MIAMI -- The Boston Celtics are shifting their focus to the Golden State Warriors today, as they prepare for a trip to the NBA Finals. There will be plenty of time to focus on that in the coming days.
For now, here are some final thoughts from the Miami airport as I try to channel my inner Jedi and use the force to steer thunderstorms away from here so we can actually fly back to Boston.
-Reaction to Jimmy Butler’s shot
The honest reactions to Butler’s 3-point attempt at the end of the game were funny.
“When he shot that, I was like, ‘Man, what the hell,’” Jaylen Brown said. He initially started his quote with “I was hoping to God” and then he stopped himself.
“It was nerve-racking. It was nerve-racking,” Al Horford said. “He pulled up, and anything could have happened there. He could have made the shot, and fortunately contested it enough, and he missed it, and we were able to get control of the ball.”
I hate to tell you, Al, but your contest didn’t really have much to do with that. He just missed it.
“Not again,” Smart said of his thoughts when Butler launched. “Man, Jimmy has been playing well, so when he pulled up, it was kind of like, oh, man. Just hope he doesn't make it. I just think our defense wore on him, and he had got a good look from a great player and missed it, and we came out victorious, so we're thankful for that.”
Basically, just one big collective exhale.
That's the appropriate reaction. The Celtics' late-game offense was garbage and they nearly handed the game to Butler and the Heat.
“That's what we do, we did all that on purpose to make it interesting,” Brown joked.
It’s more fun when the guys are joking after games.
“But that's us. We've been responding all year, all season to adversity,” he said. “Today was the biggest test, not just of the year but of our careers, to mentally come into a Game 7 away after losing on our home court, which was tough, and we got it done.”
- I wonder if this Eastern Conference Finals will have the same impact as the last one
Milwaukee looked like scared kids for three rounds of the playoffs last season, struggling to close teams out and nearly giving away a Game 7 against Brooklyn in overtime. Thankfully for them, Kevin Durant stepped on the 3-point line and the Bucks won the series.
Boston was more decisive in their win over Brooklyn and they went toe-to-toe against Milwaukee and prevailed. The Miami series, though, was a bit different as they regularly didn’t seem like themselves. They played afraid for the final four minutes of Game 7, and you can argue that they deserved Butler’s shot to fall at the end.
But it didn’t, and I wonder if there will be a big exhale by the team as they head into the Warriors series. They got over the ECF hump and they got past Miami, and now they can head into the Finals and play free because now they’ll be the underdogs.
Obviously it’s not exactly an apples-to-apples comparison, but I do wonder if the impact will be the same.
- Ime Udoka is focused
He has a job to do, and that job is not done. He’s so focused on it, he couldn't even play along with the team’s social media person.
Coach knows, it’s #𝐀𝐥𝐥𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭𝟏𝟖 pic.twitter.com/ZNyKitSC2A
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) May 30, 2022
They didn’t hire him to get to the Finals. They hired him to win it.
There are some people who are just special at their jobs, and I think Udoka is one of them. He took this team -- THIS team -- to the NBA Finals. After all they’ve been through, he keeps getting this team to respond to losses and to reach new heights.
I never thought they needed to get rid of Brad Stevens, but it’s obvious that Udoka is a cut above.
It’s funny to see him list off the teams that passed on him now -- Cleveland, Detroit, Indiana -- and just kind of throw it in their collective faces that this is how things might have gone for you.
- The Larry Bird trophy is about to become a place to park hot wheels and dinosaurs
Here’s Jayson Tatum’s full quote about being the first-ever winner of the Larry Bird trophy.
“You know, it's an honor. It still doesn't even seem real right now. I'm just extremely happy and grateful for all of this. Regardless of how long I've been in the league, I'm not too far removed from when I was in high school and when I was dreaming about moments like this.
“I still feel like a kid some times that I'm truly living out my dream. I thank God every day just to be in this position to be able to do that. To be the first person to win this award, obviously after Larry Bird, it still hasn't sunk in yet.
“I'm going to take it home and show Deuce tomorrow and enjoy it.”
Deuce is turning that thing into the centerpiece of froopyland. Jayson is going to come home after Game 4 and that trophy will have dents all over the base from Deuce ramming fire trucks into it.
Alright the Heat series is over. Credit to that team, they are really tough. Boston is on to a new challenge, and maybe a new banner. Time to turn the page, and the dawn of a new era for the Celtics.