The Team That's Your Ultimate Frenemy

Boston Celtics

There’s so much to like about the Celtics. Isaiah Thomas’s game is irresistible, and especially this postseason, he’s a sentimental favorite. The team is a crystal-clear manifestation of Brad Stevens’s vision, from the pass-happy offense down through the electric defense of Bradley and Smart. Jae Crowder is a universal fan favorite, they’ve somehow managed to dredge up Gerald Green, for god’s sake, and Danny Ainge is shrewd GM who isn’t going to fuck things up. This should be every enlightened basketball fan’s team of choice, or at least the obvious one to pull for going forward.

But here’s the problem: This is still the Celtics and they’re still from Boston. The Celtics are the sport’s most august franchise. The legacy is undeniable and their cast of Hall of Famers sparkles. That actually makes them particularly hard to root for—it’s front-running on a near-cosmic scale. Then there’s Celtics fans, who take anything other than genuflection as an insult. It’s like the Celtics are so exalted that a failure to recognize this is disrespectful; it’s completely out of bounds for a fan of another team to denigrate the C’s, which is a totally normal part of sports. And then there’s Boston itself, a city that specializes in making people dislike it and getting indignant when people dislike it. You can accuse me of hating on a perfectly innocent Great American city. But if I’m wrong—and people aren’t innately repulsed by the Kelly green—there would be more buzz around this team. Instead, all you’re getting is talk about just where they rank in terms of worst number one seed ever. — Nathaniel Friedman

Best and Worst Kelly

Olynyk and Oubre, Jr.

Before last night, Kelly Olynyk’s playoffs had mostly been about reminding the world of just how dirty he plays. All that changed last night, when the Celtics big man notched 26 points on a streaky 10 for 14 shooting, including some big plays down the stretch. You’d balk at saying Olynyk was the key factor in Boston’s win. But in a game decided by a single late-game run, every contribution counted, and getting those kind of numbers from such an unlikely place definitely helped put the Celtics over the top and cemented his standing as the franchise’s greatest white player since Larry Bird.

Conversely, the night couldn’t have gone worse for the Wizards’ Kelly Oubre, Jr. After scoring 13 points and in Game 5, Oubre was on the floor for a scant 7 minutes in Game 6 and then was out of the line-up altogether for Game 7. While Oubre isn’t exactly an impact player, Washington has made a point of trying to develop the second-year wing, who showed some really promise during the regular season. And in a game where every bucket mattered, it wouldn’t have hurt to give him a little burn, especially if he's going to develop into the kind of hyper-athletic 3-and-D guy every team desires. No one’s calling for Scott Brooks’s head over this, but it was perplexing decision, the kind of little thing that—as was the case in OKC—might over time bring some to question his coaching acumen. — N.F.

Best Resting "Can You Believe This Shit?" Face

Isaiah Thomas

There are numerous ways to talk trash in a basketball game. There is the Bradley Beal type of telling your opponent, in a loud and mean way, that he can’t guard you. Or John Wall asking his defender what the fuck was wrong with him after the defender tried to stop basketball’s Barry Allen on a fast break. There’s also the heavy flex of stating your accomplishments: A great example of this is LeBron James flatly asserting that it doesn’t matter who the Cavs play between the Celtics or the Wizards, since they will most likely beat whichever team ends up in his way.