Nerd Sesh - Game 2 Reactions: Knicks SHOCK Celtics, Thunder DESTROY Nuggets

00:00:01
Speaker 1: The volume. No, oh my god, how could he do that?
00:00:14
Speaker 2: No? Watch what Charles Darwin. The nerves is where it's at. Welcome everybody back into Nerd SESSH as always. I'm Carson Breber, and alongside me is Logan Camden wearing his George Pickens Steelers jersey, who is no longer with the team. Rip to George Pickens as a Pittsburgh Steeler. We're not talking about football today, Logan, you already know the drill. We're talking about NBA playoff hoops. We had two games today, both of them crazy in their own ways, one of them a blowout that could reach a historic level. Here the game is not yet over as of the moment that we are starting recording, but more significantly, a barn burner and a y comeback as the New York Knicks take a two to zero series lead over the Boston Celtics. Wild sequence of events in this series so far. Boston blows a twenty plus point lead for the second consecutive game. Who did this one say more about to you? Logan? Was this about the Knicks or was this about the Celtics? More so, just absolutely crumbling.
00:01:27
Speaker 1: Some of this is about the Knicks, and we'll give the Knicks their flowers here briefly, but I think this has much more to do with the Boston Celtics monumental collapse. You mentioned. The Knicks became the first team in NBA history to overcome back to back twenty point playoff deficits. It's never been done before. I mean, this is truly truly historic stuff. Boston gets outscored thirty to seventeen in the final period. In the fourth quarter, the Knicks go on a twenty one to two run in Boston for over eight minutes in the fourth quarter. Didn't score a field goal at a point in this game. I don't know if it got to more. They had missed fourteen straight. I have said do at these playoffs, we cannot hate on Jason Tatum. Unfortunately, Carson, I'm gonna have to list lift the Jason Tatum hate. Man. It is It's okay. It's okay. I understand.
00:02:22
Speaker 2: Not only is it okay, dude, it might be mandatory.
00:02:24
Speaker 1: It's very justified. In the second half, Tatum gave you eleven points on four of twelve shooting. What if I told you that was the better half he played in this game? In the first half, he gave you two points on one of seven. It was abysmal stuff start to finish. But I think it's really encapsulated by the final possession. I mean, he doesn't even get a shot off, Like I thought, that was inexcusable. All of this is inexcusable. And I think Jalen Brown deserves some blame too. He had a great first half. I want to give him kudos for that. He was really attacking mismatches at a high level and getting down hill, playing really well in transition. I really liked what we got from him in the first half. But he gives you three points in the second half on one of seven from the field, and he goes oh three from deep with four turnovers. It's like they're supposed to be the best duo in basketball, Carson, That's what I've heard. They're supposed to be this chuggernaut. This is this is it with Boston, man, this is really embarrassing stuff. Like I've I was gobsmacked shocked. I couldn't believe what we got like out of Boston in this game. I expect so much more from them. I thought this was the favorite out of the East. I consider them to be a championship front runner in the league. We just haven't seen Boston play at a championship level yet. Like that's really what it is, and we need more out of Tatum and Brown.
00:03:48
Speaker 2: Man.
00:03:50
Speaker 1: I'm just I'm shocked, man, I cannot believe they've lost two games like this back to back.
00:03:55
Speaker 2: I do want to apologize to the Knicks because I came into this series and I said, I think that this is Boston in a pretty easy five. And then even after their Game one loss, I said, Boston played an f game and it still went to overtime. I still think that they take care of this series in either five or six would be my guess. I have been impressed with the Knicks defensive effort. I think they have been the much tougher team mentally, I think that they have been the much clutter team, and credit to them for taking this two zero series lead. But first and foremost, this is one of the worst Superstar meltdowns I've ever seen from Jason Tatum over these two games, and it's probably the worst collective team meltdown over two game stretch I've ever seen. You said it first team ever to blow back to back twenty point leads in the playoffs. Jayson Tatum is shooting twelve of forty two from the field in this series logan, and he is one of twelve in fourth quarters in which his team has blown twenty point leads. In both of them, he is shooting five of twenty from deep and he looks broken right now. Offensively. Game one, I thought that his approach was terrible. He was settling for pull up threes over and over again, regardless of the switch, if he had Brunton on him, if he had a big on him, that was the only shot he was looking for. And his pull up three was badly off in this game. He's not relying on the pull up three so heavily, but he could not finish at the rim. I think that he missed five layups in this game, and versus bigs off switches, he was just getting too these tough mid range looks which he was still missing like he has looked so uncomfortable trying to attack Karl Anthony Towns in space, trying to attack Mitchell Robinson in space, which I thought would be a big advantage for him in this matchup. The ability to get those guys on a switch and isolate them because he was so efficient in this matchup in the regular season, he was so efficient when he involved Kat in the action, and it has just been the exact opposite in this series. And you mentioned the last possession. That is the perfect example of everything that is going wrong with Jason Tatum right now. Like he looked so uncomfortable trying to go at Mitchell Robinson off of switch out in space. His handle was loose, he didn't even look confident in that, and then he ends up fading into three defenders without a plan and just loses the ball, like he is completely lost out there. It is one of the worst two game stretches I have seen from a superstar in the playoffs. And this is not what a superstar does. Like a superstar rights the ship when the rest of your teammates are struggling shooting the ball. He is supposed to be that stabilizing offensive presence who can still get you some good shots. Instead, he has been sinking the ship when even though the guys around him are shooting poorly, Boston still has all the advantages in the world in this matchup, and he is killing them. He has been incapable of seizing the moment, not just that he has been disastrous in the big moments and just looks like a shell of himself. So it is so exceptionally disappointing coming off of what I thought was clearly his best regular season, best he's ever been as a playmaker, really impressive scoring season. For him to just collapse like this and cost his team two games is horrifying. But I do not want to give a pass to Jalen Brown either, Logan, as you said, because this guy is shooting thirty five percent from the field and Tatum is one of twelve and fourth quarters, well, Jalen Brown is one of seven in fourth quarters, so he has been almost as bad. And I talk about Tatum not looking comfortable attacking the bigs off of switches. The matchup I thought would be great for Jalen Brown was that Jalen Brunson switch when he could get it, using his size, using his strength, playing bully ball. That's what he does best, and we've seen that in stretches in these two games. In the first half of both games, we've seen some of it. But in the second half he went at Jalen Brunson four times off of Switches, did not score once and he had four turnovers in the second half overall, so the offense it just melted down.
