Boston Celtics Mandatory Credit: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports
Friday night’s loss to the Chicago Bulls was a damning blow to the Boston Celtics’ hopes of avoiding the postseason play-in games that could determine whether or not the Cs even qualify for the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.
To go from the conference finals to the lottery would be a seismic step back for the franchise, and one that will almost assuredly bring about change. Brad Stevens has a long leash, but squandering a year of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown’s emerging primes to such a degree–in a year that also saw the team pay Kemba Walker $34 million–is a crime that could mean the hypothetical guillotine.