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Celtics Notes: Finals, Porzingis, Brown, Holiday, Stevens

May 28th, 2024 at 10:53am CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics have lost four Eastern Conference finals and one NBA Finals since drafting Jaylen Brown in 2016, but the veteran wing believes this year’s club is capable of breaking through and being the one that wins a championship, as he told reporters after the C’s secured their spot in the Finals with a win over Indiana on Monday.

“We feel like we’re a different team than we were last year and the year before that,” Brown said, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “I know everybody wants to continue to kind of pigeonhole us to what was happening in the past but we’ve had a different team every single year, different coaches, we’ve had like three coaches in the last five years. And still people want to make it seem like it’s the same, it’s the same, it’s the same.

“Time has gone by, experience has been gained and I think we are ready to put our best foot forward.”

This year’s version of the Celtics was certainly the best regular season team in recent franchise history, winning 64 games and registering the third-best net rating in NBA history (+11.7). Boston’s critics remain skeptical of the team’s playoff résumé not only due to its past losses but also because the team had a relatively clean path to the NBA Finals. Each of the three opponents the Celtics have beaten so far in the postseason were missing their best player (Jimmy Butler, Donovan Mitchell, and Tyrese Haliburton) for part or all of the series.

Still, the C’s have handily beaten the opponents in front of them, performing well in clutch situations and recording a league-best +10.8 net rating in the playoffs (Dallas’ net rating, by comparison, is +3.5).

“We feel comfortable in any type of game,” Derrick White said on Monday, per Steve Buckley of The Athletic. “We feel like we have the answers for anything teams throw at us, no matter what the scenario is.”

Here’s more on the Celtics as they prepare for a lengthy layoff before the Finals tip off on June 6:

Will Kristaps Porzingis be ready to return from his right calf injury by the time the Finals begin next Thursday? That’s the hope, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, but it’s not a lock. “There’s definitely optimism. There are still some hurdles, I’m told, that he has to clear before he can play in Game 1 of the Finals,” Charania said on FanDuel’s Run it Back show (Twitter video link). “… Porzingis has to make sure he’s 100% healthy. This could, of course, lead to worse injuries if you do end up getting back on the floor sooner than you’re supposed to. But there’s obviously hope the next week-and-a-half he’s able to ramp up and get ready.”
Brown and teammate Jrue Holiday each earned a contract bonus for making the NBA Finals, as Bobby Marks of ESPN notes (Twitter links). Brown has now maxed out his incentives this season, earning a total of $3,321,428 (on top of his $28,508,929 base salary) for a series of individual and team achievements, while Holiday earned an extra $297,600 as a result of the Celtics winning the East. Holiday can further increase his total bonus money for this season if Boston wins the title.
Brown, who made it a goal this season to be an All-Defensive player, admitted he was more disappointed to miss out on that honor than he was not to make an All-NBA team, according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic. But Brown added that he’s not dwelling on either outcome and knows his own value as a “versatile two-way wing,” which his teammates also recognize. “We ask a lot of him. (On Monday), he started out guarding (Andrew) Nembhard, then he switched up to (Pascal) Siakam, he probably was on (Myles) Turner,” Al Horford said. “He was on different people all over. That versatility is what makes us so tough as a team.” As we detailed in an earlier story, Brown was named the MVP of the Eastern Conference finals.
Brad Stevens‘ aggressive 2023 offseason – which included trading away longtime franchise pillar Marcus Smart in a deal for Porzingis and then making a second blockbuster deal for Holiday – has paid major dividends to this point, writes Brian Robb of MassLive.com. As Robb observes, the roster was constructed to withstand the absence of a starter like Porzingis, with Holiday and Horford among the players taking on larger offensive roles to make up for that loss.

Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton Out For Game 4

May 27th, 2024 at 5:10pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pacers star guard Tyrese Haliburton won’t play in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals tonight against the Celtics, Joe Vardon of The Athletic tweets. Haliburton also missed Game 3 on Saturday due to a left hamstring strain.