00:08:01
Speaker 1: I thought the Knicks did a good job too on helpside, like with the bigs off like of those you know what I mean, getting low behind him. So I do want to give the next credit for that too well.
00:08:10
Speaker 2: And they certainly sped Jalen up because I think if you look at the second to last shot that he attempted versus Brunton off of a switch, he definitely forced that look up a little sooner because he felt that the help was coming. And then the next one it looks like he's just foul drifting, like he goes into his upper shooting motion thinking that he's going to get a call. It was so settle against Jalen Bronson.
00:08:30
Speaker 1: Mat in the first half. He was going a cat, I mean, just like he was.
00:08:34
Speaker 2: He looked like a different player at Josh Hart, so comfortable playing bully ball, getting those short range shots, and then I thought that he was totally out of sorts. In the second half, their entire offensive game plan and their entire offensive process has just melted down before their very eyes. I thought this was the best playoff matchup that the Celtics could draw, certainly in the second round. They destroyed the Knicks. In the regular season, they posted a one thirty three offensive rating. They are posting a one oh one offensive rating in this series. And the reason I thought this would be such a great matchup was because of their ability to go at Cat and to go at Jalen Brunson as the best mismatch attacking a team in basketball. When they ran pick and roll involving Cat this regular season, Boston generated one point two two points per possession. When they ran pick and roll involving Jalen Brunson this regular season, they generated one point twenty nine points per possession. That is automatic elite offense. Nobody is going to be able to keep pace with you creating that sort of shot quality in this series. Logan, when Boston has run pick and roll involving Cat or tried to isolate him, they have generated point seven to five points proossession, horrible offense. When they have run pick and roll involving Brunson or isolated him, they have generated point nine to three points possession. Still not good offense. So those guys deserve credit for holding up better absolutely. I have been impressed by both Brunson and defensive performances, but Boston is absolutely falling apart. And you see it in both Brown and Tatum, with their shot selection, with their lack of confidence on the offensive end, and it's just kind of surreal, man, Like I feel like we're back in twenty twenty three against Miami, or back in twenty twenty against Miami, when like, for a time, this was Boston's reputation. They were the team that had all the talent and all the two way ability, but you didn't trust them to close out games. You had questioned about Tatum and Brown shot selection, you had questions about their playmaking and their decision making, and then I thought they were past it. But like now we're right back there, and this does not feel like a team that has won a title. This feels like a team that is spiraling. And of course they have missed the most three pointers in a two game span an NBA playoff history, So you can chuck some of it up to just like really bad shooting luck invariance. But at the same time, I don't like a lot of the shots that they're getting. I thought they got better looks from three in this game than they did down the stretch in Game one. But when it's Tatum and Brown, man like Jalen Brown, missing threes can't surprise you. He's been a well below average three point shooter this entire year. Jason Tatum is shooting thirty two percent from deep since January first. It's more than a forty game sample size, and in his last three playoff runs he is under thirty one percent from deep. Like, my inclination was, hey, give him the benefit of the doubt. This is the best basketball he's ever played. Last year was probably an outlier run. This is a pattern. Now, this is a trend of his jump shot following off a cliff in these playoff runs, and I just don't know how you can write that off. So it's deeply concerning. Those two have to be able to get downhill more consistently. They have to be able to score at the rim, especially when kat is the loan big on the floor, like I think Mitchell Robinson has been really good in this series.
00:11:48
Speaker 1: I think they need to keep going to that double big look too.
00:11:50
Speaker 2: Man If Jalen and Jason cannot score off of switches against the Bigs, then I totally agree. Like, coming into this, I thought it would be difficult for the Knicks to play the Two Bigs that much, just because I thought with all of the skill that Boston has and all of their offensive weapons out in space, like being more slow footed, having multiple guys who you think they should be able to get by or who aren't going to be the quickest recovering out to shooters like, I thought that would be an issue. But again, they can't score on these dudes off of switches. So then mitter Robinson's been really good. Yeah, Mitch Robinson has been phenomenal in the glass. So was Catt in this one. He had seventeen boards. But if they're not going to punish you for playing the Two Bigs, then keep going with it. Man, they are getting nothing downhill the Jays. Like. It's shockingly bad stuff. And to do this up twenty in back to back games against a team that you are much more talented than, like, there's just no excusing it. Credit to the Knicks, but man, this is horrifyingly bad basketball from Boston when you think about the standard that they've set for themselves.
00:12:56
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, it's it's a lack of composure and it's really uncharacteristic, we said of a former champion. But to be fair, this was a team that had a really I don't want to downplay their championship run, but it wasn't the most difficult.
00:13:08
Speaker 2: Path, right, Nobody was close to their talent level as a basketball team who they faced last year.
