Can the Celtics Be Both Champs and Chokers?

[BudweiserCeltic]

If the Celtics are champs, they can choke on whatever they want and I could care less.

[crownsy]

i think its a combination of a couple things.

1. the inexperience in these type of games of the whole team.

2. as much as i love rajon, and i do, we sometimes forget that he's really a first year starter who's been told "so, welcome to your first meaningful games of your career. by the way, we have, to be honest, no real reliable guy behind you. so, pretty much 3 hall of famers career legacy's ride on your shoulders. good luck kiddo!"

now, this is not a bad thing, and i think this pressure cooker of a playoffs he's going through can only be good for him, but we have to step back sometimes when he struggles, which often means the team struggles, and remember that we are blessed he's this good already and poised under pressure. that said, this is still a roller coaster for him, and were along for the unpredictable and fun ride. 

3. the lack of ray- real, real glad ray has seemed to find his stroke again, but honestly, its amazing to me we are where we are with him struggling this badly. hopefully this is over with now, the sleeve demands it to be so!

4. the fact were so emotion driven- being emotion driven, as we surley are between the twin towers of pierce and KG, is a blessing and a curse. on one hand, it means in every big game, your going to have energy (see: 5 game 5's and 7's) but, if your energy is down, due to a lead, being on the road, or having the saftey net of the garden behind you, your sunk.

were not a team like the pistons or the spurs, who can cold heartedly put teams away, we are the ultimate emotional high team.

[Who]

It appears so

[JAM]

They are just learning how to be "Champs".  It is not an overnight process.  All-in-all it is amazing that a team with 7 or 8 new guys in the rotation, and a 2nd year Point Guard are one win away from playing in the Finals. 

[celtics2]

The Celts have been choking some. After the ordeal with Atlanta and now Detroit I would think LA would be easier. R. Allen will have to be a big player though.

[nickagneta]

Interesting way of looking at things Redz. Very unique.

Here's the problem I have with the whole idea though, the Celtics were not the only great team playing on the floor last night. This core of  Detroit Pistons are former NBA Champions and 6 straight times Eastern Conference Finals participants. Saying that the Celtics choked late is just not giving enough credit to a veteran championship caliber team that has come from well behind to win playoff games in the past.

Basketball like no other sport is a game where a team can suddenly impose its will upon a game and dominate it for stretches at a time and it doesn't matter the quality of the opponent. The Champion Spurs lost a 20 point, second half lead in LA last week. Are they chokers?

In the last series against Cleveland there were multiple games where a team roared back from major points down to change the game. This same Detroit team was getting destroyed by Philly in game 3 of their opening round series and came back to win that game.

It is a commonplace thing in basketball, a game of ebb and flow, for large point swings to occur.

You might look at it as the Celtics tightening up and choking and almost giving the game away.

I see it as a great defensive team that imposed its will on the game and marched right back into competition only to be held off t the last by possibly an even better team.

Losers choke. Ask the 2004 New York Yankees. Ask the 1978 and 1986 Red Sox. Ask the 2007 Patriots. Ask the 2001 Rams. Ask the 2002 Sacramento Kings. Ask the 2006 Dallas Mavericks.

Winners win and are crowned champions. Losers choke.

Just my humble opinion.

[RebusRankin]

If you win the championship you can't be labelled chokers.

[Who]

It's not like it was just one game where the Celtics have been dodgy down the stretch. It happens more often than not in this postseason.

Outside of Game Seven against Cleveland, what other game was it the Celtics great play down the stretch that won the game? Why do they keep losing unneccessary games? Or failing to perform at a consistent level? Showing their brilliance in Game Three then falling down hard in Game Four.

[bMunch]

i remember plenty of games in the championship 80s where the celtics froze, couldn't hit shots, stalled on offense and did all that the celtics last night did. they're remembered as champions.

choke = lose.

the celtics didn't make easy on our nerves but they pulled out a win. kudos to detroit for demonstrating their testicular fortitude in getting back into the game.

kudos to the celts for pulling it out.

[nickagneta]

It's not like it was just one game where the Celtics have been dodgy down the stretch. It happens more often than not in this postseason.

Outside of Game Seven against Cleveland, what other game was it the Celtics great play down the stretch that won the game? Why do they keep losing unneccessary games? Or failing to perform at a consistent level? Showing their brilliance in Game Three then falling down hard in Game Four.

Lack of experience playing together in postseason style basketball.

We all figured this team would take a while to gel to be able to win basetball games. They didn't. They won at a tremendous level at regular season basketball.

But playoff basketball where you have to beat the same team 4 times to advance is another game and matter. This team has never experience playoff intensity basketball and is playing teams that have(Cleveland and Detroit).

They are taking time to gel at a completely different game and yet are succeeding in getting done what ultimately needs to get done.

next year if the core is in tact, I seriously doubt this type of inconsistency will be occuring.

