Maybe we ought to know by now that the Boston Celtics donât lose games in normal fashion.
This team doesnât just stumble; it tends to go full crash and burn. The Celtics donât just have poor shooting nights; they produce historically bad shooting nights. They donât have one or two miscues; they patch together an entire half of questionable decision-making.Â
Which is why Mondayâs Game 1 loss to the Knicks hit harder than a Goga Bitadze elbow.
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SIGN UP HERE The Celtics built a 20-point lead over a seemingly overmatched New York team that it dominated during the regular season, then completely bumbled its way through the final 23 minutes before absorbing a 108-105 overtime loss.
What was the most maddening part? We know what most of you are going to say. But youâve got plenty of options.
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Was it building a 20-point cushion and then abandoning any desire to attack the basket, after already letting the Knicks off the hook for early foul trouble in the first quarter? Was it that only ONE of Bostonâs 20 third-quarter field goal attempts came inside the 3-point arc?
Was it the questionable clock management and the less-than-desirable late-game looks the Celtics created despite a chance to win in regulation or at least force a second overtime?
Was it the âStay in the Fightâ T-shirts left slumped on many chairs throughout the Garden after the Celtics did the exact opposite while the Knicks rallied ahead in the fourth quarter? Or was it the Knicks fans who stuck around an emptying TD Garden to chant, âLetâs Go Knicks,â then took their party outside by the Bobby Orr statue to continue their celebration?
It all felt so avoidable. The Celtics were hardly lights-out with their perimeter shooting over the first 30 minutes of play, but they were still able to keep pushing out their lead. The Garden had some energy early in the third quarter before the Celtics erected their own force field inside the 3-point arc.Â
If we're being honest, weâre not overly worked up about the Celtics' playoff-record 60 3-point attempts. While the NBAâs tracking data should be taken with a grain of salt, the Celtics were credited with 56 open 3-point attempts (4+ feet of space from the nearest defender). Boston was 7-of-32 shooting (21.9%) with 4-6 feet of space, and 7-of-24 shooting (29.2%) with 6+ feet.
During the regular season, Boston shot 37.9 percent on those same shots -- suggesting the team would make an average of five more makes, or generate an additional 15 points of offense.
Were some of those shots rushed or off-balanced or poor step-back attempts? Absolutely. Even head coach Joe Mazzulla admitted there were at least 10 shots heâd like back from that game.Â
So, not only did the Celtics take 13.2 more pull-up 3-pointers than average on Monday night, they shot 11.5 percent worse than their season average on the preferred catch-and-shoot variation.
Would we have liked to see the Celtics attack the basket more in the second half? No doubt. The shot-chart comparison from building the 20-point lead, versus what came after, is especially jarring:
But this isnât the first time weâve seen this movie. The Celtics long have had a propensity for fumbling away leads, and going cold from beyond the arc is a common symptom in those moments. Youâd think the team would have learned to stay aggressive, but complacency has a way of creeping in.
Maybe thatâs the most maddening part. How havenât they learned to avoid these moments yet?
Itâs jarring this time of year because it hasnât typically happened in the postseason. The Celtics lost two home games in the early rounds during last yearâs title march -- and maybe thatâs a good reminder in this moment -- but usually that was the result of an otherworldly shooting effort from the opposing team. The Celtics were practically flawless in late-game situations throughout last yearâs playoff run.
Credit the Knicks with rallying. They didnât roll over, and they made a bunch of big-time plays in crunch time despite the fact that Jalen Brunson, the NBAâs Clutch Player of the Year, was far from his normal late-game self.Â
Still, it felt like Boston lost Game 1 more than New York necessarily won it.
Even inside the Knicks locker room, New York players admitted that giving up 60 3-point attempts to Boston wasnât ideal. More often than not, thatâs not going to end well for the opposition. No one was complaining when the Celtics put up 61 3-pointers on opening night against the Knicks and tied an NBA record for makes in a lopsided win.
On Monday, the Celtics set an NBA record with 45 playoff misses. It is most certainly a make/miss league.
The Celtics let the Knicks off the hook the entire night. Boston hunted matchups with Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson early, and got both in foul trouble. The C's then went nearly six minutes without generating free throws despite getting into the bonus with seven minutes to play in the first quarter.
Credit the Knicks and their long, active wings with deterring Boston from attacking more as the game went on. The Celtics settled in part because, 1) They never saw any of these sort of clean looks against Orlando and 2) The Knicks did a good job making it seem like there was a gauntlet to get to the rim.
If the Celtics learn from their missteps and avoid similar occurrences this postseason, then we can look back on Monday as an uncomfortable reminder of how this team must stay engaged for 48 minutes.
đ Celtics Talk POSTGAME POD: Knicks shock Celtics, take Game 1 (and homecourt advantage) with OT win | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
The bigger concern lies beyond all the 3-pointers. After a rough start to Game 1, Kristaps Porzingis left the floor in the first half and did not return due to illness. Porzingis battled a sickness that forced him to miss 11 games through mid-March.
That Porzingis wasnât able to return -- against one of his former teams in Game 1 of a playoff matchup -- is slightly troubling considering the lengths he went to play through a one-of-a-kind ankle injury last season. He wasnât the only player to land on Bostonâs injury report, as Sam Hauser sprained his right ankle in the third quarter while the Celtics were coming unglued.
It wasnât all bad. Al Horford repeatedly got put on an island against Brunson in the fourth quarter and held up well. Jrue Holiday, who took the brunt of the Brunson assignment, was maybe Bostonâs best offensive option in the second half, and was doing all he could to extend possessions.
Jayson Tatum, just as the national audience seemed to be rallying behind his playoff dominance, turned in a dud. Tatum shot 1-for-9 in the fourth quarter and overtime. Derrick White missed a bunch of 3s he normally makes in the final frame. Jaylen Brown didnât finish as strong as he started, either.Â
The Knicks will enter Game 2 with renewed confidence. Anunoby had a monster night shooting the ball -- defensively, too -- and Boston canât afford for a role player to get hot if Towns and Brunson are producing their normal output. The Knicks are not going to miss 14 free throws again, even if the Celtics continue to employ Hack-a-Mitch and put Mitchell Robinson on the free-throw line.
A series that looked like it was going to script for the first 30 minutes now has a whole bunch of intrigue. The Celtics couldnât get out of their own way, now theyâve got to collect themselves quick.
The loss might have been ugly, but Bostonâs best attribute in recent seasons has been an ability to dust itself off after defeats. Game 2 feels like a must-win, and the Celtics must be locked in for the entire night.