A media narrative parallel with the 2008 Finals

[Drucci]

Most of the media are picking Golden State to win the Finals, which makes sense considering their team and experience.

However, I’m kind of surprised at how many media people are picking them mostly because the Celtics struggled in round 2 and in the ECF and had to play two games 7 to get there. Just like in 2008 where the Lakers were favorites for the media in large part because the Celtics struggled to get out of the East.

I was perplexed back then because I thought, matchup and mentality wise, the Celtics were clearly better than the Lakers - which they proved in the Finals. And I simply don’t understand the argument of looking at past series to predict the outcome of a new one, with different personnel and stakes. I just find it lazy and non pertinent at all, you can struggle in previous rounds and be great in the last one and vice versa.

Anyone else feeling the same way ?

[Moranis]

Not perplexed at all.  If you think the series is going to be close then little things, like how well you close games,, can play a big role in the outcome.

[Drucci]

Not perplexed at all.  If you think the series is going to be close then little things, like how well you close games,, can play a big role in the outcome.

Yes, but then why take only, for example, game 7 against Miami as the point of reference ? Why not the first round against Brooklyn where the team closed out each game well en route to a sweep ? Or game 6 against Milwaukee in a must-win situation ?

My point is, past rounds and comparisons as well as previous difficulties don't make much sense as it's all about matchups for this series.

[CelticsWhat35]

Not perplexed at all.  If you think the series is going to be close then little things, like how well you close games,, can play a big role in the outcome.

Yes, but then why take only, for example, game 7 against Miami as the point of reference ? Why not the first round against Brooklyn where the team closed out each game well en route to a sweep ? Or game 6 against Milwaukee in a must-win situation ?

My point is, past rounds and comparisons as well as previous difficulties don't make much sense as it's all about matchups for this series.

It’s not ALL about matchups because the Celtics matched up well against the Bucks and Heat and still struggled.  I also think a lot of it has to do with Rob Williams.  If he was fully healthy, I believe people would have a different perspective on this series.  Maybe not nationally because I’m sure there is a bit of a lazy factor there with people who probably haven’t watched enough of either team and default to the Warriors’ history.

[Roy H.]

We're definitely hearing some of the same things:  the Celts struggled to put away opponents, had a tougher path in the playoffs, didn't have the championship experience.

But, the big difference back them was that we were a dominant team the entire season.  The Lakers were the hot team, playing well since they landed Gasol, but we were still the #1 defense, the league leader in point differential, etc.  The media picking against us was, in my mind, almost disrespectful in how unanimous it was.

This season, the "experts" (lol) aren't as decisively pro-GSW, and we do have a few legit question marks, unlike that 2008 team.

[boscel33]

Most of the media are picking Golden State to win the Finals, which makes sense considering their team and experience.

However, I’m kind of surprised at how many media people are picking them mostly because the Celtics struggled in round 2 and in the ECF and had to play two games 7 to get there. Just like in 2008 where the Lakers were favorites for the media in large part because the Celtics struggled to get out of the East.

I was perplexed back then because I thought, matchup and mentality wise, the Celtics were clearly better than the Lakers - which they proved in the Finals. And I simply don’t understand the argument of looking at past series to predict the outcome of a new one, with different personnel and stakes. I just find it lazy and non pertinent at all, you can struggle in previous rounds and be great in the last one and vice versa.

Anyone else feeling the same way ?

I get why the media is all over GSW, 6 finals in 8 years and they're getting healthy at the right time.  That said, I think the C's are tested.  They beat the #3 seed and defending champs and they beat the #1 seed.  they played until the end rather than play for a matchup in the playoffs.  GSW was a #3 seed, beat a #6 seed, then a #2 seed, then a #4 seed.  They won two more games during the regular season than the C's and split the season series.  I like the C's chances, but, GSW getting hot when it counts.

[Moranis]

Not perplexed at all.  If you think the series is going to be close then little things, like how well you close games,, can play a big role in the outcome.

Yes, but then why take only, for example, game 7 against Miami as the point of reference ? Why not the first round against Brooklyn where the team closed out each game well en route to a sweep ? Or game 6 against Milwaukee in a must-win situation ?

My point is, past rounds and comparisons as well as previous difficulties don't make much sense as it's all about matchups for this series.

Boston may have swept Brooklyn, but it certainly didn't close out games all that well in that series.  Game 1, up 9 entering the 4th and get outscored 15-2 to start the quarter before needing a layup at the buzzer to win.  Game 4,  Boston was up 12 to start the 4th and Brooklyn was down 1 with a minute and a half left. 

