nba regular season has entered the final stage. The situation in the Western Conference is changing every day. The three teams of Nuggets + Timberwolves + Thunder are competing for the first place. The Clippers have almost integrated into the second group. The Suns have the most difficult remaining schedule and may give the Lakers a chance to rush. A chance to be in the top eight. The Rockets are ready to surpass the Warriors at any time and become the last straw that crushes the Warriors era. As in the past ten years or so, even if the winning rate reaches 60%, you may not be able to get a ticket to the playoffs in the Western Conference. It all depends on who can keep up the pace in the final sprint. In contrast, the situation in the Eastern Conference is very clear. The Celtics took the lead and secured the Eastern Conference regular season championship early. The teams from the Bucks to the Magic competed for the second position, and the Pacers to the 76ers competed for the second place. Sixth in the East. After Embiid returns, the 76ers have a chance to catch the last train in the playoffs.
In fact, since James left the Eastern Conference and Leonard led the Raptors to win the championship, the competition in the Eastern Conference has always been a three-legged state. The Celtics + Bucks in the regular season will be counted as a Heat in the playoffs. In the past few years, only the Bucks have won a championship. The Celtics built the team around the cornerstone of Jaylen Brown + Tatum. They have reached the Eastern Conference Finals five times in the past seven years, but only entered the Finals once and were easily defeated by the Warriors. Last summer, the Celtics upgraded their lineup, sending away Gervais, Smart, Lowe, Brogton and others in exchange for Porcelain and Holiday. The Celtics also had the league's starting "Big Five" "With the configuration, Tatum averaged 27.3 points per game + Brown averaged 23.3 points per game + Porcelain averaged 20.3 points per game + White averaged 15.5 points per game + Holiday averaged 12.8 points per game. The five of them averaged 99 points per game in total!
And the top three substitutes: Pritchard swings at the 1st and 2nd positions, averaging 8.7 points + 39% three-point shooting percentage per game; Hauser swings at the 3rd and 4th positions, averaging 8.7 points + 43% three-point shooting percentage per game In terms of shooting percentage, there is also Al Horford, who averages 8.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Simply comparing the top 8 players in the NBA lineup, the Celtics must be unique. The numbers don't lie. He ranks first in the league in offensive efficiency (122.5), second in the league in defensive efficiency (110.8), second in the league in scoring (121.1 points per game), second in the league in rebounds (46.4), ranks first in the league in three-point shooting percentage (39%), and averages 16.6 field goals per game. Ranked first in the league in three-point scoring! To be precise, the Celtics have already faced 85% of the league's teams and can crush them without any difference! However, they are definitely not a championship-level team, because there is a lower limit guarantee, but no upper limit support.
In the past 24 games, the Celtics have only lost 4 games. But it was these four games that exposed many shortcomings: against the Cavaliers in early March, leading by 22 points in the final quarter, but suffered a huge reversal by the Cavaliers, and Tatum disappeared directly! In the loss to the Nuggets, Brown scored 41 points, while Tatum scored 15 points on 5-of-13 shooting, which was also not a match. Including two fierce battles with the Hawks, a team at the play-off level. One was a 30-point lead, but the opponent suffered a huge reversal. The other was dragged to overtime by the opponent. Murray scored 11 points to beat the Celtics. people! It can be simply understood as: After the Celtics locked up the Eastern Conference regular season championship, they slacked off. However, after suffering a 30-point reversal in the first game, they deployed all the main players in the second game and were still defeated. This can only show one problem: the hard power is not enough.
Naturally, we have to start with the core Tatum. Tatum has stated many times this season that he wants to take over the banner of James and Durant and hopes to become the future face of the league. But does Tatum have this ability? Let’s take a look at some statistics: At critical moments this season, Tatum averaged 2.6 points per game, and his two-field shooting percentage was 35.2% + 31.3%. He was the least efficient among all players in the league who took more than 50 effective shots (critical moments). ,none of them! The most efficient players on the Celtics at critical moments are White and Porcelain. But there are two objective conditions. First of all, during the playoffs, you will not encounter teams like the Pistons, Bulls, and Wizards; secondly, when it comes to the desperate moment in the playoffs, it depends on the efficiency of the core. To put it bluntly, Tatum can't even stand up to the Hawks' Matthews.
The regular season winning percentage has no meaning in the playoffs, especially for the Celtics, a team that is good at pinching weak points. still have a question.Last summer, Brown and the Celtics completed a five-year super-max salary extension of US$289 million. This summer, Tatum is eligible to reach a five-year super-max salary of US$315 million with the Celtics. When the two big contracts begin to take effect Afterwards, it was difficult for the Celtics to retain White, Porcelain, and Holiday, because the double pick would account for nearly 65% of the salary space, directly exceeding US$110 million! Therefore, the real window for the Celtics to win the championship is this season and next season. However, the two top picks have cooperated for 6 years before. Both of them lacked the ability to solve the game at critical moments. Can they win it overnight this season?
Obviously not, because in the decisive moment of the playoffs, the only person who can determine the life or death of the team is Tatum, and at most Jaylen Brown. When the Celtics reach the playoffs, they will encounter the Heat sooner or later in the Eastern Conference. Even if they break out of the Eastern Conference, the Celtics will not perform poorly against the Thunder and Nuggets this season, and even the Lakers and Clippers will not. Can beat the Celtics at will. The Celtics really don't have the championship potential. Both Tatum and Brown are more suitable to be second-in-command. Even if the configuration around them reaches the top level, if there is no upper limit to guarantee and no real leader, it will ultimately be a waste of effort.
