LeBron the key as familiar foes clash
When the NBA’s Eastern Conference finals tip off Sunday, the higher-seeded Celtics will have the homecourt edge and perhaps the toughest team, mentally, in the league.
But the Cavaliers will have LeBron James, and that’s almost always enough.
James has reached the NBA Finals a stunning seven straight times, and is favored to reach them an eighth time. Coincidentally, his first stay in Cleveland ended in 2010 with a playoff loss to the Celtics. Will we see a repeat this time around?
It’s good to be the King, but not so good to guard him.
Kevin Love and George Hill have gotten healthy for Cleveland, but let’s be real: This series comes down to guarding James. Not stopping him — nobody does that — but at least putting up a little resistance. So far, nobody has done that this postseason.
James is averaging 34.3 points per game in these playoffs, a Michael Jordan-like run that opens up greatest of all time debates. James poured in 45 points in the Cavaliers’ Game 7 win over the Pacers in the first round before Cleveland swept top-seeded Toronto out of the playoffs and cost Raptors coach Dwane Casey his job.
The Pacers’ defense gave Cleveland fits, and Boston had the league’s best Defensive Rating and has the versatility to switch on the wings. But do they have anybody that can slow the 6-foot-8, 250-pound James?
Jaylen Brown (6-7, 225) will get the first crack, but has to hope the extra days off have helped him deal with hamstring issues. He said he’s “super excited” to face James, but may regret getting his wish.
Marcus Morris (6-9, 235) also guarded James during the regular season. The Celtics also have rookie Semi Ojeleye (6-7, 241), who didn’t see much time against the 76ers in the last round but got his first start in the first-round Game 5 win over Milwaukee, holding Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo to 16 points.
Have we met?
These teams have a lot of history. The Cavaliers swept a first-round meeting in 2015 and won last year’s conference finals in five games, but it’s all meaningless at this point. The two squads are barely recognizable from last year’s conference finals clash, and have even changed from their last regular-season tilt.
Both rosters underwent a massive offseason overhauls, with just four Celtics back. The Cavaliers sent Kyrie Irving to Boston for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder and the Nets’ first-round pick, then turned around at the deadline and traded Thomas to the Lakers and Crowder to the Jazz to get younger and more athletic. They also have added Hill and Jeff Green.
The Cavaliers rolled 121-99 at Boston on Feb. 11, just days after their roster shakeup. For the Celtics, Irving has since joined Gordon Hayward with a seasonending injury, but Boston has seen other players gain experience and confidence since, and doesn’t even resemble that team anymore.
With Irving gone, “Scary Terry” Rozier has upped his game and is averaging 18.2 points in a team-high 37.3 minutes. Jayson Tatum doesn’t look like a rookie anymore, averaging a teamhigh 18.2 points in the playoffs. Brown has taken a step forward and even Aron Baynes has given the Celtics useful minutes in the paint.
Trust the progress.
Win or lose, it’s pretty obvious after watching the Celtics teach the 76ers a lesson that “the progress” trumps “the process.”
Though 76ers fans had to put up with four straight years of tanking, the Celtics have made the playoffs for four straight seasons and improved each time. And the future looks even better.
Tatum (whom the 76ers passed on in the draft to take Markelle Fultz) and Brown are invaluable assets, taken third overall in the past two drafts. Rozier has taken a step up, even though the Celtics will have a tough call on extending his contract this summer, and Hayward will be back next season. Oh, and Boston could have three or four first-round picks in 2019.
Sure, James could stay in Cleveland this offseason due to what ESPN called a lack of “great situations.” And Boston might not even get in the Kawhi Leonard sweepstakes this offseason, or go after Anthony Davis the next. But president of basketball operations Danny Ainge has them positioned so well they don’t even have to.