Re-ignition of the Celtics 76ers Rivalry

[LarBrd33]

Really, LB? Now you're trying to play it off as you've been a catalyst of the Rozier fan club? Was that before or after you mockingly referred to him as Hozier and compared  him to Little Phil Pressey? Let's not be hypocritical now.

Exhibit A
http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=79399.60

So we swap pressey for hozier.  We swap bass for Amir.  And that's about it.

Should be in the lotto next year.  I know we overachieved last year, but we were bottom 9 with 11 games left.  I can't see it happening again. 

Bummer of an offseason.

I don't necessarily want in on this argument but are you seriously bringing up something he posted 3 years ago when Rozier hadn't even played in the NBA yet? Come on, dude.

i was clearly talking about Bill Hozier in that post.

[celticsclay]

Really, LB? Now you're trying to play it off as you've been a catalyst of the Rozier fan club? Was that before or after you mockingly referred to him as Hozier and compared  him to Little Phil Pressey? Let's not be hypocritical now.

Exhibit A
http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=79399.60

So we swap pressey for hozier.  We swap bass for Amir.  And that's about it.

Should be in the lotto next year.  I know we overachieved last year, but we were bottom 9 with 11 games left.  I can't see it happening again. 

Bummer of an offseason.

I don't necessarily want in on this argument but are you seriously bringing up something he posted 3 years ago when Rozier hadn't even played in the NBA yet? Come on, dude.

You are in it now. Go! Who is right?

[smokeablount]

 I'm feeling ballsy today, so I'm calling Celtics in Six games. Prior to the series starting it was Celtics in seven.

As long as Rozier, Tatum and Horford continue to combine for 80+ points per night, the team continues to shoot nearly 50% from three, and Philly continues to shoot 10% from three, I like Boston's chances of keeping this series competitive.

Don’t worry. Your team will start to play better.

more than likely, Philly will still cook us.  Talent is talent.  Let's not forget that LeBron lost game 1 at home vs the Pacers by 18 and still won the series and is up 1-0 in Round 2.  Hard to keep guys that talented down.  Rozier, Tatum and Horford combined for more points in Game 1 than KG, Pierce and Ray ever did.  That's pretty remarkable, but more than likely not sustainable.

LarBrd33 having a really bad comeback. Poor guy, clearly things are going like he thought they would. Came here to gloat, but looking like a goat.

If Boston improbably wins this series, it'll have been worth it.  Philly still has 4 more games to prove the experts right and win in 6.

Personally, I'm thrilled Boston won the home games.  It would have sucked to just get swept.  Making this series interesting will go a long way towards jumpstarting this rivalry for real. 

No matter what happens (and ignoring the flukey year they won 35 games and upset a Rose-less Bulls team in Round 1), this is by default Philly's best season since 2000-01.   Way ahead of schedule.  It's already been proven a wild success.   

Here's hoping Boston can keep defying the odds and winning.

You were citing Vegas odds before, when Philly was favored. Celtics now favored in this series. Why no more citing of Vegas odds?

I haven’t looked since before the series started.   Is Boston now favored?  That’s amazing. Hopefully we don’t cave under the pressure of heightened expectations and choke. 

We still haven’t won a road game in these playoffs.  I’ll be nervous if Philly gets these next two.

I expect Philly to win the next 2. They are a dominant homecourt team. But then the Celtics should take game 5, as it’s unlikely they lose at home for the 3rd game in a row.

Philly +105
Boston -125

Philly is still overrated with Boston paying out a whopping 80 cents on the dollar up 2-0 with home court.

I actually don't think Philly as a team is overrated.  The talent is there.  The story is more that this Boston squad sans Hayward and Kyrie is underrated.  I was predicting Rozier's break-out season well before it became trendy, but even the most optimistic of Rozier fans couldn't have possibly expected the guy to average 19 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 1.2 steals with 44%/44%/82% shooting in the playoffs.  That's unreal. 

Boston also won the regular season match-up with Philly.  Went 3-1.  But the three wins came with a healthy Kyrie Irving and it was before things started clicking for Philly.

That's still a supremely talented squad.  Boston's defense has gotten to them in a big way.  Simmons hasn't been good at all.  Their team seems to be caving under the pressure and look a little shook. 

But the story here isn't Philly sucking - it's that Boston is playing like a contender in spite of the injuries. 

Horford has been amazing.  18.4 points, 9 rebounds, 3.6 assists, with 61%/43%/80% shooting.   Tatum has 4-straight 20+ games.  And then Rozier - my god... if this kid is really this good, it's going to make for a fascinating offseason. 