00:13:13
Speaker 1: It's pretty much a breeze through the Eastern Conference, and now we're seeing them face with actual adversity against a really talented team and they've crumbled into a million pieces. I will say, I don't want to cut Boston slack because I think their offensive process is bad. I think Tatum and Brown have been bad, just uncharacteristically them missing wide open looks though late in this game into the fourth quarter where they are generating open shots in the corner and just clanging them, and it's it's hard to watch, like it's cringey. Man, it makes my skin crawl, like I would just I would have such a disgusting feeling if I was a Boston Celtic like a I would have trouble sleeping. Man. These losses would keep me up at night. Yeah, and it's so strange how the Knicks won this game. Man, just because Brunson was off and Bridges was oh of eight through the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, he goes for fourteen points man and gets it going. And I also I want to give a ton of credit to Karl Anthony Towns. I thought Kat played a really great game, especially his first half. He gives you fourteen and ten in the first half. He ends up giving you twenty one and seventeen in this game, and I still think he is the difference maker in this series. Look, the Knicks need everybody to contribute, obviously, I think that goes without saying. But to me, Kat is the guy that the Celtics don't necessarily have an answer for, where if he gets a switch with a Jalen Brown or a Tatum and or a Horford in the post, he was going at Horford really early on in this game, and he's like Kat is so talented and so skilled in such a big body man that it's really hard to deal with. And when he's aggressive in attacking, he gets rewarded. Now, I think the Horford example is a really good one early on in this game, where the Knicks offense is kind of stagnant and he gets back to back and ones on him in the post and he gets I think he ends up with eight straight points on him during that stretch. The one thing I will say, I didn't really think they were fouls on Horford. I thought I would have let him go in a game that physical, at least the second one.
00:15:19
Speaker 2: But I was all right with it. Also, man, if anybody deserves a Cat in these playoffs, or if anybody deserves it, because that's what happens with a lot of physicality.
00:15:28
Speaker 1: To be fair, when you play physical, that's what happens. Sometimes you get calls. And I want to give kudos to Cat for being diligent and staying and playing physical and being aggressive. To me, he's the difference maker in this series. Brunton has a down game, and again credit to Bridges for coming through in the fourth when they needed somebody. But Brunton had a down game. I thought Kat was their best player. I thought Mitchell Robinson had a great game too. But Cat is the guy that can consistently get attack mismatches and put the Knicks over the top. And when he delivers, I think it just makes everybody's game easier. For the Knicks. This is huge, man, and I want to give the next credit, but the Celtics are on the verge of just like a shocking collapse here. But shout out, Cat, Shout out to the Knicks. Man they're up to. Oh going back to New York.
00:16:17
Speaker 2: Man, that's crazy.
00:16:18
Speaker 1: They could they could potentially get this thing done in New York in a suite. That's ridiculous to say.
00:16:26
Speaker 2: I want to give credit to a lot of different Knicks for their performances in this one, because even though not everybody has the prettiest box score, I thought that all of their key guys made their impact in one way or another. I do want to give credit to Cat because, first of all, I think that his defense has exceeded my expectations in these playoffs entirely. Now as a rim protector, he has still left a lot to be desired overall, but his ability to guard out in space, his consistent effort on the defensive end, his rebounding like he has found ways to make a solid impact overall. And I thought that he was really going to be chopped liver in this matchup and that just hasn't been the case. Part of that is the Jay's problems, but part of that you have to give Kat credit for, but I thought that he was so efficient attacking out of the post in this game, and it's exactly the kind of basketball I like to see from him inside the arc, where if they're going to try to put a Drew Holiday on him, if they're going to try to put any non center on him, like back to the basket, decisive, A few dribbles, catch the ball with deeposition, get to that post hook. That's what he did. Those two and ones that you mentioned against Horford could have been the same possession man. He ran it back, caught it with deep position, four or five dribbles into the post hook. It was controlled, it was physical, it was efficient post up basketball. I thought that he was excellent, and then he dominated the glass in this game, so he was their best player in this one. Mitchell Robinson dominating the glass when he's on the floor, active hands defensively has three sat yeah.
00:18:00
Speaker 1: Ye. Do you prefer Kat as a defender at the four?
00:18:03
Speaker 2: I do. I thought in this matchup it would be more of a concern because I was just like, what are you even gonna do with him with this much shooting? But right now, nobody for the Celtics can make an outside shot, and nobody is punishing these matchups by getting by the bigs. So I think ride this look until Boston really picks things up offensively, or like at least ride it as much as they have been where Mitch plays twenty two minutes in this game because he was plus nineteen, he was super impactful, and he's defending really well out on the perimeter. So double big stuff was good. Mckel bridges man, I mean, he's really the one who got the back end of this game with the fourteen points in the fourth quarter and the game winning steel again, second straight game that he's done that. Josh Hart great on the offensive glass, shot the ball really well, really good as a cutter and a finisher. Big minutes from him, Ojan Andobi ugly shooting night after he had huge shooting night in game one. But his defense has been phenomenal. Tatum and Brown are a combined three of thirteen when defended by Og over these two games. He had four steals in this one and there was a clutch possession where Tatum went at Og and I just like shook my head. Man, I'm like, you need to get something easy right now, and you are going at the toughest matchup on the floor by far, and Og forced him into a really tough mid range fade away and Tatum missed obviously, because Tatum missed everything. And then you have to give props to Jalen Brunson because I thought the Celtics did a great job on him for most of the night. I thought they gave him real trouble. But he scores the Knicks last six points to close this one out. And this is what I said after Game one, like, if you get into these clutch situations, there's no question that I trust Jalen Brunson the most out of anybody on the floor. I just thought game two, the Celtics would come back, and I thought that it would honestly be like a pretty convincing win from them, Like I felt like both they and OKC were gonna come back in game two, play with urgency, understand and that they let game one slip from their fingers, and okay Se comes through and absolutely dominates. And for Boston it's the opposite, like they just play another really sloppy, subpar game. Brunson is going to step up in the biggest moments. He is going to be able to carve out solid looks for himself. He was super opportunistic in transition off of a miss at the rim from Boston, and that's how he ends up putting the Knicks up three in the last minute of this game. So if the Knicks find a way to gut this series out, it's gonna be because they hung in their defensively and they made the Celtics stars work really hard, and then once you get down to the clutch, Jalen Brunson soundly outplays Tatum and Brown. That is their formula, and they got it done that way in this one. And you got to credit them for a great collective effort because we can talk about all the things that the Celtics did wrong, and there are many many things to talk about, but the Knicks winning a game like this when Brunson is as off as he was for a majority of this game and he only shoots six of nineteen from the field and they only put up ninety one points and they don't shoot well from deep either, Like they have to be commended for that because I could not have imagined a world in which the next were up two to zero in this series. Going forward, what do you think happens. Who do you think is gonna win this series? If you had to say right now.