Indiana, which is facing elimination, nearly won Game 3 without its All-Star point guard until Boston staged a fourth-quarter rally. Andrew Nembhard stepped up his production with 32 points but Ben Sheppard, who was inserted into the starting lineup, was held scoreless in 26 minutes.

Haliburton suffered the injury during the 126-110 Game 2 loss in Boston. He had just 10 points and eight assists in that contest after a 25-point, 10-assist outing in Game 1.

He underwent an MRI on Saturday, and the risk of doing further damage with his team facing long odds of a comeback outweighs trying to push through it. He also dealt with a hamstring strain during the regular season. Haliburton, a third-team All-NBA selection, has averaged 18.7 PPG and 8.2 APG in the playoffs.

The Celtics have announced that Jrue Holiday and Luke Kornet, who were on Sunday’s injury report, are available, Keith Smith of Spotrac tweets. Kristaps Porzingis remains out.

Celtics Notes: Game 3, Tillman, Tatum

May 26th, 2024 at 4:20pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Thanks to an impressive comeback from an 18-point deficit, the Celtics were able to improve their Eastern Conference Finals series edge over the Pacers to 3-0 on Saturday, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. The decisive moment came when All-Defensive guard Jrue Holiday stole the ball from Indiana guard Andrew Nembhard and drew free throws on the other end, helping put Boston up for good. The Celtics would go on to win, 114-111.

After the game, Celtics All-Star shooting guard Jaylen Brown was still reveling in the moment, per Jay King of The Athletic.

“Hang it in the f—ing Louvre,” Brown said of Boston’s winning rally. “Like, it was crazy. We just had a great grit win tonight.”

Brown singled out Holiday for his excellent perimeter defense, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe.

“Jrue is different,” Brown said. “Nothing really else to say. Jrue is just different.”

There’s more out of Boston:

Celtics big man Xavier Tillman, who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, helped give Boston a defensive spark off the bench in the Game 3 victory, posting a team-best plus-12 in his 13 minutes of action, notes Souichi Terada of MassLive. “He’s a great screener, he creates separation and he has the gift defensively to be able to play both drop and switch,” head coach Joe Mazzulla said. “So we were able to change our coverages when he was out there pretty frequently. He can guard different matchups because of his ability to play and drop and in switch, and so he just gave us some versatility.”
Celtics All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum submitted a terrific effort in leading the club to the brink of its second NBA Finals berth in the past three seasons, scoring 36 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, and dishing out eight dimes without a turnover. Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports writes that Boston’s cohesion as a unit, highlighted by the efforts of Tatum, Holiday and center Al Horford, seems to suggest the team could be ready to finally earn its first title since 2008.
For more on Boston, be sure to check out our Celtics team page.

Celtics Notes: Tatum, Game 3, Porzingis, Kornet, Holiday

May 25th, 2024 at 7:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

With the Celtics down two centers, Jayson Tatum is ready to spend time in the middle in small-ball lineups, writes Khari Thompson of The Boston Globe. Luke Kornet, who was initially listed as doubtful after spraining his left wrist in Game 2, has been downgraded to out. He’ll be on the bench alongside Kristaps Porzingis, who hasn’t played since April 30 because of a strained right calf.

That leaves Boston with few options behind starter Al Horford. Xavier Tillman played just three minutes on Thursday after missing Game 1 for personal reasons, and Neemias Queta has only made two brief appearances during the playoffs. Tatum admitted that he’s not used to playing center, but added that the team has prepared for this scenario.

“At this point in the season, it’s whatever you’ve got to do to help the team win,” he said. “It doesn’t feel unnatural, but it is something different that we’ve worked on and talked about throughout the season in practices and things like that. So, it’s not like a shock or anything like that.”

Despite a size disadvantage, the Celtics were able to out-rebound Indiana by a 40-37 margin in Game 2, holding 6’11” Myles Turner to just four boards. Tatum said rebounding is a team effort that starts with boxing out the Pacers’ big men.

