It should be fun
Let’s stay real when C’s, Warriors meet
On April 1, 2016, the Celtics defeated the Golden State Warriors, 109-106, in Oakland, Calif. For the home team, the loss was the first in its building after 54 consecutive victories.
CELTICS BEAT Steve Bulpett
On April 28, 2016, the Celtics lost to the Atlanta Hawks in Game 6, 104-92, ending their season with a first-round playoff elimination.
On March 8, 2017, the Celtics defeated the Warriors in Oakland, 99-86.
On June 12, 2017, the Warriors won their second NBA championship in three years.
The preceding facts are presented as a public service so fans might maintain some semblance of perspective and keep their intellectual shirts on as the teams with the best record in each conference meet this evening at the Garden.
This will not be Armageddon On Parquet. It will constitute 1.2195 percent of the regular season.
And it will be a hell of a lot of fun.
There will be a commotion on Causeway Street — and on national television — as the Celtics, winners of 13 straight after an 0-2 start, and Warriors meet. The locals are still essentially playing with house money as their Haywardless and too-young-to-bescared outfit goes against Goliath State.
The matchups, both individual and collective, will be utterly intriguing.
Just don’t expect the echoes to dance too long after game’s end.
Al Horford had a polite laugh when it was suggested the media might be getting ahead of things if it were to call this a Finals preview.
“I think so,” he said. “I’m sure that people are going to float that around, but we understand we have a long ways to go and it is still only November.”
Brad Stevens, too, was looking at the calendar when asked if he’s talked to his troops about putting this one in its proper place.
“We have to get better,” he said in most coach-ly fashion after yesterday’s semi-practice. “It’s Nov. 15. We talked about things we watched on film yesterday that we can get better at and that we’ll have to be better at tomorrow, otherwise we’ll really get exposed. So I’m looking for that level of improvement, and then the continued competitiveness, team-ness and making sure that we’re doing everything we can to give ourselves a chance.”
The fact the Celtics have a radically different “team-ness” from last season makes it hard to infer a whole lot from their two road wins and two home losses against the Dubs the last two years.
Horford, Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier combined for 23 of those 99 points last March, but Kyrie Irving, Marcus Morris and Aron Baynes were playing in other cities. Jayson Tatum, Daniel Theis, Semi Ojeleye and Shane Larkin were playing in other leagues.
Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green? Warriors then; Warriors now.
Stevens pointed out that the Celtics’ win in Oakland was over a team coming home from a five-game tour of the Eastern Conference.
“They had traveled a boatload and we were coming off two losses and we played really, really well there,” said the coach. “But that doesn’t take anything away from our guys. Our guys really had to play and stay in the moment, so I think that’s what you take away. You take away that, again, things are not going your way the whole time. It’s not going to be perfect. But if you lower your head, stop doing what you’re supposed to do, become disconnected, they just crush you.”
It was noted the Warriors have a number of ways to get opponents off their game, some old-fashioned Larry Bird-style trash talk included.
“Well, I think the No. 1 way they take teams out of their game is they’ve got a lot of guys, and they’ve got really good players that are really well coached,” said Stevens. “And you just have to be on your toes for all 48 (minutes), or else you’ll give up that 10-, 12-, 14-, 20-point run that ultimately kills teams.
“There’s a reason why they haven’t played a lot of close games, and it’s because they’re awfully freakin’ good. And so we just have to, again, possession to possession, stay poised, stay in the moment. If one thing doesn’t go our way, move on to the next. And that’s what you kind of try to build toward, because your margin for error is very small against a team of this caliber.”
In other words, Stevens wants his players’ eyes on the hoop, not the hoopla.
“I think the testament to the Warriors is that, regardless of how the other team is doing, they get that atmosphere probably everywhere they go,” he said. “But, yeah, we’re looking forward to it. If you are in basketball and if you’re a player, that’s what you sign up for are the chance(s) to stay focused but get a chance to compete in that environment.”
Horford is looking forward to it.
“It’s going to be great,” he said. “I can’t wait. The energy’s going to be great. Our fans, they’re always great, but obviously it’s a big game, so it will be a lot of fun.”
The key word is the last one.