Years ago I compared Rozier to Devin Booker (taken a few picks earlier) questioning what might have happened if roles were reversed.  Booker probably would have been buried behind multiple guards on our team.  Rozier probably would have had an opportunity to play through mistakes on the Suns:

On a lesser team with less depth they might have seen minutes sooner.   There was a thread here recently about Devin Booker.  Booker was taken just a few picks ahead of Rozier.  The 19 year old averaged 20 points after the all-star break.   It's possible he would have worked his way up the depth chart on Boston, but it's also possible he would have spent most of his time in D-League and never got a real opportunity.  Booker played on a bottom 4 team and spent the first half of the season playing in 48 games and averaging 23 minutes.   Rozier, on the other hand, appeared in only 18 games over the first half of the season and averaged less than 6 minutes per game during that time.  Not really enough time to show anything.  Would Rozier have found a statistical groove with bulk minutes on the Suns?  Would we be seeing our first signs of Booker's talent in the playoffs had he ended up on Boston?   There's maybe a little of that.

All we can really do is compare their summer league stats (since Booker never played in D-League this year)

Rozier - 12.2 points, 3 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.25 steals with 35%/40%/83%
Booker - 15.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.7 steals, 40%/40%/88%

Sure, Booker was probably a little better - hence why he was taken 3 spots higher - but who knows what kind of production they'd have if roles were reversed.

These playoffs have been really interesting.  Clearly Booker is still the better prospect of the two, but we're starting to see what kind of stuff Rozier can do with the minutes, opportunity, and the building confidence.  If this level of play is legit - wow...

Overrated. By Vegas, you, and even me, who expected them to win today.

[Ilikesports17]

Im glad LB came back to watch his boys get trounced!

Lets close this out in Philly(ok game 5 is more realistic)

I must admit I thought 6ers in 6. This Celtics team is really something special.

[footey]

Stephen A says it’s all the fault of Coach Brown.

Waaaaaahhhhhh!!

[LarBrd33]

Im glad LB came back to watch his boys get trounced!

Lets close this out in Philly(ok game 5 is more realistic)

I must admit I thought 6ers in 6. This Celtics team is really something special.

If Philly loses this series, my un-retirement will be worth every post.

Still a chance they win the next 4.

[Ilikesports17]

Im glad LB came back to watch his boys get trounced!

Lets close this out in Philly(ok game 5 is more realistic)

I must admit I thought 6ers in 6. This Celtics team is really something special.

If Philly loses this series, my un-retirement will be worth every post.

Still a chance they win the next 4.

yeah. Two young teams reliant on inconsistent players. Anything can happen.

But I could see this 6ers team folding like a chair. Need to knock them out in game 4 or 5. Don't let them get back into this building with some momentum.

[Emmette Bryant]

Stephen A says it’s all the fault of Coach Brown.

Waaaaaahhhhhh!!

Stephen A's face was turning red he was really upset

[Emmette Bryant]

Im glad LB came back to watch his boys get trounced!

Lets close this out in Philly(ok game 5 is more realistic)

I must admit I thought 6ers in 6. This Celtics team is really something special.

If Philly loses this series, my un-retirement will be worth every post.

Still a chance they win the next 4.

When you spend 5 years tanking you learn how to lose not win.

[GreenFaith1819]

Process - meet PROGRESS.

Keep the pressure ON, BOSTON - go in there and take game 3 from them.

Don't ask - just TAKE IT.

Impose your WILL - like the Boston Teams of old.

They kept the pressure on.

They TOOK the game by keeping defensive intensity.

They imposed their will.

And Jason Tatum is being mentioned in some good company



NEVER count BOS out. Series not over but we're getting close.

[Eddie20]

Im glad LB came back to watch his boys get trounced!

Lets close this out in Philly(ok game 5 is more realistic)

I must admit I thought 6ers in 6. This Celtics team is really something special.

If Philly loses this series, my un-retirement will be worth every post.

Still a chance they win the next 4.

If?


To the end...

[tarheelsxxiii]

Really, LB? Now you're trying to play it off as you've been a catalyst of the Rozier fan club? Was that before or after you mockingly referred to him as Hozier and compared  him to Little Phil Pressey? Let's not be hypocritical now.

Exhibit A
http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=79399.60

So we swap pressey for hozier.  We swap bass for Amir.  And that's about it.

