Massarotti: Celtics Improved, But Still Far, Far Away From Championship
BOSTON (CBS) - And so it ends again, one small step closer to the only place that matters in the celebrated history of the Boston Celtics: the rafters. Year 1 brought Brad Stevens. Year 2 brought the playoffs. Year 3 brought a pair of postseason victories as the Celtics move toward another important lottery, another key draft, another instrumental offseason.
"It's tough right now, because of the emotions of the moment and losing the series, and the way that we lost in the last two games," Stevens told reporters Thursday night after the Celtics' Game 6 loss to the Atlanta Hawks that eliminated Boston from the playoffs. "But I think that from a big-picture perspective, I feel good about our progress."
So here's the real question:
Do you feel the same way?
For the moment, take all emotion out of it. You like this Celtics team and you should. Throughout this season, for the most part, the Celtics played hard, competed, got the most out of their ability. They improved. But just how far the Celtics can now go from here is a point of considerable and important debate because they are currently on pace to become precisely what they just lost to: the Atlanta Hawks.
Think about it: the Hawks have no real superstars. They are well-coached. Atlanta played hard in this series, played together, got the most out of its ability. The Hawks have more good players than the Celtics and more experienced ones, but Atlanta ultimately has as much chance of winning a championship as the Celtics do.
Celtics president of basketball operation Danny Ainge knows this, which is why Ainge has armed himself with something the Hawks do not possess: draft picks – an absolute truckload of draft picks, including up to three in the next three years from the Brooklyn Nets, who finished this past season with the third-worst record in the NBA. The annual NBA Draft Lottery is scheduled for May 17 and the Celtics have the third-best odds at the No. 1 overall selection. They can end up with no worse than the sixth pick.
In addition, the Celtics hold the 16th, 23rd, 31st, 35th, 45th, 51st and 58th picks in the draft. Ainge and his assistants won't be able to leave the draft table for a bathroom break for fear of missing a turn.
So here's another question: if the Celtics use all of those selections – and it seems impossible that they would – would that constitute a success? Or a failure? This season, the Celtics already operated with Terry Rozier, R.J. Hunter, Jordan Mickey and James Young already on their bench. The last thing they need is eight entry-level players to stock their entry in the D-League.
As much as this past season highlighted some of the Celtics' strengths – Stevens, relentlessness, maybe depth – the Hawks revealed their holes. To a man, including Isaiah Thomas, the Celtics were exposed. With or without Avery Bradley, Boston lacks skilled and sized players who can shoot or score under pressure, defend the rim, truly alter a game. The Celtics were not competitive for six or seven of the 12 halves played, depending on your count, and the truth is that Atlanta could have won all six games.
Most disappointing, without question, was Boston's performance on the road. Save for the second half of Game 1, the Celtics completely imploded in Atlanta. They didn't show up for the first half of Game 1. They were completely plowed under, from the very start, in Game 2. In Game 5, the Celtics lost control of the game midway through the second quarter and never came close to reclaiming it, even Stevens going so far as to say his team was "steamrolled."
Again, make no mistake: for much of the fall and winter, these Celtics were fun. They were likable. But all along the way, even Ainge cautioned that playoff basketball was something altogether different, that there was still ample work to do, that enthusiasm should be tempered. Now we all know why. The Celtics have never strived to be the Atlanta Hawks – thank goodness for that – though even that seems appealing right now. The Celtics' sights are set where they always are, in highest reaches of the TD Garden, where at least 17 championship banners will forever hang.
And at the moment, those rafters still seem very, very far away.