“We’ve got to rebound. And maybe, it’s not always, ‘I’m getting it,’” he explained. “I’ve got to make sure I’m boxing out (Isaiah) Jackson or Turner, whoever I am guarding and you know five guys got to be in the paint and it’s your job to put a body on a man and somebody else to grab the ball.”

There’s more on the Celtics:

Tatum warns that a series can change quickly, which happened after the Pacers fell behind New York 2-0 in the second round, Thompson adds. Indiana is unbeaten at home in the postseason, and the Celtics will enter hostile surroundings tonight. “I think Game 3 is always the toughest just because you are going to a new environment, their first home game,” Tatum said. “Obviously they’re excited to be back home and we expect a great atmosphere. They’ve been really good at home, so we’ve got to be that much better.”
In his pregame meeting with reporters, coach Joe Mazzulla didn’t offer any clues about when Porzingis or Kornet might be able to return, tweets Jared Weiss of The Athletic. Mazzulla responded to questions about both players by saying he has “no idea.”
The Celtics have determined that Jrue Holiday will be able to play tonight, according to Brian Robb of MassLive (Twitter link). Holiday, who was listed as questionable with a non-COVID illness, went through a pregame warm-up before a final decision was made.

Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton To Miss Game 3

May 25th, 2024 at 2:04pm CST by Luke Adams

2:04pm: Haliburton will be out for Game 3 and will be reevaluated ahead of Game 4, according to Wojnarowski, who says the guard’s availability for that game “remains in serious question” (Twitter link). Indiana will err on the side of caution with its franchise player, Woj adds.

1:40pm: Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton, who re-injured his left hamstring on Thursday, is expected to miss Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals on Saturday, according to reports from Shams Charania and Joe Vardon of The Athletic (Twitter link) and Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Haliburton exited Game 2 in the third quarter due to hamstring soreness and didn’t return. As we detailed that night, the issue was especially concerning because the Pacers star strained his left hamstring in January and missed 10 games as a result of that injury — he attempted to return after just five games, but ended up being out for five more following that lone appearance.

The Pacers, who entered the Eastern finals as massive underdogs, are already facing a 2-0 deficit in their series vs. the Celtics and will face even longer odds without Haliburton, the engine who drives Indiana’s offense. The 24-year-old was named to the All-NBA Third Team this week after averaging 20.1 points and a league-leading 10.9 assists per game during the regular season. He has put up 18.7 PPG and 8.2 APG in the playoffs.

As we wrote on Friday, the team has solid alternatives at point guard in Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell, but neither player can replicate the kind of play-making and outside shooting that Haliburton provides.

“He does so many things for our team where everyone just has to move the ball more and get in the paint more,” McConnell said. “The ball movement, like I said, just has to be at another level. He gets 10 assists in his sleep. It’s hard for another person on our team to replicate that. It’s a group effort when he goes down to kinda get people the ball and get moving.”

While Nembhard and McConnell will take on increased responsibilities at point guard, the Pacers will also lean more heavily on star forward Pascal Siakam to initiate the offense and be the team’s go-to scoring option.

In related news, Celtics guard Jrue Holiday – Haliburton’s primary defender – has been added to the injury report for Game 3 due to a non-COVID illness, as Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston tweets. Holiday is listed as questionable to play.

Atlantic Notes: Holiday, Porzingis, Raptors, Sixers

May 22nd, 2024 at 8:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics eked out a 133-128 overtime thriller in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals vs. Indiana on Tuesday. Jayson Tatum led the team in scoring with 36 points and Jaylen Brown hit the biggest shot of the night, a three-pointer with five seconds left in regulation to tie the game. However, it was Jrue Holiday who earned the loudest praise from both locker rooms late on Tuesday night.

