Celtics
“Somebody’s got to say, so I’m gonna say it: The offense looks awful.”
It wasn’t pretty, but the Celtics managed to walk off the parquet floor at TD Garden with a 133-128 overtime victory over the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night.
The Celtics needed a clutch 3-pointer from Jaylen Brown to force overtime, with several critical turnovers from Indiana carving a path for Boston toward a series-opening victory in the Eastern Conference Finals.
It was the type of momentum-shifting, ugly win that a title contender like the Celtics needed to secure as they try to win their 18th title.
But even with Boston taking care of business on its own home court, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith was far from impressed by the Celtics’ performance in Game 1.
“Well, I’m disgusted with them, because I think their offense looks awful,” Smith said on ESPN’s “First Take” on Wednesday morning. “Somebody’s got to say, so I’m gonna say it: The offense looks awful. And I’ve been on the record unapologetically.
“As much as I respect Joe Mazzulla, and the job that he’s done — they did have the best record in basketball and I get all of that. I’ve stated for the record, I think if Ime Udoka was still the coach of the Boston Celtics, they would’ve been champions by now. They possibly would have won it last year. That’s how I feel about them.”
“Disgusted” seems like an odd choice of words for a Celtics offense that still managed to score 133 points against an admittedly weak Pacers defense — including 117 points in regulation.
The Celtics should have generated even more offense in Game 1, with Boston’s trademark 3-point shooting under Mazzulla hitting a lull for most of the evening (15-of-45, 33.3%). Six missed free throws also loomed large in a tight game.
Smith continued to rip the Celtics, especially as it pertains to their lapses in consistency.
“There is a difference between what Ime Udoka had the Boston Celtics looking like and what they’ve looked like offensively over the last couple of years,” Smith said. “You just see too much haphazard play. Now they’re the type of team that can almost blow the game and it takes overtime to win Game 1.
“But then they come out and they stink up the joint in Game 2, and then go to Indiana and win two straight. This is the kind of team Boston is. You don’t know what you’re going to get.”
The Celtics will have a chance to prove Smith and other ESPN pundits wrong on Thursday when they host the Pacers again for Game 2 at TD Garden. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m.
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