00:21:30
Speaker 1: I obviously don't like where the Celtics are at, just like this feels like a stone that could be rolling down a hill, Like I don't know, Like what if they just continue to melt down and this gets worse and worse, I'm gonna say Celtics in seven though. That's that's what my gut says. I I can't. I just don't expect them to continue melting down like this. They've gotten out to such big leads and they just need to slam the door and they're letting the Knicks hang around. Man. The one guy that I I don't want to continue staying negative on Boston, but the one guy that I do want to bring up is christps Worzengis. Like he's been a complete letdown in these playoffs thus far. He has been a complete letdown in this series. Like he has a good stretch in this game where he rolls to the rim a couple of times and he hits a three, like cool, KP, I need you to give me more, Like I know, I know he's been dealing with an illness and stuff like that. Lock in dude, like it's it's time, and I just I view him as one. I think he's been a real weak link. Like this doesn't excuse either of the j's or anything, but I think he deserves some criticism too. To me, it makes Christophs look really really expendable this offseason. Not is his contract's not up this year, right his contracts He's got one more year. I would be really really comfortable moving off KP this offseason with the level that he's been at these playoffs and his availability and his consistency, Like, let me see what I can get back for him.
00:22:54
Speaker 2: He has been awful in these playoffs. Now, I will say he's not part of the problem today other than the fact that he can only give you fourteen minutes, which I presume is very related to the illness because Missoula didn't start him in this game. But like if we were to go up and down the Celtics roster in these playoffs, I think that he's very arguably been the worst player in their rotation overall. And you see, like even when they're trying to get him into his offense in this game, and like they're trying to feed him when he's got mismatches. First of all, they can't even get him the ball, they can't even complete entry passes. Like the Celtics offense has just been embarrassing in these couple of games. But he also forces a bad miss over mckel Bridges. He struggled attacking those mismatches, and like his lack of defensive versatility has made me think a lot of the times, like I'd rather just have Horford out there. It's been a very very ugly postseason from Christopsporzingis, who I'm really high on, but like he's just not really fitting in seamlessly on either side of the ball, and then he's not doing the stuff that he normally does really well. That's such a high level well and obviously he's not out there, and that really is the story from this game. Like, I don't think you can put this loss on Porzingis's performance in his fourteen minutes at all. I thought that he was fine.
00:24:12
Speaker 1: I thought, I'm just more soid on the offensive glass overall in these playoffs, I still think he's a huge component to their championship recipe, and hm, he just hasn't delivered. Man, I'm disappointed.
00:24:25
Speaker 2: I will say I do not think that they will move him for a few reasons. First of all, I don't think his trade value will ever be earl turn the value he has when healthy, and b then you are relying on thirty eight year old Al Horford being healthy for an entire season, and Luke Cornett is solid. But I just don't think they're going to get comparable value back if they try to deal.
00:24:48
Speaker 1: I understand that that's that's a good point. My thing is he's going to leave inevitably because you can't re sign him. Yes, so if he's not really contributing in his playoff run and he hasn't been available, He's consistently been unavailable, and I think he's a great player when he's out there. But I'm reaching this level where it's like, okay, so if he's not consistently out there and I'm going to inevitably lose him for nothing, let me move off of him a year early and see if I can get anything of value back. If that's a pick, if that's ideally you need a rotation guy back for him, But I'm wondering if you can get somebody who's more readily available who can fit more seamlessly in here and still find a buyer that's interested in KP. I'm just saying it might be worthwhile, you know, throwing that fish out on the line. And obviously you don't want to be fully reliant on Al Horford, but it's like they've kind of had to go by committee anyway, So for sure, I think it might.
00:25:43
Speaker 2: Horford is still good.
00:25:45
Speaker 1: He's still solid. I think it might be worth checking out.
00:25:49
Speaker 2: I just struggle to see a world in which they don't get a really shitty set of offers, Like, if there's an offer that is worthwhile, I certainly would not be married to Christopsperzingis. They've showed that they can win more than eighty percent of their games without him. Now they've shown that they can do that without basically any of their key guys. They're just that loaded. But he is the one guy who is consistently not available. But that's exactly why I don't think he's going to be an attractive guy on the trade market for other teams to consider. And I would rather just have one more year where I feel like we're loaded up with this team and we see what we can make happen. And then after that, Yeah, they are gonna have to obviously let Porzingis walk just because they can't hold on to everybody, but they need more out of him. I do think that this is a really good matchup for him on paper. I think that his ability to shoot the three at such a high level in the pick and pop game in transition really pose some problems for the Knicks in the regular season. He lit them up in the second meeting, but he has to be out there on the floor more going forward, and he has to be a positive contributor on both ends. And we'll see if they can get that sort of product out of him, and we'll see if like he's even physically fit to go. This illness thing is super weird how long it's lingered. That being said, I do think that Boston is still going to win this series. I think if they play at the level remotely close to what we expect of them, they should still get it done. I think a number of things have to change for them, though, and most of its centers around Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown and where they have to be way way better. First of all, I would dial it back a bit with how much they're trying to attack the Bigs because they do not look comfortable doing so, and they're not getting good shots when they try to do so. I think that Jalen should honestly be more aggressive going at Josh Hart. That's the matchup in which he's looked most comfortable and that's his primary matchup, So like, try to get at him out of the post where you have a strength advantage, where you have a size advantage, where Jalen's at his best as a score, I think he can keep trying to get the Brunson switch. He hasn't been as effective in that matchup as I would have thought, but I still think he has big physical advantages there, and I would just keep involving bruntson in actions because you're either gonna get the switch or you're either going to get an open pull up three after he shows. Now, open pull up threes haven't been great looks for Tatum and Brown in this series, but an open look is an open look at the end of the day, and I think they have to just be more committed to getting downhill, like if they do have the Bigs off a switch, like your priority has to be get a blow by it's not about Okay, can I carve out space for a pull up jumper? No, I have to get by these dudes, and then I have to find a way to make a kickout pass and create an open three off the cash.