Holiday, who was named to the All-Defensive Second Team earlier in the day, filled the box score with 28 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, and three steals in a team-high 48 minutes while serving as the primary defender against Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton. Haliburton had 25 points and 10 assists in the game, but he did his damage against other Celtics players — he was 0-for-3 with zero points, three assists, and two turnovers when Holiday was guarding him, per NBA.com.

“He’s the best defender in the NBA,” Haliburton said of Holiday (Twitter video link). “He has been for a long time.”

“Jrue was fantastic,” Brown said, per Brian Robb of MassLive.com. “Jrue was exceptional. Shout out to Jrue. Jrue came out and balled, man. He’s the reason why we won his game. I think he just was poised, he took advantage of his matchups. He just was so, so elite in that. It’s a lot. And he’s guarding Haliburton, picking him up, chasing him around. That was special from Jrue Holiday.”

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

There’s “growing optimism” that Kristaps Porzingis could return to action for the Celtics as soon as Game 4 on Monday, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. According to Wojnarowski, Boston wants to take a cautious approach with Porzingis, who has been out since April 30 due to a right calf strain, but he has been ramping up his basketball activities as of late. If the C’s keep winning, it could buy Porzingis some more recovery time, since there would be no urgency to bring him back on Monday if the club had a 3-0 series lead.
Outlining what the Raptors‘ offseason might look like, Eric Koreen of The Athletic suggests that extending Scottie Barnes, re-signing Immanuel Quickley, and adding backcourt depth are the most important items on the team’s to-do list. Koreen identifies Bobi Klintman and Ryan Dunn as possible targets with the No. 19 and No. 31 picks in the draft and points to Monte Morris as a veteran point guard who might make sense in free agency.
Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer poses 10 general NBA offseason questions that will help shape the Sixers‘ offseason, including whether Paul George will sign an extension with the Clippers and whether the Heat would consider trading Jimmy Butler.

NBA Announces 2023/24 All-Defensive Teams

May 21st, 2024 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has officially announced its All-Defensive teams for the 2023/24 season (Twitter link).

A total of 99 media members voted on the All-Defensive awards, with players receiving two points for a First Team vote and one point for a Second Team vote. This year’s All-Defensive teams are as follows:

First Team

Rudy Gobert, Timberwolves (198 points)
Victor Wembanyama, Spurs (184)
Bam Adebayo, Heat (168)
Herbert Jones, Pelicans (159)
Anthony Davis, Lakers (151)

Second Team

Alex Caruso, Bulls (130)
Jalen Suggs, Magic (99)
Derrick White, Celtics (98)
Jaden McDaniels, Timberwolves (66)
Jrue Holiday, Celtics (36)

Gobert, who won this season’s Defensive Player of the Year award, was the only unanimous First Team selection, earning all 99 possible First Team votes.

No other players showed up on every ballot, though Wembanyama appeared on 98, receiving 86 First Team nods. Wembanyama is the first rookie in NBA history to claim a spot on an All-Defensive First Team, according to the NBA (Twitter link). Five rookies previously made a Second Team.

All-Defensive voting was positionless for the first time this season, which is why four big men – Gobert, Wembanyama, Adebayo, and Davis – were permitted to be named to the First Team. Jones, a forward, was the only non-center to earn First Team recognition, whereas the Second Team was made up entirely of guards and forwards.

The Timberwolves and Celtics – who ranked first and second, respectively, in regular season defensive rating – were the only teams to have more than one All-Defensive player in 2023/24. McDaniels was a Second Team selection, joining Gobert, while the Celtics’ backcourt duo of White and Holiday also made the Second Team. Both White ($250K) and Holiday ($139,200) earned bonuses as a result of making an All-Defensive team, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

The rookie scale extension McDaniels signed last fall actually includes an All-Defensive bonus as well, Marks tweets, but since that contract doesn’t go into effect until this July, the Timberwolves’ perimeter stopper won’t cash in on that $431,035. That incentive is now considered “likely” instead of “unlikely” for next season though, as Marks notes, increasing McDaniels’ cap hit to $23,017,242.

