The Celtics Have No One To Blame But Themselves For Blowing Not One, But Two Massive Leads In A Thrilling Showdown Against The Cavs

Maddie Meyer. Getty Images.

What a game. If you take a second to try and block out the fact that the Celts blew two separate 17+ point leads, one of which came in the first few minutes up 25-3 and the next with about 7ish minutes to go in the 3rd quarter, that game was entertaining as hell. There's nothing like a competitive game against two heavyweights who are both throwing haymakers, so as a basketball fan last night was awesome.

As a Celtics fan, I found it to be rather unpleasant. Call me crazy, but I'm one who believe that when this team finds itself with not one, but two different substantial leads at home, those are games they should win. Yes, I know the Celts were down 2 starters, guys who are obviously important in the areas that ended up killing the Celts last night, but I also know the team was good enough to build a 22 and 17 point lead without those guys. If you're good enough to build the lead, you're good enough to sustain it. At least to me.

So in that regard, the Celts choked. It's OK to admit it. Had things been reversed and it was the Cavs that blew a 22 and 17 point lead, what would we say today as Celts fans? That the Cavs choked. Just because we may not like that it was the Celts who were on the wrong end of something like this doesn't mean we should call it anything other than what it was

A choke job.

It is interesting how every single matchup this season has gone the same way, regardless of who was or wasn't in the lineup. The Celts storm out early in the first half, the Cavs storm back in the second, and at the end of the day it comes down to who executes better in the high leverage situations. This season? Each side did it twice.

Earlier this month the fully healthy Celts went into CLE and won handily after the Cavs made a 2nd half push, last night the Cavs got their lick back. Does it matter that their two wins came in games where the Celts were down Jaylen/Derrick in one and KP/Jrue in the other? Nope. Not to me at least. They don't get less of a win in those games, and again, in both of those losses the Celts were up double digits, both at home and on the road. 

I do get a sense that there are many Celts fans that for whatever reason don't respect the Cavs, and I'm not exactly sure why. They are essentially replicating the Celts 2023-24 season and Celts fans considered that to be legit right? It does feel like there's been this waiting for the Cavs to regress, and here we are basically 60 games into the season and they are still maintaining this level of play. It's OK to just accept that for this season, barring any sort of injury disaster, this is the level that the 2024-25 Cavs play at. It's one that if you do not handle your shit, play unfocused for stretches, and don't execute when it matters, they can beat you.

It's OK to acknowledge that there are other elite teams in the NBA in my opinion. Both sides in this matchup have advantages that the other has shown no signs of being able to consistently stop, which is why their games have been so much fun this season. It's why a potential series would be equally as fun. 

But we're certainly a ways before that could potentially happen, so first let's dive into what we witnessed last night

The Good

- Let me just say, I find it very annoying that we witnessed the best scoring performance of the Jays' career and at the end of the day, all it ended up being was a "despite the loss" tweet

I mean, that stings. I'm fairly certain the Celts had never lost a game when both players had gone off like this, and what we saw in this game (and all the games really) in this matchup is that the Cavs still very much have a Jays problem. Adding Hunter didn't matter defensively, Mobley was struggling, the other wings are too small, and the guards are too small. 

It starts with Jayson Tatum

To put it simply, Tatum was incredible. He got to wherever he wanted, whenever he wanted. He was efficient, he hit the glass, he defended, and he did it all while taking just 5 FTA. Considering the overwhelmingly majority of his FGA were in the paint/at the rim, you could make the case that things should have looked even better. I find it hard to believe that on a total of 0 of his 16 FGA (8 of which came in the paint) in the 2nd half that Tatum was not fouled a single time, but it is what it is. We know his whistle is dogshit, but there is no denying we are watching a generational talent.

When you think of a potential playoff series, the Cavs still haven't really shown an ability to solve this problem. Both Jays are able to hunt, even against this new look Cavs defense with Hunter and Okoro active. When you think of having to solve that problem 4 out of 7 times, it's understandable to feel pretty good about the Celts' chances in that matchup.

- I suppose you could also include Derrick's night at times in this section, but last night really felt like the Jays did their part and nobody else really helped, so let's just move on

The Bad

- We may as well start with the biggest issue the Celts have in this matchup, and that is their Donovan Mitchell problem. The same way the Cavs haven't solved their Jays problem, the Celts in no way shape or form have shown any progress in solving their own Mitchell problem. 