00:28:37
Speaker 1: And I think they need to do a better job of just creating easy offense late in games, man like in transition. Also, Tatum just straight up needs to be able to finish at the rim man Like, Oh yes, I mean like someone has just like just make the shot, bro, Like.
00:28:49
Speaker 2: Well, and that is one hundred percent part of it, dude, one hundred percent part of it is make the shot that goes for Tatum, that goes for Brown, that goes for all of the catch and shooters on this team. Like, that's a big part of it. They have had a historically bad two game stretch shooting from beyond the arc, but I do think that there have been problems with their process that have to improve. And you talk about that clutch offense. The guy who I would be inclined to involve more is Derek White, and he hasn't been efficient either in these two games, but I trust his shooting by far the most. Like, if they're going to play cat and drop for a possession. I know that he can step into a pull.
00:29:26
Speaker 1: Up, griefing on the Celtics for doing that in the regular season, you know what I mean, letting him run the offense late.
00:29:32
Speaker 2: He's just a really good offensive player. He's by far your most reliable shooter, especially when it comes to pull ups, and I trust his playmaking, like I like him facilitating out of pick and roll. And Brown and Tatum they just look rattled right now. And then obviously maybe the biggest key, although I think these are all important, Like they just have to shoot the balls, all have to break out of this slump.
00:29:55
Speaker 1: It's also important that Brown and Tatum are better too, because I think we have seen and that's obviously not his role with this team what I'm about to say, but like, I think Holidays regressed a little bit offensively too, where I don't think he can pull his weight as much just in general. Like no, but at the end of day, I mean it starts with Tatum and Brown. Man, they got to be better finished in these games. This has been the worst. I've never seen this from a team that I have so much faith in. Man, it's shocking. Shout out the next though, dude, Nicks could get this thing done in four Dude, New York, Dude, the city.
00:30:26
Speaker 2: Man is still wild. I still don't agree with that. Like no, I just no, no, no, no, no, no, don't don't get You're saying literally like it's literally possible, like, which is just crazy. I think that the Celtics are going to at least push this to seven, and then they're gonna have to come through and they're gonna have to execute. They have to be way way better. But they have all of the talent to bounce back and win this series, and they could reel off for straight like at this point. This is a test of their mental toughness, This is a test of their ability to adjust. This is an opportunity for them to prove something because, as we've said, like they don't feel like former champs right now, but they are, and they're one of the most talented teams that we've seen in this league. Get your act together and play the basketball that you're capable of playing. So maybe I'm crazy. I still think they have such a margin, and I do still think they've played two f games now and barely lost the most Not to say the Knicks have played their best games, not to say that the Knicks don't deserve credit for defending at a higher level than I expected. All of that can still be true, and yet the Boston Celtics are playing so so, so far below their level for a lot of reasons that are on them purely where I know that they can improve, and if they don't, it's one of the most shocking series losses of my lifetime. Like, if they can't turn this around, I would be so beyond disappointed with Boston, especially if it's because Jason Tatum is playing at this level, then I would just be stunned. Not that I'm the biggest Tatum guy, but like, good lord, this has been horrible.
00:32:08
Speaker 1: Yeah. Man, this is like a Tatum haters dream come true. I got Celtics in seven. I completely agree with everything you just said. I would be stunned. I just think this theme is so uber talented, and I thought the Knicks had real flaws that you could exploit. I think the Knicks are playing better. I think they've I mean, you can't kill them, man, They like a roach you step on and they're not going anywhere, man, Like, it's crazy that they've hung into these games and I do want to give them credit for being resilient and just continuing to fight, man Like they've needed everything that they've gotten in all of these games.
00:32:41
Speaker 2: Yeah, they've been the way tougher to but it's crazy.
00:32:43
Speaker 1: I also do want to contextualize what a flip on this head is from the regular season. You were talking about this earlier, but the Knicks got squashed in all of these games against great teams. I mean, you remember the first game Celtics Knicks that was ugly. Obviously we're at the end of the year, but that that is a component of why this is so shocking, Like the Knicks were a bad team against the best teams in the league in the regular season.
00:33:10
Speaker 2: Yeah, and I think that really all of the credit for their improvement has been on the defensive end. Like, I don't think that their offense has been any better than you would have expected. In fact, I think Brunson has probably struggled a little bit.
00:33:24
Speaker 1: Robinson wasn't available though too. I do think he's made a really big difference in a big impact in these games he has.
00:33:31
Speaker 2: We do have one super chat, thank you, Evan, who asks, do you guys think this is a conditioning issue with the Celtics at the end of games, they just look so tired and that's when they start to see this weird.
00:33:41
Speaker 1: To me, it's like a confidence issue. I don't it doesn't really make sense to me, Like I don't know. It's like I can feel it due to TV screen a little bit. The anxiety these guys shooting these open shots shouldn't be like that. It should be I do this all day. This is a I do this in my sleep. And again, that's what's weird about some of these misses is they're wide open. I think it's a composure in a confidence issue with the Celtics, And yeah, that's what I think.
