It’s time for our annual visit, as the NBA playoffs begin, with local long-time NBA scout Jeff Nelson.
A year ago, he called it, reiterating what he thought in October of 2023: The Boston Celtics are the team to beat.
While there are few minor changes this spring – the Celtics have the NBA’s third best record, second in the Eastern Conference – the Celtics are again the team to beat according to Nelson.
And before he breaks down the reasons, he points to several other disasters around the NBA.
“Denver has the best player in the world and they fire their coach,” said Nelson. “Phoenix has two Olympians and they can’t make the play-in game. The Sixers have been terrible the entire season. The Knicks, a team we thought would push the Celtics in the East, are beat up.”
The Celtics, on the other hand, are all systems go.
“The Celtics just play,” said Nelson. “The (Jayson) Tatum and (Jaylen) Brown ‘can’t play together’ isn’t brought up any more. Everybody on their team knows their roles. Everybody respects the coach. They have been consistent the entire season; no issues.”
Nelson said that a key, beyond the Celtics starters, is that Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser and, yes, even Luke Kornet have improved from a year ago.
“Players doing what Pritchard is doing, on other teams, are complaining about playing time,” said Nelson. “And Kornet is one of the three best backup centers in the NBA right now. Including Hauser and Al Horford, they have nine guys all performing. They are ready.”
The wild card is Kristaps Porzingis, who the Celtics have managed almost perfectly this season, according to Nelson.
“Other than his viral problem, they been able to rest him and as you see when he plays, no team has an answer for him,” said Nelson. “There aren’t too many seven-foot-five guys that can step out and hit six three-pointers. And he is a force on defense at the rim, too.”
Cleveland and Oklahoma, believes Nelson, are more than formidable. But both lack one of the biggest traits needed to not only beat the defending champ, but win an NBA Finals.
“Cleveland had three winnings streaks of fifteen of more,” said Nelson. “While that sounds impressive, after all is said and done they only finished three games ahead of the Celtics. I think the Celtics would exploit their small guards on both sides of the floor.”
As for OKC, their great season lacks the competition great teams need to overcome.
“In the 1980s, it took the Pistons and Bulls a few years to finally get through the Celtics,” said Nelson. “I just don’t think Oklahoma has enough experience to win the NBA Finals with the Celtics in front of them.”
In fact, Nelson believes OKC’s stockpile of first round picks – seven over the next two drafts – is a waste considering what is ahead, probably in June.
“If they went out and got a player or two to defend against Tatum or Brown, maybe it’s a different story, but they didn’t,” said Nelson. “I have no idea what they’re doing with those picks. Those picks won’t beat the Celtics in June.”
You can email Bill Burt at bburt@eagletribune.com.