ hot start — and what can get better? Key contributors include Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, and a more productive bench than the Celtics are accustomed to, with White’s play in particular shining for Boston. While an All-Star bid is unlikely for White, his versatility and leadership have made him invaluable, his play helping “defunkify” things when the team hits a cold stretch.

But there’s still plenty to criticize, even with how well this team has played for the most part in the first quarter of the season.

The hosts behind the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast recently linked up with NBC Sports Boston’s Max Lederman to talk it over; 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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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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