Should be in the lotto next year.  I know we overachieved last year, but we were bottom 9 with 11 games left.  I can't see it happening again. 

Bummer of an offseason.

I don't necessarily want in on this argument but are you seriously bringing up something he posted 3 years ago when Rozier hadn't even played in the NBA yet? Come on, dude.

You are in it now. Go! Who is right?

I thought there wasn't even a search feature in looking through old posts, and you could only move backward through a ton of clicks.  So yeah, that's very much over the top.  Unless I'm just banned from a search feature too.

[Eddie20]

Really, LB? Now you're trying to play it off as you've been a catalyst of the Rozier fan club? Was that before or after you mockingly referred to him as Hozier and compared  him to Little Phil Pressey? Let's not be hypocritical now.

Exhibit A
http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=79399.60

So we swap pressey for hozier.  We swap bass for Amir.  And that's about it.

Should be in the lotto next year.  I know we overachieved last year, but we were bottom 9 with 11 games left.  I can't see it happening again. 

Bummer of an offseason.

I don't necessarily want in on this argument but are you seriously bringing up something he posted 3 years ago when Rozier hadn't even played in the NBA yet? Come on, dude.

You are in it now. Go! Who is right?

I thought there wasn't even a search feature in looking through old posts, and you could only move backward through a ton of clicks.  So yeah, that's very much over the top.  Unless I'm just banned from a search feature too.

Not too difficult just a simple search of Hozier does the trick. Especially when LB did it ad nauseum to mock Rozier. That said, if LB is going to use a post in 2016 to try to make it seem as though he's been fully supportive of the guy, then why is one about 10 months before that not fair game?

[LarBrd33]

Really, LB? Now you're trying to play it off as you've been a catalyst of the Rozier fan club? Was that before or after you mockingly referred to him as Hozier and compared  him to Little Phil Pressey? Let's not be hypocritical now.

Exhibit A
http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=79399.60

So we swap pressey for hozier.  We swap bass for Amir.  And that's about it.

Should be in the lotto next year.  I know we overachieved last year, but we were bottom 9 with 11 games left.  I can't see it happening again. 

Bummer of an offseason.

I don't necessarily want in on this argument but are you seriously bringing up something he posted 3 years ago when Rozier hadn't even played in the NBA yet? Come on, dude.

You are in it now. Go! Who is right?

I thought there wasn't even a search feature in looking through old posts, and you could only move backward through a ton of clicks.  So yeah, that's very much over the top.  Unless I'm just banned from a search feature too.

Not too difficult just a simple search of Hozier does the trick. Especially when LB did it ad nauseum to mock Rozier. That said, if LB is going to use a post in 2016 to try to make it seem as though he's been fully supportive of the guy, then why is one about 10 months before that not fair game?

I hadn't even heard of Rozier on draft night.  Nobody had.  He was expected to go in the 2nd round.  It's a testament to Danny's greatness that he was able to spot him in the dregs of a draft range everyone said was worthless.  Clearly not even Danny was sold - or he wouldn't have offered 4 first round picks (including the Rozier pick and the pick that became Jaylen Brown) to try to acquire Winslow.

But I'll tell you who I HAD heard of... Irish singer-songwriter and genuine hunk Andrew Hozier-Byrne - better known by the mononym "Hozier".  You might recall Hozier from his hit song "Take me to Church" circa 2015 - the year Scary Terry was drafted.

Hence why around draft day that year I wondered if Boston might be better off moving the pick for a "bust" like Nik Stauskas or Andrew Bennett.  Clearly not.  Ainge nailed it.

Regardless, I've posted favorably about Terry over the years.  I pointed out his sensational D-League stats.  I pointed out that he was genuinely a Top 2 player his second attempt at summer league.  I openly pondered if he'd flourish had he been in Devin Booker's role.  And I was one of the first to point out that Terry might have been taking the leap this year at age 23 (usually the cut-off for when guys take a leap). 

Thrilled with his performance.  As good as he's been, nobody could really have expected him to be playing like an all-star in these playoffs.  You knew that Simmons might struggle against our defense.  You knew that Embiid had been limited by Horford during the regular season.  You knew that Philly's youth and inexperience could leave them shell-shocked against a team as locked in and the Celtics.  You knew that they might not recover from the emotional high of their Round 1 victory.  But the BIG unknown in this series was how Boston was going to consistently get buckets.  Tatum getting 20+ in 5 straight games could have been predicted on some level.  Tatum has that kind of superstar pedigree.  But Rozier playing like this ...  that's something else.  If he keeps that up, it's going to make for an interesting offseason.

