Indianapolis – At this timeThe Boston Celtics' trip to the Eastern Conference finals ended without a coaching resignation or, yes, any clamor from the crowd or press box to aim a wrecking ball at the roster.
At this timeIn the end, the Celtics shut out the Indiana Pacers on Monday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, beating them 105-102. Here's a quick rundown of how the Celtics were behind for most of the game but then jumped out to a 10-2 lead late in the game. Jayson Tatum drove for a dunk to make it 100-100, then… Series MVP Jaylen Brown tied the game at 102-102 again with an 8-foot jump shot. Brown then went on the defensive end and blocked Andrew Nembard's 3-pointer with 1:05 left in the game.
And then? And then, essentially, the game ended with the Celtics rallying from eight with 5:56 left and five with 4:14 left before Derrick White made a 3-pointer with 45 seconds left.
Going deeper
Celtics sweep Pacers to advance to NBA Finals
Sure, White's game-winning point came exactly one year after his incredible buzzer-beater against Miami in Game 6 of last year's Eastern Conference Finals, but it's just fodder for trivia night at the local sports bar. In the real world, especially in the real NBA, it means nothing. The Celtics in the 2024 playoffs are not the 2023 playoff Celtics who lost their first three games, then won three straight, then lost a landslide Game 7 at TD Garden. No, this Celtics is nothing like that Celtics. “Every year is a different team, a different coach. We've had about three coaches in the last five years. And yet everyone wants you to think it's the same. Same, same, same. Time has passed. We've gained experience. And we're ready to do our best,” Brown said after the game.
Brown, of course, is right. When asked if he was surprised to be named Series MVP, his answer was spot on and hilarious: “I had no idea,” he said. “I've never won a (expletive) before…”
Going deeper
Jaylen Brown wins Eastern Conference Finals MVP award
The sad thing is that Brown didn't win any of the regular season individual awards that many NBA fans, including Jaylen Brown, thought he should have won. I'm glad Brown proved the doubters wrong with his stellar performance against the Pacers. He sealed the win with a corner three-pointer in overtime in Game 1, scored 40 points in Game 2, and showed solid two-way play in Game 4. But that's not all. Sure, the Celtics are a “different team every year,” but this point is the same. They are the Tatum/Brown Celtics, and the Brown/Tatum Celtics for those who think the billboard position matters. It's their time, and they haven't won a championship yet. Now, they'll be in their second NBA Finals in three years, but with the return of Kristaps Porzingis, they'll have an even better supporting cast.
And if expectations have any meaning — and they do — the Celtics haven't won anything yet. There's no scenario in which a Celtics loss in the NBA Finals to Dallas or Minnesota would translate into a ray of hope, a life lesson, or glass-half-full joy. But that's for later. Right now, today, the Celtics deserve praise for their incredible, award-winning work ethic.
Combine what happened in Game 4 with Boston's comeback from an 18-point deficit to win in Game 3 and you see this is a team that any coach at any level can use to show-and-tell when explaining that talented teams don't win on talent alone. They're also winning because they can test old-fashioned instincts.
“We feel comfortable in any type of game,” White said. “No matter what the scenario, no matter what team throws at us, we feel like we have an answer.”
Get the latest sports news delivered to your inbox every day for free. Sign up
Get the latest sports news delivered to your inbox every day for free. Sign up
buy
Many articles will be written about how the Pacers conveniently succumbed to the Celtics in this series. They probably should have won Game 1, and maybe Games 3 and 4. Many fans also complained that Brown should have received a flagrant foul with 7:23 left when he accidentally hit TJ McConnell hard in the face while trying to get a Pacers rebound. It was ruled a general foul. “I think it was unlucky, but it didn't rise to the level of a flagrant foul,” crew chief Zach Zarba said in the pool report.
There's plenty of grown-up debate about how this play should have been ruled: Kevin McHale didn't hit Kurt Rambis over the close line, but it was a hit with a hair on it, even if it was accidental.
To claim that the Pacers should have won this game or that game is to take criticism of the Celtics to an absurd level. It's like saying the Seattle Seahawks should have won Super Bowl XLIX but lost to the Patriots because Russell Wilson threw the ball. It's like saying the Red Sox should have won Game 6 of the 1986 World Series but lost because Bill Buckner let the ball go through his crotch.
Please stop. Please stop. The Celtics are 12-2 in the playoffs. But they're not dominating anyone. They just happen to be the team with the best record. and The best intuition check.
(Derrick White's game-winning shot over Aaron Nesmith Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
