You want Philly Philly?
Or be ya Beantown?
What a series we have in store – there’s just one thing wrong:
It’s an Eastern Conference SEMI-final and not the East Final!
Maybe one day this WILL ONCE AGAIN be an East final.
So what does ol’ Snowman think about this series. Too damn much! You got entirely too many things that could sway this series one way or another. But in the immortal words of one of my favorite sports anchors of all time the great Fred Hickman, I’m here to list it, just in case you missed it.
Three keys for the Boston Celtics:
1) They Survived Gannis, now they must survive Embiid
Embiid, injured or not, is going to be the key for the 76ers. So the bigs of the Celtics are going to play a key role in containing this young gun. Al Horford, it’s time to step up like you never have stepped up before. Keep Embiid off the boards and you will have a chance.
2) The J Team
Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown are going to be keys also. Athletic. Tall. Strong. Quick. That describes this dynamic duo. The love to attack the rim, but suddenly, as has proven in the Milwaukee series, if they can hit some outside shots, then that spreads the floor and makes the Celtics even more dangerous.
3) Rolling on without Kyrie
Terry Rozier was DYNAMITE against the Bucks – in particular in Game 7. Do you realize that if Kyrie was playing it would not have even been a contest? Not a slight against the Bucks, but Kyrie adds that dimension that Milwaukee does not have yet. It only gets tougher from here on out and the Celtics must reach down really deep to advance. Many have picked this team to go all the way, Rozier is going to be one of the straws that stirs the green drink.
Three Keys for the Philadelphia 76ers:
1) KEEP RUNNING
Speed kills. And it absolutely killed Miami in the first round. The only game that the Heat won, they ran out to a big lead and had to hold off a furious rally from the Sixers. This time, the Sixers have to run Boston out of the building. Transition points are going to come at a premium.
2) Free Throws
They are called free throws for a reason – Philly did not shoot very well from the line until the clinching game when they were 29-36. They are going to get fouled A LOT in this series and need to take advantage. Ben Simmons, this means you. Period.
3) Discipline
No silly technical fouls. No silly fouls period. You’re playing a veteran Boston team which reached the East Finals a year ago so experience will help them. For Philly, MUST PLAY UNDER CONTROL. Controlled chaos is better than flat out chaos.
Snowman’s Prediction – Anybody remember when Philly and Boston met in 1982 for the East Title and Boston raced back from 3-1 to tie the series? Anybody remember what happened? Yep! The Boston Strangler named Andrew Toney hit them for 31 in Game 7. It won’t be that bad of a blowout, but I give the VERY slight edge to the young guns from Philly and they will do the impossible – AGAIN! Sixers in 7!
What do you guys think? Leave your comments and let’s start the chatter!