00:34:07
Speaker 2: Man, I agree, And unfortunately I can't say that I haven't felt this way about Jason Tatum before. Like he can be really, really streaky as a jump shooter, and when that shot is not going like you do feel a loss in confidence and you feel like you're not sure of his ability to even make a wide open corner three like the one he got today, and you start wondering, is he gonna overthink this a little bit? And he just looked totally out of sort. So no, I don't think it's a conditioning thing. I also think that Tatum has for the most part been settling like throughout Game one, and then in this one he was driving and he was missing everything at the rim, and I think that's probably why he stopped playing so downhill. I will shout out Joe Miszula for drawing up one great call on the ato where they had Horford's screen for Tatum at like half court and then he actually just got an easy runway to the rim that was literally the first good possession they had had in like nine minutes, and then couldn't get one more, really really terrible stuff from the Celtics. Congrats to the Knicks, bing bong Man, I apologize for saying Celtics in five. I didn't think the Celtics could do this in back to back games, but here they are. They've done it, and uh, I'm fired up for the Knicks, man, just because what a what a great basketball culture.
00:35:27
Speaker 1: What a great deserve it.
00:35:30
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00:37:43
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00:38:10
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00:38:25
Speaker 2: We have a super chat from Jonathan that pertains to both of these games. Which is more embarrassing Nuggets lose by forty three or Celtics blowing two twenty plus point leads wild a twenty point second half lead isn't safe anymore. I do have one stat on that I shouted out automatic NBA the other day tweets out phenomenal stats this year in the playoffs, there have already been five twenty point leads blown. That is more than we've seen in any other postseason in the play by play era.
00:38:54
Speaker 1: I've been thinking about that too, and people are always critical. A lot of the people that don't like the NBA always critical of the three point shot and its prevalence. And I think that's one of the reasons I love the three ball so much. Is one how it's shaped defenses and spread defenses morale to give guys more space to you know, just more space to work, which creates more beautiful basketball in my opinion, but also because you can erase these bigger leads because there's more players in the league that can knock down that shot now, like it's a really valuable shot, and that's a big reason why teams can erase these big deficits now. So I just I think people always hate on it on they're shooting all these threes. This is why it's possible, and I think it's I think the game is developing. I think we're evolving.
00:39:42
Speaker 2: Well, you know that I agree with all of that. I do think that the three is a positive for the league for a bunch of reasons that people often overlook, but the biggest just being what it does for spacing and how it just elevates the skill level that's required of everybody on the floor and how much prettier that makes basketball games when you actually watch them and compare them to historical counterparts when you could double star post players with impunity, and like, better spacing makes everybody better. Better shooting is what gives you better spacing. But when it comes to the comebacks, absolutely, that's also why we do see more blowouts in the NBA today. There's just more volatility with the three point shot. You can extend leads more quickly, you can erase leads more quickly, you can squander leads more quickly if you're married to the three and it's really really off.
00:40:27
Speaker 1: It's one of my favorite things about the NBA today.
00:40:29
Speaker 2: Man, it's crazy. I mean, these playoffs have been on crack and they've been absolutely wild, but it is crazy, like the extent to which we're seeing these leads erased. That being said, to answer the question, Jonathan, I think the Celtics is more embarrassing because like, at the end of the day, look, man, if you don't bring your a game, you're gonna get beat by maybe not forty, but by twenty by the Thunder. And I thought that the Nuggets did not approach this game with the necessary intensity. I think that they were kind of resting on their laurels after Game one and they were like, we got one. And I don't think that they have the margin to just like do that and just be okay with losing any game. I think that the thunder are the more talented team, they have more margins, so the Nuggets should be fighting in every game. But it's more forgivable than the Celtics blowing a gotta have it game to avoid going down oh two on their own home floor when they really really shouldn't be down oh two to the next just on paper with the talent that they have. So I think that the Celtics is more embarrassing. Let's talk about this game though, Logan. Obviously, this thing was over frankly early in the second quarter. I mean, just an absolute blowout. The lead was already twenty four after the first quarter. But what did you make of Okac's bounce back performance and what can you take away from it going forward in this series?
00:41:51
Speaker 1: I mean, this is what I expected in Game one from OKC, not to this extendable, not a beatdown like this, but the level of intensity that we got the defense and the offense too. I mean, SGA was lights out, bruh. They put up eighty seven points in the first half. That's the most points I think in a half in a game ever, which is crazy. This game was over in the first quarter. Like, I really liked the defense that they played on Jokic and what they did with Hardenstein and Homegren. I thought this was a good bounce back confidence game for JDub and Chet. I know Chet's statline doesn't look crazy, but I thought he was more aggressive, did a good job of getting downhill as well. JDub just looked better in general. I mean, it was hard to look worse than he did in Game one, but he looked better too. Again, SGA was nasty, lights out, and they shot really well from the field. The Thunder have a lot of different guys that can kill you, and a lot of really talented players, and when they bring their a game, they are capable of doing this. There's a reason this team was historically great in the regular season, and I think they proved it tonight. So I do think it's a little bit of both. Like you mentioned, Carson, I thought that Denver didn't really bring it tonight. That's a can of worms that we'll get into. But I also thought the Thunder really up the intensity and moreover played defensively the way I expected in some nights. They're talented enough to where they can do this offensively as well, and they're really good at capitalizing off of their defense to turnovers ball pressure. It's what I expected, and I'm glad. Okay, see I think Okay, SE's got to prove themselves in this series, and I think this is a proven game for him. They couldn't lose both at home, and they didn't. At least they held up their end of the bargain. Man, it would have been nuts if both of these teams went down. Oh two.
