BOSTON – Not yet.
That was a firm message to the Boston Celtics after the Golden State Warriors won the 2022 NBA championship with a lopsided 103-90 Game 6 victory.
As much as Boston has hired young talent, the Celtics are too fallible and capricious to deny the Warriors their fourth Larry O’Brien trophy since 2015.
The Celtics’ problems have never been more prominent than Thursday’s loss to TD Garden.
The most impactful came when Jayson Tatum gave up an open 3-pointer and went far with 3:31 left when the Boston crowd urged him to pull the trigger.
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The Celtics’ 24-year-old All-NBA playmaker Tatum had just two points in the second half and a total of 13 points on 6-of-18 shooting in a disappointing performance that underscores how much the Celtics still need to mature.
“It’s hard to get this far,” Tatum said. “It’s more difficult to overcome. It’s a long journey and a long process. That’s what I get out of it. You have to take it to another level to do what we want to do.
“I feel like I could have done better.”
Celtics head coach Imeudoka said Tatum needs to “learn and understand who he is” in the NBA and get used to being challenged by a great team.
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“It’s just the beginning of how you’re defended and focused,” Udoka said of Tatum, who also made five turnovers. “He’s a tough guy. Very stable team has done something to limit him. He needs to understand that he’s going to see that in his career. He’s a very positive guy, works really hard and he’s going to Figure it out and move forward.
“We have very aggressive players, but they are not at their best.”
Still, the TD Garden crowd seemed to give the Celtics a jolt when Tatum and Jaylen Brown both hit 3-pointers, and the offense executed an effective post up to lead 14-2.
Then there’s Boston’s turnover. The Celtics are sloppy on the ball, a fundamental flaw that has reared its head throughout the series. After making just four of its first 12 shots, the Warriors made nine of their next 13 shots in a 21-0 boom between the end of the first quarter and the second.
The Celtics lost control of the series after their fourth loss at TD Garden and never regained control of the game.
“They won and we lost,” Brown said after the game. “We did it ourselves. Sure, we had a chance to win, but sometimes we showed immaturity. It stings. Still a young team with a lot to learn. Tough day for Boston, tough for Celtics day.
“This is not our time.”
The Celtics advanced 7-0 midway through the second quarter, but the Warriors eventually outscored them 52-25 after leading 54-39 at halftime after Boston led 14-2. Celtics had 13 turnovers in first half, 23 overall; Boston went 1-8 in playoffs with 16 or more turnovers in a game and lost to Warriors in four The team achieved this result in all competitions.
“As our turnovers piled up throughout the series,” Udoka said, “you can look at our scores against those numbers and see if we’re winning or losing. We gave them 20-plus turnovers and 20 More than a point turnover. “Second chance. We don’t really give ourselves a chance. “
Boston was praised as the deeper team, but its bench fell in Game 6. The Celtics have a plus-minus of -67 off the bench. The Warriors’ bench was +41 in the first two quarters. The Celtics bench added five points in the game.
The Celtics fought back 16-4 to tie it to 10 by the end of the third quarter, a game interrupted by Al Horford’s 3-pointer followed by a block on the other end .
Still, the Celtics couldn’t shake their turnovers. They couldn’t get past their blunders in focus. They cannot surpass the fate of warriors.
“Every possession has a purpose,” center Robert Williams III said. “The other team in the dressing room realised it and we didn’t.”
Tatum, 24, and young gay Brown, 25, Williams, 24, and others may lead the Celtics to a few NBA Finals, but their relative inexperience and propensity to make mistakes proves This team is not ready.
“It’s going to be painful and painful for a while,” Udoka said. “Let it drive the growth and progress we’ve made this season. A lot of people are very emotional right now. The big message is to learn from it and realise that there’s another level to get to.
“Don’t come back the same way. Players, coaching staff. Let this cheer you on.”
Follow Richard Morin on Twitter @ByRichardMorin.
