Just one step away from glory. So fell the Boston Celtics this Monday, losing Game 7 of the Eastern Finals to the Miami Heat (84-103), who will no longer be able to fight for the ring against the Denver Nuggets and who also left avoid a golden chance to make NBA history.
150 times the NBA playoffs were 0-3 and 150 times there was no comeback.
The Celtics seemed to have everything in their favor to end the “curse” this year as they played Game 7 at home after a three-fight resurgence when they already appeared a foot and a half in elimination.
But anxiety, a mistake, the Heat’s excellent play, and the Celtics’ bad luck shattered hopes for an unprecedented 4-3 score in league history.
In addition, the Celtics of Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown will not be able to “avenge” last year’s loss in the NBA Finals, when they lost in the title series to Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors (4-2).
Tonight’s sensational TD Garden nightmare began in the very first match of the game when Tatum, their great leader and “seventh game” superiority specialist, sprained his left ankle when he fell on Gabe’s foot. Vincent.
Tatum continued to play on the court and ended up playing 42 minutes, but was seen throughout the night in obvious pain, very frustrated and uncomfortable, and with multiple mobility and shooting problems.
With their star in a shaky situation, those in green gradually melted away against the Heat, who smelled of blood and masterfully brought the game to their home (low points, slow pace, dominance of defense over attacks…).
No one took the place of Tatum, who ended the game with 14 points (5 of 13 shots) and 11 rebounds.
Of particular note was the Celtics’ second fencer, missing Jaylen Brown and with a very sad game: 19 points on 8 of 23 basket attempts (including a ridiculous 1 of 9 in threes) and 8 assists.
First of all though, Boston’s oblivion tonight was forged in its appalling 9-of-42 triple percentage for the evening (21.4%) after a frightening 0-of-10 in the first quarter.
In that first period, the locals scored only 15 goals and the situation did not improve in the second, in which they lost by 17 points to a very calm and focused Heat, which did not stop growing and growing.
The Celtics’ illusion of sealing their historic comeback with another epic performance against all the elements found its momentum in the third quarter when Derrick White, the only one saved from the crash, scored 13 points to leave his team at -7.
But the Heat did not lose their heads and little by little melted down the Celtics, without ideas and gasoline, with twisted faces and drooping spirits, who surrendered in the last quarter (18-27).
After this very painful defeat, Boston also joined the only three teams to force a 3-3 lead after losing the series 0-3 and finally also lost in Game 7.
To date, these Celtics have accompanied the 1951 New York Knicks against the Rochester Royals, the 1994 Denver Nuggets against the Utah Jazz, and the 2003 Portland Trail Blazers against the Dallas Mavericks.
Instead, the Miami Heat, the second team to reach the Finals in NBA history as the eighth team in the conference, signed a sweet revenge against the Celtics, who had just eliminated them last year in the Eastern Finals after seven games.
Chronicle: David Villafranca / EFE. Photos: USA TODAY Sports.
Source: Aristegui Noticias
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