And sure game 6 against Milwaukee was an epic win, but it was only required because Boston blew a gigantic 4th quarter lead in game 5.  Remember Boston was up 93-79 with 10 minutes left in that game.  And went up 107-105 with 31 seconds left (which was still the score at the 15 second mark).  That was the game where Giannis hit the 1st foul shot with 14 seconds left, missed the 2nd, which Portis got the offensive rebound on and scored to put Milwaukee up 1.  Smart missed a layup and Milwaukee hit 2 more foul shots with 5 seconds left and Smart turned it over to end the game.

Boston also failed to close Miami out at home in game 6 and had to win game 7 on the road. 

Fair or not, Boston has struggled to put teams away and has blown some big leads.  They've also gotten some big leads, but it is entirely fair to question the close out ability of a team that has struggled to close out teams all season and which again reared its ugly head in all 3 playoff rounds that Boston played.   

I don't think it will matter.  As I've said consistently, I expect Boston to win this series easily in 5 games, but I'm not perplexed at all by people that think Boston's inability to close out games may be a factor in the series because Boston has failed to close out games all season long.

[celticinorlando]

I mean didn’t golden state get beat by 40 to Memphis without Ja?

Warriors have had an extremely fortunate road. Denver with no porter or Murray.

Memphis without Ja most of the series

Dallas with a one player team in Luka.

Boston has been tested.

[nyceltsfan]

Stylistically, I think this GS team is more similar to Brooklyn than either Milwaukee or Miami.  The main difference is that GS can defend, while Brooklyn was not great defensively.  If I had no rooting interest and were betting at even money, I would take GS in this series.  I wouldn't bet against their experience and ability to close games.

However, I do think the C's represent a lot of matchup problems for GS and if the C's can exploit those matchups, I think there is a reasonable chance of pulling this out.  While much of the focus is on Tatum and Brown vs. Steph and Klay, I think the difference in the series will come down to the role players, and actually having the role players do things we are not accustomed to seeing through the first few rounds.  Smart should be trying to get inside position and posting up Steph this whole series.  Horford should become a primary offensive option, if Draymond is guarding Tatum.  I actually think this is a decent series for Pritchard to put on a full court press in short stints just to get the ball out of Steph's hands.  If Timelord is healthy, we may see him score a little more.

Let's (hopefully) put all this together and make the media eat crow!

[Birdman]

Media had us underdogs against Nets, then Bucks & then the Heat..but we beat all 3.. I said before playoffs that only team I was worried about was Milwaukee..I really like our chances against Warriors

[nickagneta]

Celtics have been both terrible in 4th quarters and awesome. Everyone can pick a game to prove their point regarding 4th quarters. But let's also not forget that, much like the 2008 Celtics championship team, the CS went through a gauntlet of all-time players on excellent teams.

It's arguable Boston beat 3 of the top 7 teams in the league to get to these Finals and are about to play another top 7 team. That's brutal and because of that, yeah, there were some bad 4th quarters, but give some credit to their opponents. They were some of the best teams in the league and they had some great 4th quarters too, irregardless of who they played.

[footey]

A lot of the media favoritism toward the Warriors is because it fits a better narrative:  Golden State in their 6th finals in 8 years, the new dynasty, and Steph Curry will finally win his Series MVP and earn the right to be considered an all time top 10 player.   There are no such interesting narratives associated with the Celtics yet, because these guys haven't won any prior championships. 

The energy is about to shift.

[wiley]

I wish GS were happy fat cats instead of a reconstructed crew looking to prove they didn't need Durant…etc.

Hopefully that’s all far enough past that it’s not an energy drink in their psyches. 

Anyway, plenty to motivate them….age and dwindling chances, erasing two off years, the Durant thing, etc.

C’s have to match the desire while playing high IQ ball…

Predict 7 games..

[Diggles]

I love how these hot takes AGE!   LOL  Such a good example of most people in the world.   90% of people "react" to life vs Respond to life.   Too bad 89% of the people can't recover from making those Edited.  Profanity and masked profanity are against forum rules and may result in discipline.ty decisions.

[libermaniac]

There has been a clear western conference bias in the NBA for years. I read somewhere yesterday that the Eastern conference team has not been a favorite for a long time. I’d prefer to be the underdogs. Cs tend to relax if they don’t feel their backs are against the wall.