There was a decided buzz in the air at the TD Garden long before opening tip yesterday, and not simply because the East-leading Raptors were on tap. In recent memory, the Celtics had been plagued by inconsistent play that led to off-court concerns on the unity, or lack thereof, of their stalwarts. Considering all that was said — and not said — on record, the 18,624-strong crowd was on edge and hoping that the prospect of doing well, if not winning, against highly regarded opponents would goad the hosts into performing to potential.
Optimism ran high, but so did wariness. Five-time All-Star Kyrie Irving minced no words in wondering, after three straight disappointing losses, whether the younger set among the Celtics would learn to play with the passion required for them to go all the way. Would his biting opinions, aired publicly no less, galvanize the targets, or would they be received negatively given the seeming hypocrisy underlining them? After all, the very players underfire did manage to extend the LeBron James-led Cavaliers to Game Seven in the 2018 Conference Finals even as he was himself sidelined due to injury.
As things turned out, the fans were proven right. The game was tight and could well have ended up with the Raptors securing victory and, in the process, further planting questions inside the Celtics’ minds. Instead, the green and white stayed steady under pressure, ultimately prevailing pulling away. And, in retrospect, it was, perhaps, only fitting that Irving led them with decided force; in the last six minutes, he either scored or assisted in every single one of the 25 points they scored. Indeed, they put up a whopping quarter century on the board in the last half of the payoff period riding on his coattails. His stats during the fateful timeframe told the story; he had 10 markers on four-of-six shooting from the field, six dimes, one rebound, and one block in turning a single-basket deficit into a three-possession triumph.
The message is clear, to be sure: At prime, the Celtics deserve their preseason status as the beasts in the East, the rise of the Bucks and the Raptors notwithstanding. They’re just too good, too complete, and too well coached not to stay solid in the crunch. Then again, they’ve found themselves going pitter-patter with the schedule precisely because they’ve been at odds with expectations. Perhaps Irving’s talking the talk, and then walking the walk, will finally get them to be at their level best every time out. They certainly need to if they want to maintain their relevancy in the Era of the Mighty Warriors.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.
