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“Prisoners of Their Success”: Steve Nash and LeBron James Break Down How Jayson Tatum and Celtics “Settle” at Times

Terrence Jordan
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Kristaps Porzingis, OG Anunoby, Jayson Tatum, Celtics v Knicks

The Boston Celtics are in a very different spot now than they were two weeks ago. Then, they were fresh off an easy first-round win and looking forward to playing the New York Knicks, a team they had beaten in all four meetings this season, in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Most experts believed Boston would emerge from the East for a possible showdown with the 68-win Oklahoma City Thunder, but while OKC gutted out a seven-game series win over the Nuggets, the Celtics gave up multiple 20-point leads against the Knicks and shockingly went out in six games.

To pour salt in the wound, Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles near the end of Game 4, an injury that could keep him out all of next season. Now, instead of gearing up for a possible three-peat, the Celtics are looking for answers. With Tatum missing and a payroll that’s already among the highest in the league, those answers may not be coming.

It’s a reminder of how quickly things can change in the NBA. One minute, you’re on top of the world, and the next, your championship window has closed. LeBron James and Steve Nash spoke about the C’s on their latest episode of Mind the Game, and they dug into why things went wrong against a team that they seemingly had such mastery of in the regular season.

Even beyond Tatum and Jaylen Brown, both of whom LeBron and Nash praised for continually growing, the Celtics have one of the best rosters in the league. “Obviously, their personnel is f***** dynamic and great. We all know that,” LeBron said“The trade for Porzingis, to be able to get Jrue Holiday … Al Horford coming back has given them a presence. He’s so smart.”

Nobody can dispute how good the roster Brad Stevens put together is, so what caused this team’s downfall? LeBron asked Nash if he thought the Celtics get bored sometimes, and the two-time MVP agreed. “They’re prisoners of their success. They’ve been to the Finals a bunch lately, they won it, they had incredible regular seasons.”

That sustained greatness caused a complacency on the court at times, and Nash thought it was mostly responsible for why the Knicks were able to erase huge deficits again and again. “They’re so good that sometimes I think they settle.” The numbers back this up, especially in the first two games of the series both Celtics losses in which they shot 100 threes but made only 25 of them.

Without Tatum’s injury, Boston’s loss to the Knicks could have served as a wake-up call heading into next year. There’s no better cure for complacency than getting knocked out by an inferior team. But with Tatum now out for an extended period, it will take more than just a wake-up call to get back to the top of the mountain.

Roster changes are coming, and life without Tatum is going to test the Celtics in brand new ways. Maybe they’ll be better in the long run for it, but this is going to be a much tougher road than the one they’ve walked the past few years.

Post Edited By:Jodi Whisenhunt

About the author

Terrence Jordan

Terrence Jordan

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Terrence Jordan is a sportswriter based out of Raleigh, NC that graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2005 with a degree in English and Communications. Originally from New York, he has been a diehard sports fan his entire life. Terrence is the former editor of Golfing Magazine- New York edition, and he currently writes for both The SportsRush and FanSided. Terrence is also a former Sports Jeopardy champion whose favorite NBA team of all-time is the Jason Kidd-era New Jersey Nets. He believes sports are the one thing in the world that can truly bring people together, and he's so excited to be able to share his passion through his writing.

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