brettrichardson10-blog

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We are back in business

If you’re a big Celtics fan like myself you have pretty much gone to hell and back and we have only played four playoff games. The guys in green haven’t made anything easy this whole season, so it’s only fitting that they have made this first round series stressful as possible.

Having said that, my stress level has decreased drastically since the Celtics marched into Chicago and picked up two HUGE wins to even the series.

A key factor in this series has been linked to Rajon Rondo of the Bulls. He has sat out the last two games with a right thumb injury. This has slowed down the offensive tempo for the Bulls and has practically put all the pressure on Jimmy Butler to win every game by himself.

I say that because Dwyane Wade has been useless this whole series. He has been invisible on the offensive end averaging only 15 points and 3 assists. His career average in the postseason is 23 points per game along with 5 assists. 

With the series heading back to Boston for tonight we are tied at two games. Game 5 at the Garden is a must win for the Celtics. I truly feel whoever wins tonight’s game will win the series. I hate that we are even in a close series but it’s all about surviving and advancing during playoffs.

Look for things to get interesting between both teams tonight with emotions riding high. The spotlight will be on Marcus Smart and Jimmy Butler as they have been exchanging words on and off the court. A little conflict makes everything better for the fans and it will add a little spice to a series that could go either way.

Another thing to look for is a big night out of Isaiah Thomas. Coming back to the Garden after having time to have cleared his head and visit family members will result in some serious stats for him tonight. He inspired many people by playing in the first game of the series after the tragic death of his little sister due to a single car crash. With all that has been going on for him I wouldn’t be surprised to see him have a great night.

Stay tuned for more coverage of the Boston Celtics throughout the playoffs.

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Playoff Update: One Seed, One Goal

The end of the season was wild in the Eastern Conference. The fight for the one seed has officially been won by the Boston Celtics after the Cavaliers lost their last two games.

The Cavaliers seemed to not care about being the one seed and some may even wonder if they wanted the two seed. Maybe the Cavaliers were hoping to play the Pacers first round instead of the Bulls. Regardless the Celtics are now in the driver seat heading into playoffs.

I’m excited for this series because the Celtics and Bulls always seem to have intense, exciting games come playoffs time.

In 2009, the Celtics won in game seven of the first round in what was a CRAZY series. Rajon Rondo and Kirk Hinrich had their little fight that spiced up the series and ever since, there has been some tension between the teams.

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I’m Alive, but I’m Barely Breathing

In simple terms, the Celtics played the worst game of their season when they needed to play their best game of the season. This is not ideal at all and I will admit this kind of scares me moving forward.

Obviously losing 114- 91 at home against the Cleveland Cavaliers is not good. In fact, this loss probably just cost Boston the chance of entering playoffs as the one seed in the Eastern Conference. Having said all this, I refuse to lose hope in this team moving forward.

The Celtics faithful can only hope that this loss will light a fire under their asses. In the realm of sports, when a team beats you at your home in front of your fans there is usually one thing that team wants, and that’s revenge.

Getting embarrassed in the Garden can only motivate the Celtics come playoff time. I hope more than anything that the Celtics get the opportunity to play the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals, as I truly think that seven- game series would be one for the history books.

Putting the most recent game behind us, there are four more games left. Two away games and then two home games to close the season.

Tonight they travel to Atlanta for a nationally televised game on TNT. The Hawks are one of the few teams I wouldn’t want to play on the second night of a back to back as they are currently tied at one win each in the season series.

After the game in Atlanta the Celtics will travel to Charlotte to play a struggling Hornets team. They will look to complete the season sweep against the Hornets. Following that game, they head back to Boston where they look to complete the season sweep against the Nets.

Lastly, they play the Bucks who just recently beat the Celtics in one of the more frustrating games I’ve watched this season. These last four games will play a part in what seed the Celtics get, which would determine who they are matched up with in the playoffs. 