I really hope we find a way to close out this series before Philly gets it together.  Hell of a start to the rivalry. 

I'd like to conclude by making an announcement.  I neglected to remember how much of a chore posting on CelticsBlog has become for me.   Making home dingers just isn't the same with such a small audience.  And so, I'd like to spend the remainder of my unretirement waiting for some nobel young steed worthy of the LarBrd33 mantel to impress me.  Think of it like Willy Wonka's golden tickets or "Ready Player One's" silver apples.  At the conclusion of my 60 day contract, one lucky poster may earn the right to the LarBrd33 moniker, be granted access to my account, and can carry on my legendary legacy for a new generation of CelticsBloggers ala Dread Pirate Roberts.   May the odds be ever in your favor.

[gouki88]

Really, LB? Now you're trying to play it off as you've been a catalyst of the Rozier fan club? Was that before or after you mockingly referred to him as Hozier and compared  him to Little Phil Pressey? Let's not be hypocritical now.

Exhibit A
http://forums.celticsblog.com/index.php?topic=79399.60

So we swap pressey for hozier.  We swap bass for Amir.  And that's about it.

Should be in the lotto next year.  I know we overachieved last year, but we were bottom 9 with 11 games left.  I can't see it happening again. 

Bummer of an offseason.

I don't necessarily want in on this argument but are you seriously bringing up something he posted 3 years ago when Rozier hadn't even played in the NBA yet? Come on, dude.

You are in it now. Go! Who is right?

I thought there wasn't even a search feature in looking through old posts, and you could only move backward through a ton of clicks.  So yeah, that's very much over the top.  Unless I'm just banned from a search feature too.

Not too difficult just a simple search of Hozier does the trick. Especially when LB did it ad nauseum to mock Rozier. That said, if LB is going to use a post in 2016 to try to make it seem as though he's been fully supportive of the guy, then why is one about 10 months before that not fair game?

I hadn't even heard of Rozier on draft night.  Nobody had.  He was expected to go in the 2nd round.  It's a testament to Danny's greatness that he was able to spot him in the dregs of a draft range everyone said was worthless.  Clearly not even Danny was sold - or he wouldn't have offered 4 first round picks (including the Rozier pick and the pick that became Jaylen Brown) to try to acquire Winslow.

But I'll tell you who I HAD heard of... Irish singer-songwriter and genuine hunk Andrew Hozier-Byrne - better known by the mononym "Hozier".  You might recall Hozier from his hit song "Take me to Church" circa 2015 - the year Scary Terry was drafted.

Hence why around draft day that year I wondered if Boston might be better off moving the pick for a "bust" like Nik Stauskas or Andrew Bennett.  Clearly not.  Ainge nailed it.

Regardless, I've posted favorably about Terry over the years.  I pointed out his sensational D-League stats.  I pointed out that he was genuinely a Top 2 player his second attempt at summer league.  I openly pondered if he'd flourish had he been in Devin Booker's role.  And I was one of the first to point out that Terry might have been taking the leap this year at age 23 (usually the cut-off for when guys take a leap). 

Thrilled with his performance.  As good as he's been, nobody could really have expected him to be playing like an all-star in these playoffs.  You knew that Simmons might struggle against our defense.  You knew that Embiid had been limited by Horford during the regular season.  You knew that Philly's youth and inexperience could leave them shell-shocked against a team as locked in and the Celtics.  You knew that they might not recover from the emotional high of their Round 1 victory.  But the BIG unknown in this series was how Boston was going to consistently get buckets.  Tatum getting 20+ in 5 straight games could have been predicted on some level.  Tatum has that kind of superstar pedigree.  But Rozier playing like this ...  that's something else.  If he keeps that up, it's going to make for an interesting offseason.

I really hope we find a way to close out this series before Philly gets it together.  Hell of a start to the rivalry. 

I'd like to conclude by making an announcement.  I neglected to remember how much of a chore posting on CelticsBlog has become for me.   And so, I'd like to spend the remainder of my unretirement waiting for some nobel young steed worthy of the LarBrd33 mantel to impress me.  Think of it like Willy Wonka's golden tickets or "Ready Player One's" silver apples.  At the conclusion of my 60 day contract, one lucky poster may earn the right to the LarBrd33 moniker, be granted access to my account, and can carry on my legendary legacy for a new generation of CelticsBloggers ala Dread Pirate Roberts.   May the odds be ever in your favor.

Game changer right here