Outside of the top 10, the players who received the most All-Defensive votes were Thunder wing Luguentz Dort (34 points, including six First Team votes), Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (29 points), Thunder center Chet Holmgren (21 points), Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen (20 points), and Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (19 points).

Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (six), Celtics swingman Jaylen Brown (three), and Kings teammates Domantas Sabonis and De’Aaron Fox (one apiece) were the other players who received First Team votes. In total, 34 players earned at least one First Team or Second Team vote.

Players were required to meet the 65-game criteria in order to qualify for All-Defensive honors this season. Knicks forward OG Anunoby, Warriors big man Draymond Green, and Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley – each of whom made an All-Defensive team last spring – were among the standout defenders who didn’t reach that games-played minimum in 2023/24.

Celtics Notes: Porzingis, Pritchard, White, Holiday, Brown

May 14th, 2024 at 5:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kristaps Porzingis conducted a light workout on the court on Monday morning, according to Brian Robb of MassLive.com. However, the Celtics big man will miss his sixth consecutive game on Wednesday as he works his way back from a right calf strain, Tim Bontemps of ESPN tweets. The Celtics can advance to the Eastern Conference finals with a Game 5 victory over the Cavaliers.

“It’s always great to have him around and we know he’s doing everything he can to get back as quickly and safely as possible,” Derrick White told Robb.

We have more on the Celtics:

Backup guard Payton Pritchard, who signed a four-year, $30MM rookie scale extension in October, has scored in double digits in three of the four games against Cleveland. He delivered 11 points in 26 minutes on Monday, including a pivotal 3-pointer late in the third quarter. With just five turnovers in four games, Pritchard has also been a steady ball-handling presence in the backcourt, Robb notes. “I thought Payton’s confidence, and becoming a really good two-way player, just affecting the game both offensively and defensively,” coach Joe Mazzulla said.
With Cavs star guard Donovan Mitchell sidelined in Game 4, the Celtics guards focused their attention on Darius Garland, Jared Weiss of The Athletic notes. Though Garland scored 30 points, he needed to take 27 shots to reach that figure with White and Jrue Holiday guarding him. “I’m just thankful those guys are on our team,” Jayson Tatum said of Holiday and White. “The intangible things they do on the defensive end night in and night out, whether it’s chasing shooters around, or fighting through screens, or coming over the top and contesting shots. They do it however long they’re in the game. They’re really the anchor of our defense.”
Jaylen Brown is averaging 26.5 points per game in the series, including a 27-point output in Game 4. He wasn’t bashful when discussing his offensive prowess during the series, Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe tweets. “I don’t think anybody over there can really guard me,” he said.

Rudy Gobert Named Defensive Player Of Year For Fourth Time

May 7th, 2024 at 5:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rudy Gobert has been named the Defensive Player of the Year for the fourth time in his career, the NBA announced on Tuesday (via Twitter).

The Timberwolves center joins Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace as the only four-time winners of the award. Gobert also claimed the award in 2018, 2019, and 2021 when he played for Utah.

Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama, who was unanimously voted the Rookie of the Year on Tuesday, finished second in the voting, with the Heat‘s Bam Adebayo a distant third.

Gobert was the league’s second-leading rebounder (12.9 per game) and sixth-leading shot-blocker (2.1). More significantly, he anchored a Timberwolves defense that held opponents to a league-low 106.5 points per game during the regular season. Minnesota was also best in defensive field goal percentage, limiting opponents to 39.0 percent shooting.

Gobert received 72 of a possible 99 first-place votes while compiling 433 points. Wembanyama, who was the league’s top shot-blocker at 3.6 per game, received 19 first-place votes and earned 245 points.

Adebayo received three first-place votes and wound up with 91 points, eight more than fourth-place finisher Anthony Davis of the Lakers (four first-place votes).

Pelicans forward Herbert Jones finished fifth and Celtics guard Jrue Holiday, who notched the other first-place vote, was sixth. The full voting results can be found here.