[Triboy16]

Call it chocking but unless you loss the game you survived. The celtics are not playing an undiciplined team like atlanta. Detoit has been to the finals for so many years now and know how to play as a team. They also have alot of respect from the refs(give them some calls some other teams would ever get). If you ask me, i knew we were going to win last night when we had the lead by 17. If you think the celts chocked , detroit did it in a worst way the way we cameback at the end of 1st half. Also consider the celts are the most dominant third quarter team in the nba right now. (Though i wish they could be a dominant 4th quarter team instead)

1st quarter usually really good or not so good
2nd quarter very good
3rd i dunno what happens in that dressing room but they are the best third quarter team no doubt
4th good play until 5 minutes and down where they play average

[Who]

It's not like it was just one game where the Celtics have been dodgy down the stretch. It happens more often than not in this postseason.

Outside of Game Seven against Cleveland, what other game was it the Celtics great play down the stretch that won the game? Why do they keep losing unneccessary games? Or failing to perform at a consistent level? Showing their brilliance in Game Three then falling down hard in Game Four.

Lack of experience playing together in postseason style basketball.

We all figured this team would take a while to gel to be able to win basetball games. They didn't. They won at a tremendous level at regular season basketball.

But playoff basketball where you have to beat the same team 4 times to advance is another game and matter. This team has never experience playoff intensity basketball and is playing teams that have(Cleveland and Detroit).

They are taking time to gel at a completely different game and yet are succeeding in getting done what ultimately needs to get done.

next year if the core is in tact, I seriously doubt this type of inconsistency will be occuring.

It's been too much for that reason alone

[nickagneta]

It's not like it was just one game where the Celtics have been dodgy down the stretch. It happens more often than not in this postseason.

Outside of Game Seven against Cleveland, what other game was it the Celtics great play down the stretch that won the game? Why do they keep losing unneccessary games? Or failing to perform at a consistent level? Showing their brilliance in Game Three then falling down hard in Game Four.

Lack of experience playing together in postseason style basketball.

We all figured this team would take a while to gel to be able to win basetball games. They didn't. They won at a tremendous level at regular season basketball.

But playoff basketball where you have to beat the same team 4 times to advance is another game and matter. This team has never experience playoff intensity basketball and is playing teams that have(Cleveland and Detroit).

They are taking time to gel at a completely different game and yet are succeeding in getting done what ultimately needs to get done.

next year if the core is in tact, I seriously doubt this type of inconsistency will be occuring.

It's been too much for that reason alone

Why?

[Redz]

i think its a combination of a couple things.

1. the inexperience in these type of games of the whole team.

2. as much as i love rajon, and i do, we sometimes forget that he's really a first year starter who's been told "so, welcome to your first meaningful games of your career. by the way, we have, to be honest, no real reliable guy behind you. so, pretty much 3 hall of famers career legacy's ride on your shoulders. good luck kiddo!"

now, this is not a bad thing, and i think this pressure cooker of a playoffs he's going through can only be good for him, but we have to step back sometimes when he struggles, which often means the team struggles, and remember that we are blessed he's this good already and poised under pressure. that said, this is still a roller coaster for him, and were along for the unpredictable and fun ride. 

3. the lack of ray- real, real glad ray has seemed to find his stroke again, but honestly, its amazing to me we are where we are with him struggling this badly. hopefully this is over with now, the sleeve demands it to be so!

4. the fact were so emotion driven- being emotion driven, as we surley are between the twin towers of pierce and KG, is a blessing and a curse. on one hand, it means in every big game, your going to have energy (see: 5 game 5's and 7's) but, if your energy is down, due to a lead, being on the road, or having the saftey net of the garden behind you, your sunk.

were not a team like the pistons or the spurs, who can cold heartedly put teams away, we are the ultimate emotional high team.

Good explanation Crownsy.  Particularly part 2 and the pressure of running the offense for 3 likely Hall of Famers whose legacies as "career losers" are on the line.

[Who]

It's not like it was just one game where the Celtics have been dodgy down the stretch. It happens more often than not in this postseason.

Outside of Game Seven against Cleveland, what other game was it the Celtics great play down the stretch that won the game? Why do they keep losing unneccessary games? Or failing to perform at a consistent level? Showing their brilliance in Game Three then falling down hard in Game Four.

Lack of experience playing together in postseason style basketball.

We all figured this team would take a while to gel to be able to win basetball games. They didn't. They won at a tremendous level at regular season basketball.

But playoff basketball where you have to beat the same team 4 times to advance is another game and matter. This team has never experience playoff intensity basketball and is playing teams that have(Cleveland and Detroit).

They are taking time to gel at a completely different game and yet are succeeding in getting done what ultimately needs to get done.

next year if the core is in tact, I seriously doubt this type of inconsistency will be occuring.

It's been too much for that reason alone

Why?

..... Because I've never seen a team this affected/effected (darn that thread!) by this reason alone in postseason play. I can't think of a single team that's suffered this severely and this often and play good games in between ... because of that reason.