Stay tuned for more blogs entering everyones favorite part of the year: PLAYOFFS

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Playoff Race Update

In my last blog I talked about how the season is coming to an end and the fight for the one seed in the Eastern Conference is intensifying. I pointed out that the Celtics have ten games left( now seven) and that they need to capitalize on this end of the season home stand. 

Having said that, of course the Celtics dropped a game that they should of won last night against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks aren’t a bad team as they hold the six spot in the east, but they should never be allowed to win a game in Boston against a hot Celtics team. Frustrating as that loss was, the Bucks will be back in town for the last game of the year and the Celtics still have a share of the one seed in the east.

After a loss like that I try to think of the positives for the team moving forward. Marcus Smart played out of his mind last night and Isaiah Thomas did his normal thing. Bradley and Smart both had double- doubles to help Isaiah carry the load, but unfortunately the Bucks size was too much to handle.

One thing I saw last night that worried me is the lack of help from the bench. Yes, Marcus Smart got a double- double but he also played 30 minutes. The rest of the bench got 15 out of the 100 points scored, which won’t cut it come playoff time.

Going against the great teams in the east in the playoffs is going to require some help from the bench. Especially against the Cavaliers who have some real fire power coming off their bench.

If you remember back to the 2008 title team, the bench is what really sparked the Celtics and propelled them to win the championship. The bench outplayed the Lakers in that series and if the Celtics want to win another championship they need to get back to those ways.

Moving forward, the Celtics have the Orlando Magic at home next and then travel to the Madison Square Garden to face the New York Knicks on Sunday. Both of these games should be wins and they need to be wins. A win in each game would then make the Wednesday matchup against the Cavaliers a lot more interesting.

Buckle up for another playoff update coming soon. 

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The Boston Celtics are One Game Behind!

We are in late March, which means playoffs are approaching. As a matter of fact the Boston Celtics only have three more road games on the schedule. The other seven games will be played in the garden where the Celtics have posted a 27-5 record. The majority of the last ten games are being played against teams that shouldn’t give the Celtics too much trouble.

However, during this stretch the Celtics host the Cleveland Cavaliers who are currently the one seed in the East. This will probably be the biggest game of the season for the Celtics as it will not only matter for seeding, but this is a statement game for the Celtics. Beating the Cavaliers would set the tone for playoffs and give the city of Boston some momentum. 

The Celtics are pretty much guaranteed to be a top four seed heading into playoffs. This means they will have home court advantage in the first round.

Staying as the number two seed would guarantee the Celtics home court advantage through the first two rounds. That is nice, but the one seed would present them with home court advantage all the way up to the finals.

Needless to say, the Cavaliers and Celtics are going to be battling for the top spot in the east the next couple weeks. Whoever gets that one seed will have a strong advantage over the other as the Celtics are 27-5 at home and the Cavaliers are 28-7.

Home court advantage is no joke come playoff time. Neither is the momentum factor that teams carry into playoffs. 

A win against the Cavaliers come April would tie the season series at 2 a piece and there is a chance it will help gain an edge for playoffs.

Boston Celtics fans, there are ten games left. They may not seem like tough games and the Celtics are already guaranteed a playoff spot. However, this ten game stretch is way more important than it seems. Buckle up because we are heading into playoffs full force!

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Everything is coming together

As a Celtics fan there are times when you can barely stand watching them play, but then they play those certain games that bring a smile to your face. On Wednesday, the Celtics traveled to Oracle Arena and beat the Golden State Warriors, 99-86. This win comes exactly one week after they beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 103-99.

Now I am going to be as humble as the Celtics who have admitted they beat the Cavaliers and Warriors, who both were missing a key component to the team. I realize as a fan that the Celtics have also lost to the Suns and the Kings within the last month. That being said, I am more ready for playoffs than I ever have been.