What we're seeing is arguably the biggest Celtics killer in history. Forget The Boston Stranger Andrew Toney, forget MJ, forget pretty much any other player who has tormented this team throughout their history. It is Donovan Mitchell, and his career 30.8 average against BOS that sits atop the throne as the highest average of all time, passing Jordan's 30.7

Since arriving in CLE in 2022, Mitchell has played 13 games including the playoffs against the Celtics. He has finished with fewer than 30 points just three times, and in two of those he scored 29. He has 3 separate 40 bombs. 

The matchup problem exists in a few areas. For starters, Mitchell is an elite pull up 3pt shooter. Few players in the NBA understand how important that shot is more than Mitchell, and it's about as deadly a weapon as you can have late in a game. This matters for the same reason it matters that Tatum takes pull up 3s. It opens everything up. When you're worried about his jumper, he has you. Now you're dealing with a guy who is an incredible paint/rim finisher getting into that zone with ease.

The next issue comes via hunting. The same way the Celts hunt the Cavs' smaller players, the Cavs are great at finding Mitchell possessions against defenders that have zero chance of staying in front. It doesn't take much, just a simple high screen and you have guys like Hauser who are left on an island. Sorry, that's a matchup that Hauser is RARELY going to win. And for those screaming for Torrey Craig, you're getting the same result. Mitchell cooked every matchup he had in his win, and that's the challenge that the Celts are going to have to figure out in a series. 

Even if you are of the belief that the Celts playoff defenses will have different wrinkles, or that the addition of Holiday back on the perimeter is all it takes to limit Mitchell, I'll just remind you he had 33, 29, and 33 in the 3 games he played in the second round last year. 

Since he got to CLE, the Celts haven't had an answer for him. That is objectively true, and it was certainly true last night. Remember their first loss to CLE on the road? Up 12 heading into the 4th quarter? Mitchell went nuts to close that game out, no different than last night.

- If this matchup of heavyweights has taught us anything so far, it's that the margins could not be more important. These two offenses are too even, the shooting is too good on either side, and the defenses are so good that these games are often coming down to who handles the margins better.

In this game, that was the Cavs by a landslide. 

Both teams went 17-39 from deep, so it's not like one just had a hot shooting night. Both were great from deep. So how did this game change? The margins.

The Cavs finished with 14 OREB for 18 2nd chance points, and had 3 fewer TOs while adding 15 points off BOS TOs. In terms of shot totals, they won that battle 94-89. In terms of made baskets, the Cavs made just 2 more (45-43).

There's your ballgame. More wasted possessions (TOs) that led to 15 points. More OREB and 2nd chance points. The Cavs were solid enough in those areas to win the shot margin total, and there's your 7 point difference.

The 4th quarter is especially where they made this impact, and that tends to happen in these BOS losses. Late game rebounding is and has always been a big time problem for the Celts this year, and in the 4th quarter alone the Cavs had 7 OREB. They also didn't turn the ball over, Celts had 2, and you simply cannot be that poor in late game situations against elite teams. 

In those moments, you have to execute. Simple as that. That's probably one of my biggest takeaways and why I think CLE deserves all the credit in the world for this comeback. When it came time to execute and make a difference around the margins in high leverage situations, the Cavs came through and the Celts didn't. 

Giving up OREBs with 2 bigs on the floor, nobody boxing out late in the 4th, not finding bodies to box out, it's all losing basketball. It's how you let teams hand around early, and it's how you finish off a collapse late. 

- Which brings me to the defense. Despite what the numbers show, I haven't loved the Celts defense as of late. Way too poor in terms of perimeter resistance, and I think we can all agree that was an issue in this loss. Whether it was Mitchell or Garland, nobody could stay in front.

Allowing 123 points, 47/43% shooting and 17 3PM while only forcing 7 TOs is about as poor as it gets, and again, this was not some sort of offensive fluke from the Cavs. This is who they are. After that first quarter, allowing 38, 31 and 28 points the rest of the way is not even close to an acceptable level of defensive execution, not to mention they were also on the tough end of a whistle, allowing 19 FTAs. For a team that never fouls, that's a high ass number. 

Even with Al/Kornet available, the Celts were again poor in their paint defense, allowing 46 points on 23-43 shooting. As we've seen now in the DET and CLE losses, even with centers available if you aren't able to guard your yard and force paint misses, you're cooked. This game was a classic example of it doesn't really matter how good you are offensively, if you don't defend, you die.

Think about it. The Jays combined for 83. The Celts put up 116 on 48/43% with 17 3PM and lost. That has been virtually impossible to do during this entire era. So why did it happen? Because they did not execute on a consistent basis on the defensive end of the floor. You face an elite offense and don't get stops, don't be surprised when it comes back to bite you in the ass.