Sixers Rumors: Maxey, Reed, Offseason Targets, Harris, Hield, Oubre

May 3rd, 2024 at 4:51pm CST by Luke Adams

While the Sixers are disappointed by how quickly their playoff run ended this spring, there are reasons for optimism going forward. For one, guard Tyrese Maxey showed this season that he’s an impact player capable of becoming a legitimate second star alongside center Joel Embiid, according to Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer and Tim Bontemps of ESPN.

“He was amazing this year,” Embiid said of his teammate, per Mizell. “One of the 10 best players in the world this year. … He’s gotten so much better. I think there’s another step he can even take.”

Maxey will be a restricted free agent this summer, but that’s just a technicality — he will count against the Sixers’ cap for just $13MM until he signs his new contract. After using up their cap room, the 76ers will be able to go over the cap to lock him up to a maximum-salary deal that projects to be worth at least $35MM in 2024/25 — or up to $42.3MM if Maxey makes an All-NBA team.

Because the Sixers didn’t win a playoff series, Paul Reed‘s $7.7MM salary for ’24/25 will remain non-guaranteed, which means the club could potentially enter free agency with only Embiid’s salary ($51.4MM) and Maxey’s $13MM cap hold counting toward team salary. According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link), Philadelphia could have up to $64.9MM in cap room with just those two players on the books. That number would be closer to $55MM if the 76ers retain Reed and their first-round pick.

What might the Sixers do what that cap room? Sources tell Bontemps that Jrue Holiday was a top target until he signed an extension in Boston. OG Anunoby is also on their wish list, per Bontemps, though he’s considered likely to re-sign with the Knicks. Appearing on ESPN’s Get Up (Twitter video link), Brian Windhorst identified Paul George as Philadelphia’s No. 1 priority and said he thinks the team will make George a maximum-salary offer, assuming he hasn’t re-upped with the Clippers before free agency.

If no top-tier free agents are available, Daryl Morey and the Sixers figure to turn to their trade market, since they’ll have several first-round picks available to move and won’t have to send out matching salary. Windhorst mentions Heat swingman Jimmy Butler and Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram as a pair of possible trade targets for the Sixers.

On the other hand, it’s not necessarily a star-or-bust summer for Philadelphia, according to Bontemps, who says one other potential path for the club would be to pursue a series of role players who complement Embiid and Maxey, like the Nuggets have done around Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. In that scenario, the Sixers could explore re-signing a few of their own free agents, such as Kelly Oubre, De’Anthony Melton, Nicolas Batum, and/or Kyle Lowry. League sources expect Tobias Harris to be playing elsewhere next season though, per Bontemps.

Here’s more on the Sixers:

A reunion with Butler feels like a long shot, but David Aldridge of The Athletic argues that the former Sixer is exactly the kind of “alpha” the team needs to complement Embiid and Maxey. Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (Twitter link) suggests that he can’t imagine the Heat accepting a trade package heavy on draft assets for Butler unless they planned to flip those assets for another star.
Bobby Marks of ESPN (Insider link) and Mark Deeks of HoopsHype shared their Sixers offseason previews, taking a closer look at the decisions facing the franchise.
Veteran sharpshooter Buddy Hield, who will be an unrestricted free agent, said that he would like to return to Philadelphia, tweets Mizell. Hield scored 20 points in 21 minutes in Game 6 on Thursday but had only scored two points and had a pair of DNP-CDs in the five playoff games before that.
Oubre also expressed interest in re-signing with the Sixers, suggesting that he feels like he has “unfinished business” after the first-round loss. “I just wanna be loved,” Oubre said of his priorities in free agency, according to Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. “I don’t know about the business side of it. I mean, I do, but I can’t tell you what I know because I represent myself right now. At the end of the day, I wanna go somewhere where they respect and they love me. It’s been nothing but love here, of course.”
Taking a bigger-picture view, Danny Chau of The Ringer considers what another early playoff exit means for Embiid and his legacy.