Some folks blame Kyrie Irving for the Boston Celtics’ demise. Others blame head coach Brad Stevens or even president of basketball operations Danny Ainge.
Cris Carter blames everybody.
Carter ripped the Celtics from top to bottom Thursday on FS1’s “First Things First,” pointing out several factors that contributed to Boston’s second-round playoff exit at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Celtics won Game 1 against the Bucks after sweeping the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the NBA playoffs, but Milwaukee dominated from that point forward, securing four straight victories to punch its ticket to the Eastern Conference finals.
This marks the first time in three seasons the Celtics are heading home before the conference finals, and it’s especially disappointing given the team’s preseason expectations. The C’s were expected to contend for a title this season after coming one win short of the NBA Finals last year without Irving and Gordon Hayward, but they instead stumbled through the regular season en route to an early playoff exit.
