Since my mommy lives out of state (in a fascist state) and I went to a concert Friday night, I worked Sunday before, during, and after the game (don't get it twisted, I still caught 90%~ of it). Parlay that with about 49 physical ailments I'm battling, and you've got a DOL Celtics Game 7 recap/look ahead blog starting at approximately 5:13 pm on Monday the 15th.
At this point, what else is there to say other than Jayson Tatum?
WHAT A SON!!!!
Two+ things can be accurate at the same time:
Tatum had atrocious starts to Games 4-6. He's also (humbly) one of the best basketball players on the planet. The 2x First Team All-NBA, 2023 ASG, and 2022 ECF MVP showed that with his record-setting 51-point Game 7. I think most would agree that his hot streak started late in the 4th quarter of Game 6 when he absolutely took over the game, stealing the souls of all Philly fans, players, and coaches in the process with a bukkake of three balls.
I'll admit there's time he feels a little inconsistent (far too many 30ish % shooting nights), but Jayson Tatum has proven throughout his postseason career that he is (one of the most overused terms in sports) a dog. Despite what some may say or think, basketball is a team game. While Jayson certainly carried the load, the C's wouldn't be moving on the ECF (again) with the likes of Jaylen, Marcus, Al, Time, D-White, and Brogdon...shit Grant too even though he's on the fringe of being in the rotation rn. He's still my guy.
It was a hard-fought series. I must give the Sixers their flowers. Philly was right there until the C's 28-3 run in the 3rd quarter brought the game from 55-55 to 83-58. Yikes!
IMO, that was the basketball Gods' response for some big-time hashtag BAD guy behavior from Georges Naing. Sick plural first name, dude. 
I fucking LOVE how Jaylen included that pic in his IG post about the series.
Juice also gave the C's 25/6/2/2/2 and the fans a glowing report after he called them out for a lack of energy (deservingly so).
Congratulations to Joel Embiid for winning one of the emptiest MVPs ever. If I were a Sixer fan, I'd be dunking my Wawa Hoagie in bleach after hearing this trash. It's quite possibly the most tone-deaf statement by an athlete in the 2020s! (that doesn't include your Aubrey Huffs of the world)
James Harden scored 9 points on 3/11 shooting in Game 7 and was not good in 5/7 games. PLEASE don't forget that his 45 points in Game 1 came without Embiid on the floor, and that big dumbie still blames his teammates!
Of course, placing all the blame on the players is unfair. Doc Rivers is Doc Rivers for a reason. What an excellent call by me in my Game 5 recap. It feels fantastic to be on the right side of one of these collapses for once.
Who knows if Doc will get fired or not? Honestly, I don't really care either way. I'll always appreciate what he did accomplish in Boston (even though it should've been more) but am much more focused on this current Celtics team winning a championship for the first time since 2008.
It's crazy, though. A few days ago, I was thinking about how this season could end much sooner than anticipated...all that promise was nearly gone, yet here we are again; Celtics-Heat for a trip to the NBA Finals: Presented by YoutubeTV, after Boston came back from down 3-2 in an ECSF where they had two home losses in the first five games. This will be the 3rd ECF between these teams since the 2020 Bubble and 4th overall since 2012. Miami holds the edge 2-1 and has two rings to the C's 0 in that time frame, but #0 on the C's has me feeling great about their chances of ending this agonizing title drought. That being said, it's gonna be a battle. I'm sure Jimmy Butler has at least one 50-piece in him. My immediate reaction is C's in 6, but I wouldn't be shocked to see the C's have another seven gamer (ideally, we gentlemen's sweep 'em). Regardless of what happens in the upcoming weeks, ESPN can fuck aaaallll the way off with these "analytics." I'm feeling a bout of PTSD from last year's NBA Finals: Presented by YoutubeTV, where some publications said the C's had like an 88% chance of winning the series. Of course, I think/hope the C's win this series, but the Heat deserve at least like a 35% chance with Himmy Buckets and the best coach in the association.
**Upon further research, I have found that disgusting graphic from 2022**
I hate to admit it because I love to discount the Lakers AAU tourney bubblegum ring, but the data is hard to ignore.
Of course, I want the Celtics to win it all and will be disappointed if they come up short...but it is pretty fucking remarkable that they're back in the ECF again. It's their 5th appearance since the 2016-17 season. They've done this with three head coaches and dozens of players. Obviously, some guys have been around for most/all of these runs, AND you want to win it all, but 29 teams don't every year. It could sound like loser talk to some, but for the C's to be in this position consistently is arguably all you can ask for as a fan.
They're so fucking close and have an amazing opportunity in front of them. I have a feeling we're gonna get a Celtics-Lakers Finals, but I'm not looking past the Heat. This Miami team is not your typical eight seed, but they still are the eight seed, so it's at least a semi-favorable draw (on paper, for now). You know Ole Dozo will be bleeding green. Go C's!
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