Everything is coming together for the Celtics because individually they are playing some great basketball. As I’ve mentioned before in past blogs every single player on the roster is playing at a high level, which really makes me think that come playoff time, the Celtics will be dangerous.

The most frustrating part of following the NBA is listening to the debate of whether or not the Celtics can actually compete with teams like the Cavaliers during the playoffs. The common answer is no.

 Everyone says the Celtics are not on the same level as teams such as the Warriors, Cavaliers, and Spurs. This is obviously confusing to me because they just beat two out of those three teams. I can’t wait for the Celtics to play the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals and beat them. I truly believe the Celtics have what it takes and of course I am biased, but I really think they have a chance.

As a team, Boston continues to show that they care more than every other team. The special thing about this team is that if they want to win a game, then they will win that game no matter what. I love watching this group play and I truly think come playoff time, people are going to be shocked. It’s only a matter of time before the Celtics start to make some noise. 

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Update: Celtics going with the flow

I know what you are probably thinking. I look like an idiot for being so confident that the Celtics were going to make a move before the trade deadline. However, I am in good company with every other person that follows the NBA as it seemed almost guaranteed across the country that Boston would pick up a big name. Luckily I still have some comments to make about this team. Especially after they just beat the Cleveland Cavaliers at home.

First off I want to make sure that Celtics fans understand that them not making any big- name trades is not a problem. In fact, them not doing anything may have been the better decision.

A lot of people were upset when Danny Ainge decided to stay with the same team as before the All-Star break and I’m not sure why. Isaiah Thomas is playing the best basketball of his life, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart are stepping up immensely, Avery Bradley is back from his injury. Also, don’t forget that they are currently only three games behind the Cleveland Cavaliers for first place in the East.

The Celtics may have not made a move, but now no matter what happens this year they have the Brooklyn Nets first pick. Since the Nets stink this pick is going to be a top three pick which means the Celtics are going to be getting even more young talent for next season. I am very content with the situation Boston has on their hands. 

The only complaint I have is that they recently lost to the Raptors and Hawks which grinds my gears because these teams are below them in the standings. Nothing bothers me more than when the Celtics are an above average team and beat above average teams, but then lose to teams they have no business losing to. If they want to go after that one seed (they proved they do tonight) they need to stop dropping silly games.

Moving forward towards playoffs its crucial that as a team they buckle down and keep improving. Take a look at another opinion of how the Celtics are doing from Barstool Sports. Stay tuned for more blogs about everyone’s favorite team!

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NBA: Trade Deadline Fun

February 23 is approaching and the NBA trade deadline is at 3:00 p.m. ET. This is usually the busiest week of the season as far as trades go. Already there has been a blockbuster trade with the Sacramento Kings sending DeMarcus Cousins, an elite center, to the New Orleans Pelicans. DeMarcus Cousins was a huge target for multiple teams including the Boston Celtics.

The Celtics have made it very clear that they want to bring in an All-Star type player. Rumors have been swirling around social media for the last week now about who the Celtics are targeting. Players like Carmelo Anthony, Paul George, Jimmy Butler, Andre Drummond, and even Brook Lopez have been rumored to be on the Trade Block.

The majority of Boston has been on edge for the past 48 hours waiting for news about a trade. The NBA has taken over social media as false rumors and breaking news are constantly being created. 

The fans of Boston have every right to be excited for a possible trade. I truly believe the Celtics are just one piece away from being legit contenders.

As a team the Celtics have already showed just how good they are. They went into the All-Star break two games out of first place behind the Cleveland Cavaliers. Adding an impact player to create a “big three” atmosphere would be the best thing they could do during their push towards the playoffs.

I would love to break down each possible player that could join the Celtics and how that would change the dynamic of the team, but in reality there is still a very slim chance the Celtics make no moves this week. 

For that reason, stay tuned for a future blog about the Celtics newest addition and how the team will change during the second half of the 82-game season. During the second half of this season be sure to also follow Greenie and his love for the Boston Celtics.