00:43:43
Speaker 2: Look man, this is how a great team responds. All right, we got to figure out whatever the hell that team is, because that's not how a great team responds. And by comparison, I am definitely feeling better about the thunder who have been my title pick end to end this year from the preseason. But this was a fantastic game from them. And again I don't think that Denver brings anything close to their best punch. And there's really only a quarter and change of meaningful basketball played in this game, but all of okc's key guys looked more comfortable offensively, specifically Sga, I thought was just incomplete control of this game. Looked so comfortable and I thought made a lot of nice little adjustments that made his life easier. Offensively, you saw him playing more out of isolation, especially if he could get Jamal Murray on him. But there were several occasions where he waves off the screen because he doesn't want to make it easy on Denver to bring two defenders up to the level and to send two at him. So he was able to get some more clean looks as a score. And then I mean he was just getting past the Nuggets perimeter defenders pretty easily and carving his way into the paint abusing their lack of rim protection. More so, like I thought that he would be able to in this matchup, but also the short range shot making, the mid range shot making, it was all of from him. And I thought he was so calm and surgical as a playmaker, Like if that was finding a shooter, if that was finding a big in the dunker spot, if that was finding chet off the role so he could find Hertenstein in the dunker spot. We had two of those big to big lobs. He was just so composed. He was getting to his bread and butter stuff. They had Isaiah Joe's screen for him. That's always an automatic open three for Joe if like they keep two on the ball for any period of time. So he had a plan. He was attacking very efficiently with that plan, and I thought he was great as both the scorer and a playmaker. This is obviously a weird game because it was a blowout so fast, but two fun SGA facts. Number one set the Playoff record for single game plus minus at plus fifty one. Number two became just the fifth player ever with at least thirty four points and eight assists on ninety percent true shooting in a Playoff game. So I thought he played well in Game one, but Denver was bringing a lot of defensive pressure. I thought that it was impressive that he took such good care of the ball, but he wasn't crazy efficient as a scorer and as a playmaker. He was getting the ball out so his teammates could attack some four on threes, but he didn't look super comfortable and his teammates were also just struggling to attack those four on threes. So I certainly didn't think Sja was the problem in game one. Like I said, I thought he played pretty well, but I thought that he was flawless in this game, like just absolutely nails. And then I thought Jadab and Chet both looked much better. Jadab was downhill, but he was in control, whereas I thought a lot of his drives in Game one were more reckless and he was bothered by physicality. He was also cutting smartly. That's a thing. Man, If you fall asleep for a second against this OKC team, they will punish you for it. And Chet shot the ball better. Like that's really the only thing you can take away from him in this game. But that's big. These are low pressure shots, but he's making them from the outside. He was great as a shooter in the first series. He was bad as a shooter in game one. And I will say big pitch in this series. Where I want to see him aggressive is in transition. He gets an end one in transition. That to me is where he can weaponize his speed most effectively if it's going coast to coast, or if they do see him as a trailer as a three point shooter, like that's where most of his easy offense is gonna come. I don't love him going at like a Michael Porter Junior in the half quarter, going at an Aaron Gordon. I don't think he has such an advantage there. As a creator, it's going to be open catch and shoot. Looks maybe some opportunities off the role and then doing work in transition, But those two guys really underperformed in Game one, they were a lot better. And this is just what Okayse does to you at a level that really nobody else can, Like they just absolutely will bludgeon you on both ends if you don't bring it, which Denver did. And I thought their defensive intensity was like a one out of ten, which is why I think it's hard to have major takeaways about anyone's performance. But also on the defensive end, where I thought that they were good in game one, I think that they're always good. I think that they have the most consistent defense by far in basketball. But they would not let Denver complete an entry pass to Yolkic like they were fronting him with wings. Lou Dort has a steal off a lazy entry pass. Aaron Wiggins has a steal off an entry pass. They were forcing Jokic into turnovers. He had seven in Game one, he had six in this game. Thirteen turnovers. I think he has more turnovers than assists in this series, so that is significant. I thought they were able to really frustrate him, And then I thought you also saw their depth really shine in this one. Like the minutes you get from Aaron Wiggins, the minutes you get from Casin Wallace. Those guys stepping in, making a two way impact, making shots. They're getting out in transition where they're obviously much more athletic. But this felt like a really good Thunder game as you visualize it, where all of their strengths are showing, and it was good to see that. It was very good to see them get a one like this where they just drub the Nuggets.
00:48:53
Speaker 1: Yeah. Also, I mean, I think we got to get on the Nuggets a little bit. Jokic I think could have. I mean, had a lot of turnovers in this game, Like just felt a little disengaged from a normal Yokic game. I want to give the OKC defense credit to honestly, the two guys I'm most disappointed in. I thought this was a bad Christian Brown game. I thought this is this is a bad game from a lot of Nuggets, Aaron Gordon to Jamal.
00:49:20
Speaker 2: You can just name everybody except for Russell Westbrook.
00:49:23
Speaker 1: I'm just pissed at MPJ the most, man Like, I what's his deal? He doesn't look like I don't know, man, It's like MPJ has not been focused on basketball. He looks a step slow.
00:49:36
Speaker 2: Like Yeah, but was anybody particularly focused on basketball for the Nuggets to night, besides again Russell Westbrook, who I thought was the only man who really played with honor and heart for Denver. I understand what you're saying about MPJA big picture. I just don't know if I'm getting on him for it in this game, because, like nobody.
00:49:54
Speaker 1: It ultimately doesn't matter in this game. But I'm just worried. Man, they need MPJ. It's all handle deck for Denver. Man, you don't have margin when you know the thunder half a lot of guys that can give you some of that punch that Denver really need MPJ to step it up. And it's gonna be tough, but I expected a game from this. I don't expect life to be easy on the Nuggets moving forward. That's why I think that Oklahoma City's got a great defense, and they've got personnel that can deal with basically any offense, any player. They've got the assets to really mess you up offensively. And that's why I liked OKC all year, and that's why I continue to like them in this series. So I think Okayc's gonna get this thing done. I think Denver's gonna battle I think we're gonna get a deep series. I think that's still gonna get another game or two, but I ultimately expect Okac to pull this thing out, and it's an encouraging game for the young guys, for j Dub and Chet. We need more games like this out of him if Okayse's gonna get it done.
