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So I went to the game with a friend last night. Another friend hooked us up with tickets from his law firm (thanks JD!). The friend that attended the game wasn't a big Celtics fan (he follows the T-Wolves) so I found myself explaining many of the aspects of this current Celtics team to him last night (hopefully not to the point of annoyance like the guy sitting right behind me who was like a verbal personification of our comments section).
The funny thing is that the game was both typical and atypical for this team. So when we were up by 19 points in the first half, I correctly assured him that they would likely go into a 3rd quarter malaise and give it all right back to the Wizards (of course they did). I told him about how Jeff Green would look fantastic some nights (how does 39 points sound?) but completely disappear other nights (and that Green was a Georgetown boy so the Verizon Center was like his home away from home).
On the flipside, I mentioned that Phil Pressey was a nifty passer (he promptly gave up 2 straight ugly turnovers passing directly to the other team) but he couldn't shoot at all (he hit 5 of 6 three pointers for 20 points). I also told him Gerald Wallace was next to useless at this point (hit the game winning shot) but Kelly Olynyk was very promising (I'm pretty sure he airballed a layup at one point). So what do I know?
I do know that this team is pretty entertaining, regardless of the outcome. In fact, another completely made up factoid that I told my friend is that the Celtics must lead the league in hard-fought losses (aka moral victories). Turns out they are 4-6 in games of 3 points or less (the Wolves are 0-5 apparently) and 5 - 11 of games of 10 points or less. The last three games the Celtics played, they lost by a total of 12 points. So I felt pretty confident that this game would be no different. But a funny thing happened on the way to Tanksville.
The fact that they were able to pull out the victory was a treat. Or perhaps it was just the luck of odds balancing the theoretical scales. The Celtics were "due" for a close win and the got it against the Wizards (who once again couldn't quite get over the .500 mark - much to their fans dismay).
Either way, though, it was an entertaining game. Plus, the ending delighted the large smattering of Celtics fans in the crowd (there were a few "Let's go Celtics!" chants and at least one guy in a Pierce jersey that was dragged out of he stadium by stadium security).
Brad Stevens was right. Every game is an adventure. You wouldn't think a team apparently destined for the Lottery would be this much fun. But they hustle and grind and every once in a while it pays off with a win. Tune in next time to see what they come up with next.