- For my money, blowing the 17 point lead with 7 minutes to go in the 3rd is much more of an issue than the early 25-3 lead. Eventually, the Cavs were going to make shots in the 1st quarter. So while that's very embarrassing because of the optics, to me it wasn't the worst of the two collapses.

That has to be how the team finished the 3rd quarter. Once Jaylen was forced out with his 4th foul with 7:09 to go, the Cavs went on a 22-11 run to close out the quarter. Pritchard made a 3PM to put them up 11 with 2:23 to go. The close?

1. White missed 3PA

2. Tatum missed 2pt FGA

3. Tatum missed 3PA

4. Tatum missed 3PA

5. Tatum made layup

They went essentially those final 2 minutes without making a shot before Tatum's layup. It was clear he was pretty much gassed at that point, but that drought coincided with the Cavs scoring pretty much on every trip down. Suddenly a 11 point lead with 2 minutes left was a 1 point lead to end the quarter. Knowing Tatum was going to have to sit to start the 4th, that was a BRUTAL stretch to stop executing.

After building that lead up to 5 to start the 4th in the non-Tatum minutes, suddenly that lineup had a brutal stretch of not executing, and the Cavs took over the lead by 3 by the time Tatum came back in at the 8:42 mark. 

So basically, in 5ish minutes of gametime, the Cavs went from down 11 to up 3. Both with Tatum on and off the floor, which should never happen at home. 

We saw the same thing in the final minutes as well. Jaylen ties the game at 114-114 with 3:15 left, and the Celts did not make a single shot the rest of the way. Those possessions?

1. Jaylen missed layup

2. Tatum offensive foul on a screen

3. White missed 3PA

4. Derrick FTs

5. Tatum blocked 3PA

Same thing as the end of the 3rd. Celts didn't make a shot on one end, and didn't get a stop on the other. The Cavs scored on every single one of those possessions and the lead was 7 in a blink of an eye. 

Execution, especially late in games, is vital. The Celts had two opportunities to close the end of the 3rd and end of the 4th strong, and it was actually the Cavs that pulled it off. 

The Ugly

- Easily the worst showing from the bench all season. Not just the fact that they only scored 6 points, but that they lost the bench battle 33-6. The Cavs reserves finished 8-13 from deep, and both Pritchard and Kornet were a horrific -36 and -26 respectively in their minutes. It's hard to even fathom how awful that is. 

To be honest, the Cavs starters had their issues against the Celts starters. This is probably where the Jrue/KP issue hurt them most, because with Hauser starting (and not giving anything on either end), the options available were certainly limited.

I also think suggesting that Torrey Craig would be some sort of savior in this game is being a bit dramatic. He wasn't even all that great against the Pistons, and he does not have the quickness to stay in front of Mitchell or Garland either. He was a buyout guy for a reason, but what this does show you is that shorthanded, the Celts have zero shot if the bench is not just going to be a no shown, but be legitimately hurtful in their minutes.

Kornet couldn't rebound to save his life, Pritchard went just 2-4 (2-4) which clearly isn't going to get it done given who was out and how much the Cavs bench was scoring. 

- I know we already talked about it, but it's annoying how awful the 4th quarter was. Considering the Celts have spent large portions of this season being the worst 4th quarter team on Earth, I guess it's not surprising but holy fuck is this awful

- We all saw the inconsistent whistle. It's fucked, but whatever at this point. Tatum just 5 FTs despite how aggressive he was and the blatant contact he dealt with. The Celts being called for 9 fouls to the Cavs 2 once they went up 17. The 4th foul on Jaylen happening 2 minutes later with Allen which was a no call. It wasn't exactly the best night if you're looking for a consistent whistle.

But it's also not why the Celtics lost, and it is not why they blew not one, but two big leads. That was their own doing. That was their own lack of defense, rebounding, and overall execution. 

- Now 18-11 at home, that's pretty gross. The Celts have the 3rd fewest blown leads in the NBA this season, but 10 of them have come in the 4th quarter. Their 8 10+ point blown leads are about league average. By comparison, the Cavs own 3 4th quarter blown leads and just 2 10+ point blown leads.

Celts have to be better, especially when the games matter most in the 4th.

There's certainly no time to feel bad about themselves, because Nikola Jokic comes to town tomorrow in what should be an equally tough matchup. He didn't play the first time, and the Nuggets have been playing well. All the things that plagued the Celts last night are going to be just as important in tomorrow's game. Playing these competitive games is fun and all, but at some point you'd like to see the Celts not puke on themselves and come away with a win,