A series of unfortunate events helped the Celtics snatch defeat from the throes of victory the other day. They appeared to be coasting along at home, taking the first quarter by five points, the second by eight, and the third by four against the seemingly disinterested Nets, holders of a dubious streak of four losses. And then, for some reason, fate conspired against them. Even with the visitors keeping just one starter on the court, they found their otherwise-comfortable lead (which went up to as high as 21) being whittled down methodically — until they had none at the buzzer, and until they couldn’t forge one in overtime.
Perhaps the Celtics wouldn’t have been victimized by the bizarre turn of events had they been able to rely on a full complement. Instead, they began the match with leading scorer Jayson Tatum in the sidelines due to an illness, and with fellow All-Star Kemba Walker on a minutes restriction that compelled him to sit out the entire extra period. The likewise lost starters Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown to injury, forcing them to regroup from the shock of coughing up an evident triumph with the likes of Javonte Green, Semi Ojeleye, Carsen Edwards, and Brad Wanamaker on the court.
That said, it wasn’t as if the Celtics faced stiff opposition. In fact, the Nets played the payoff period and overtime with only Caris LeVert from the First Five. For some reason, however, he managed to shake off a hitherto-iffy effort and make like Michael Jordan while surrounded by such notables as Rodions Kurucs, Timothy Luwawu-Cabarrot, Chris Chiozza, and the Player Formerly Known as DeAndre Jordan. Simply put, he was unconscious while spearheading the improbable comeback. He scored every which way, never mind that everybody and his mother knew his intentions. It’s telling that his only misses were a layin and three free throws, and that, with a tie to force an extra period in the offing, he calmly sank Points Number 38, 39, and 40 after being fouled on a trey attempt with 0.2 tick left on the game clock.
LeVert would go on to score every single one of the Nets’ 11 points in overtime, winding up with 37 after the third to outscore the Celtics all by himself. And so dominant was he that decommissioned teammate Kevin Durant could not help but publicly praise his work as “magnificent.” And it was — with no small measure of help from his opponents, who were initially cocky, then complacent, then lackadaisical, then desperate, and then deflated. All and sundry knew he would shoot given the lack of viable alternatives, and yet very rarely was he double-teamed. And instead of just letting him take a contested trey at the end of regulation, supposed defensive ace Marcus Smart was anything but smart, fouling him on an ill-advised reach-in to send him to the stripe for the tying charities. No wonder head coach Brad Stevens was incensed in the aftermath of the loss.
Things were back to normal yesterday. The Celtics won against the lowly Cavaliers, though not before getting a scare while undermanned. The Nets lost against the gritty Grizzlies, with LeVert posting a mortal 14 markers on six-of-19 shooting. All is right in the world once more. The way it shook the other day, though, is now part of history, and, if nothing else, proves that anything can happen in the NBA.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
