Jones On Playoff-Hopeful Celtics: Unacceptable Loss To Cavaliers
BOSTON (CBS) - After the Boston Celtics' humiliating 110-79 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers Monday night, Adam Jones and Rich Keefe gave their reactions on 98.5 The Sports Hub's The Adam Jones Show.
"The last six quarters we've seen out of this Celtics team is completely and totally inexcusable if you want the Celtics to make a playoff run," said Jones.
After Boston led the NBA-best Golden State Warriors at halftime by 16 points Sunday, the Celtics have been outscored by 52 points by Golden State and Cleveland combined, including being down 44 points to the Cavs in the fourth quarter -- all while LeBron James sat on the bench.
"There's no glass-half-full with this team over the last couple of games. I thought we had seen the bottoming-out for this team under [head coach] Brad Stevens, and maybe they had begun a rebuild. I don't know. After these six quarters, maybe it goes a little bit deeper," said Jones.
READ: Brad Stevens Hopes Blowout Loss To Cavs Sticks With Celtics
While the Celtics certainly don't have the talent to regularly compete with star-studded teams in the league, Keefe and Jones pointed out that blowing a 26-point lead and not being competitive all game against Cleveland is inexcusable.
"This team doesn't play a lot of defense, they play an up-tempo style, and all of a sudden the shots aren't falling. The bottom line is they're not a great team," said Keefe.
It will be a 24-game race to the finish for Boston if they want to make the playoffs, as they trail Brooklyn by two games for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Celtics return to the hardwood Wednesday night to take on the Utah Jazz at the TD Garden for a 7:30pm tip-off.
Listen below for the full discussion:
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