BOSTON — The Boston Celtics simply were outmatched in their Eastern Conference finals series against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The defending NBA champions made quick work of the Celtics, winning the series in five games, capped off by Thursday night’s 135-102 thrashing at TD Garden.
Though the Celtics were the top seed in the Eastern Conference entering the 2017Â NBA playoffs, this series left no doubt as to who is the real powerhouse in the East. Aside from their Game 3 hiccup, the Cavs steamrolled the Celtics en route to their third consecutive NBA Finals appearance.
There weren’t many positive takeaways from this series for the Celtics, but facing a team like Cleveland gave the C’s an idea of what it takes to be a legitimate championship contender.
“I think collectively you take away what elite looks like, because I think we saw it first hand, especially in these home games,” Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said. “We’ll see how they match up against Golden State and how that goes.”
Granted, there is an anomaly when it comes to the Cavaliers. They, of course, are the only team with the luxury of having LeBron James, who broke the NBA postseason scoring record with his 35 points in Game 5. The Cavs star now has reached the NBA Finals in seven consecutive seasons, and is poised to be a thorn in Boston’s side for the foreseeable future.
If the Cavaliers roster stays relatively intact in the coming years, Boston will be hard-pressed to overtake them in the East. Owning the No. 1 pick in the 2017Â NBA Draft should quickly make the Celtics better, but it’s hard to imagine it will make Boston good enough to overtake Cleveland, regardless of how it uses the pick.
Even if the Celtics were to flip the top selection for a superstar such as Paul George or Jimmy Butler, it probably won’t be enough to supersede the Cavs. Cleveland is a well-oiled machine with a stellar cast of role players to complement its superstars. With that said, it might be in Boston’s best interest to take the long approach.
It might take some, but the Celtics have the personnel and assets to possibly become an elite club. Should they use the top pick, it would allow a top-tier player to be groomed under an already talented roster. Boston also owns the Brooklyn Nets’ 2018 first-round pick, adding to the C’s embarrassment of riches.
Given their bevy of assets and promising young players, the Celtics are in good position to be a strong team for quite some team. But for now, it looks like they might just have to tip their cap to the Cavs.
Thumbnail photo via Greg M. Cooper/USA TODAY Sports Images
