The Boston Celtics started the NBA Playoffs on the right foot, emerging as one of four teams with a 2-0 series lead. But they haven’t accomplished this by playing the same way they did throughout the 2018-19 regular season. In fact, the only thing that’s been a constant is Kyrie Irving remains the team’s most prolific scorer.
Jayson Tatum didn’t play like this on the offensive end in the regular season. Marcus Morris has been Jekyll and Hyde to the extreme in the first two games. All-around, the offense has not functioned in the same way.
Not that it’s been an issue; because the defense has reigned supreme in both games. In years past, that would not have been as much of a shock. But that hasn’t been the 2018-19 Celtics.
With the way Brad Stevens broke it down on Thursday, according to MassLive’s Tom Westerholm, it seems like this team is a little different from the one that was drama-filled throughout the regular season.
In a lot of ways, it was not an easy year and yet we still managed to be a reasonable team that achieved some things. Not what we hoped, not what the outside hoped, but I think last Tuesday gave us a reset. I think our guys are excited about that.
Boston will have to maintain this level of intensity heading to Indiana on Thursday and beyond if they plan to compete on the road and against the tougher opponents on the horizon.
