In a season that has had more ups and downs than a seesaw, things are trending up at the moment for the Boston Celtics.
The C’s currently own a three-game win streak on the West Coast and seemed to have come together following a long plane ride out west. Gordon Hayward and Al Horford both are playing some of their best basketball of the season and Kyrie Irving seems to have patched things up (for now) with the media.
Celtics legend Paul Pierce told the Boston Herald’s Steve Bulpett he’s impressed with Boston’s most recent stretch, but he wants to see more consistency from the C’s, mainly Irving.
“A lot of it, I believe, has to do with Kyrie,” Pierce said. “I think it starts with him and ends with him. I mean, he has to own up to it. He’s the guy that’s leading everything. He controls the Celtics’ destiny.”
Pierce also made a point that Irving’s actions off the court are just as important as his actions on it.
“It’s everything — on and off the court,” Pierce added. “If he’s their leader and you see their leader doing the things he does with the media talks and sideline stuff and practice stuff, then it just kind of flows to the team. One weeks he’s happy; one week he’s this way. And that’s the way the team’s been, you know? …
“I mean, if you’re going to lead, it’s got to be all the time — not just when things are good. When it’s good, he’s good. He’s happy. When it’s bad, it’s like it goes the other way.”
It seems that Irving is beginning to get a better grasp on how to act as the leader of the Celtics locker room. But Pierce makes a fair point that most of the Celtics highs have been followed by some incredible lows. And with time dwindling down on the regular season, another low swing for the C’s could spell the end of their campaign.