00:50:53
Speaker 2: Yeah, And I do think it's significant the extent to which they frustrated Jokic, and I thought that their physicality jostling for position put him in a spot where like he commits multiple offensive fouls out of frustration, and he's got to be ready to play through that physicality. Like that's going to be a reality in this series. And that's where they do have special defensive personnel and their ability to affect some of these interior passes with their length again to make it difficult to even complete entry passes. Like the turnover stuff. It's very notable and it's something that they do at a higher level than anybody else. They forced those turnovers like hell Denver had twenty of them in this game after they had eighteen of them in the first game. So that's an advantage that Okaysee is going to have consistently throughout this series. Their defensive floor is so so, so, so so much higher than Denvers. I think that the consistency of their role player contributions is at a completely different level. Their depth is at a different level. I think their ability to win the non Superstar miss is at a different level.
00:51:53
Speaker 1: I felt like they played below their average level offensively and defensively in Game one, and the Nuggets got by with a Aaron Gordon game winner. You know, like, I felt like the Thunder could have played better on both ends of the floor.
00:52:07
Speaker 2: Yeah, I wouldn't be too critical of the Thunder defense in Game one. I thought that they were pretty good. I mean, they didn't rebound super well, but they weren't playing Hartenstein as much as I thought they might. And Denver's just a bigger, stronger team, so that didn't surprise me. I thought that okay See brought the intensity in terms of guarding Jokic. I thought that they forced turnovers at the rate that you expect. I thought their transition defense was really good. I do think their offense could have and should have.
00:52:37
Speaker 1: I could see the Thunder winning more blowout games. I think all the Nuggets wins are gonna be by you know, really close margin.
00:52:44
Speaker 2: I completely agree with that, and that's what I think this game really shows you, Like Oka See has the much higher floor because their defense is always going to be so elite because their depth is so good because of their athleticism, like they ride those things to a high floor every night. And then they also have the much higher ceiling because when they have all those factors going at an A plus level, and then they're also shooting the shit out of the ball and Shae is perfect offensively and Jadab is on, Like that's when they destroy you. This team basically never gets blown out, but they blow you out all the time. But we already knew that coming into this series. Like, if you were gonna tell me somebody is gonna win a game by forty points in this series, I would have bet my life that it would be okay See to do that to Denver. If you were gonna say, hey, there's a team that wins multiple games by twenty, I would have bet my life that it would be Oka See. This series may well come down to the close games, and that's where I do think Denver's process is so sharp and Yokic is such a superpower. That's where Jadab and chet weren't good enough in Game one, and they have to be better. And even Shay I'd like to see a little more composed than he was in Game one. But at the same time, like all the advantages that I listed off for the Thunder that's why I do think they will get a couple more of these comfort games, of these easier games, and I do think that they're the better team. I do think that they certainly have more margin, and I feel great about them right now, like everybody else you look around is shitting themselves, and they're the one team that just like takes care of business. They lose in Game one and surprising fashion, and they bring back a dominant bounce back when that's what you'd like to see out of them. And it's a testament because they're a serious ass basketball team and they bring it every night in a way that is very rare. And they're also extremely talented. So respect the thunder Man. It's not too much Thunder disrespect. After Game one, I do think they're in this series. They are. They are. On that note, we are done for the day logan. I have a shocking announcement we're not going to be back tomorrow night. I know it's terrible news, I'm sorry, but the only game on the slate is Warriors Wolves, and Steph Curry is out, and Steph Curry is out for at least a week, and Steph Curry maybe out for the series, which would be a huge bummer. But we'll be back on Friday. We'll react to the Warriors Wolves game, and then also the two games that are on the Friday slate, and we should still have content tomorrow because I am hopefully going to get my video about Tyrese Haliburton done tomorrow. So stay tuned into the nerd Sesh YouTube channel. But if you want to catch our post game live shows, you know where to find us right here on our YouTube channel. We have been live every night of the playoffs up to this point, and you can listen to all those shows after the fact across all audio platforms. You can also follow us across social TikTok, Instagram at nerd Sesh, Twitter at nerd Underscore Session. See clips from the show, graphics, all of our short form trivia content, all of our silly moments, all of our will day or Won't They tens that's all on our social handles everywhere, and you can join our discord if you want. Oh, you can also see Logan's thoughts on the George Pickenstraight on our Socials Logan thirty seconds thoughts.
00:55:50
Speaker 1: You don't give up the kind of game changing offensive player George is for just a third round pick. I think the Steelers gave up their best offensive player and it's since ab and them. I'm just sad, dude. I was excited and the Steelers have like popped my balloon. I'm not even like well, I got Mason Rudolph as my quarterback. Bro, can you help me somebody? Please? Aaron Rodgers please.
00:56:18
Speaker 2: That's a sad spot for you to be in, Logan begging for Aaron Rodgers considering how you feel about him. That being said, I think that you're right to beg for him.
00:56:25
Speaker 1: Dumb Cowboys though, dub Cowboys. Let's go Dak Prescott, Let's go Cowboys, Let's go George Pickens. Man.
00:56:32
Speaker 2: Logan was only a Steelers fan for George Pickens the whole time.
00:56:35
Speaker 1: Cowboys Man, The Cowboys have me fired up. I'm not gonna lie.
00:56:39
Speaker 2: Oh my shit, I never thought i'd see you like this. I'm thinking maybe I have to check your medications.
00:56:43
Speaker 1: I'm losing my mind. Bro.
00:56:46
Speaker 2: Yeah, well, listen, we've watched a lot of about basketball.
00:56:49
Speaker 1: I'm about to crash out.
00:56:51
Speaker 2: Look. Man, you get on the mic every night, you're you're bound to lose your mind. At some point, you're gonna say something wild.
00:56:56
Speaker 1: I'm about to crash out, dude.
00:56:58
Speaker 2: Look, if you're ready to crash out, I'm ready to ride this journey out with you. I'm about to crash all right. Well, I guess we'll crash out together on that note. As always, i've been Carson Breber. I appreciate you guys.
00:57:11
Speaker 1: I've been Logan Canton and this was Nerd Sash