The Beatdown Continues

The Boston Celtics lost Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals last night to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 117-104. You bet your ass Shank wrote about it!

What were you expecting? Brian Scalabrine announcing a run for mayor? Free cigar night on the Red Auerbach court? Larry Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale turning back the clock, walking through that door, and leading the Celtics over the World Champion Cavaliers on the way to Green Banner No. 18?

Sorry.

After winning a pulsating Game 7 vs. Washington on Monday, and hitting the Lottery jackpot Tuesday, the Celtics were throttled by the Cavs, 117-104, in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals on Wednesday night at the Garden. Don’t let the final score fool you. This was a wire-to-wire beatdown. The Celtics trailed by 28 in the third quarter.

Note how gleeful this column reads; that's my big takeaway from it. But wait - it gets better!

We said all along that just getting to the conference finals would make this Boston basketball season a success.

And what were we saying about the team last month?

On now with @ZoandBertrand til 1. We are talking about how we'll rip the C's if they lose in first round. (They won't).

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) April 11, 2017

Then there's this passive - aggressive sentence:

A pregame video on the big board featured clips of national commentators disrespecting the Celtics, suggesting Boston might be the worst No. 1 seed in playoff history.

What were you saying last month, Shank?

Are these Celtics the worst No. 1-seed in postseason history, or are they a worthy lot, bound for the conference finals and perhaps capable of stunning the Cleveland Cavaliers and advancing to the NBA Finals?

I think we know the answer. Today’s Celtics fall in between the two extremes. They are not total frauds reaping the benefits of the Tomato Can NBA East. But nor are they championship driven.

This son of a bitch is absolutely shameless, thinking readers will forget what he wrote a mere month ago.