Havlicek Stole the Pod NBA Basketball Podcast

The Boston Celtics dropped a critical Game 5 of their 2023 Eastern Conference semifinals series with the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night by coming out with low defensive intensity and poor ball movement. The loss gave fans flashbacks of the 2022 postseason when Boston put their backs against the wall against the Milwaukee Bucks.

Will the team be able to win two games in a row to avoid their season ending? Can they get their act together before it is too late? Or is this iteration of the Celtics doomed to repeat history and end their season in disappointment as another opportunity to hang a banner passes them by?

In a slightly unhinged episode of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast, your usual hosts vent their frustrations at being back in the same situation that has plagued this team for ages yet again, as well as taking the pulse of the locker room postgame.

We also get caught up on the rest of the teams still playing in the 2023 NBA Playoffs and team news since we last podded.

The Celtics Lab podcast is brought to you by Fan Duel and Better Help.

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The Boston Celtics came to Wells Fargo Arena with the sort of focus and energy needed to retake their momentum in the postseason against the Philadelphia 76ers on a night when their star center Joel Embiid was crowned the NBA's 2023 Most Valuable Player. 

The Celtics took Game 3 of the series 114-102 thanks to Boston's star wings Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown putting forth the effort on both ends of the court, but also with a team win after six Celtics scored in double figures. And Grant Williams may not have scored in his return to action against Philly, but his elite defense and drive to return to the court after Embiid scarily stepped on his head by mistake was truly a sight to behold.

Are the Sixers' stars out of gas due to Boston's defensive pressure? Are there adjustments to be made? And are we looking at this series any differently now that the Celtics hold a 2-1 lead?

To talk it over, the hosts of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast sat down with co-host of the Spanish "Los Orgullosos Verdes" podcast on the Planeta NBA network Luca Santos, as well as what life is like covering the team on the other side of the pond.

The Celtics Lab podcast is brought to you by Fan Duel and Better Help.

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The Boston Celtics needed a win in Game 2 of their series against the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference semifinals after being embarrassed on their own home court in Game 1. The team answered the call and came through in a major way with maybe their most complete game of the 2023 postseason to date with a 121-87 blowout that ruined Joel Embiid's return to the court just a day removed from winning MVP.

A red-hot game from Jaylen Brown on a night where Jayson Tatum was hobbled by foul trouble and Marcus Smart was hobbled by Embiid falling on him was exactly the sort of response Boston needed.

Can they keep it up with the series swinging to Philly, or should we worry that the same bad habits that cost them Game 1 might re-emerge? How will the Sixers adjust? Do we feel any different about anything in light of how the Celtics won?

On this postgame podcast recorded live from TD Garden after the game ends, your usual hosts break down the tilt from tip to buzzer with an eye to what might be coming down the pike for Boston.

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The Boston Celtics dropped Game 1 of their Eastern Conference Semifinals series against the Philadelphia 76ers 119-115 despite Sixers big man Joel Embiid missing the game due to a sprained knee. The win came from a career playoff-high outing from James Harden, who shined in Embiid's absence with the Celtics struggling to adjust their defense to stop him.

What went wrong for Boston? Who could have done a better job on the court or behind the clipboard? How worried should we be about Game 2? Will Embiid be able to play in it, or can we expect more small-ball Sixers wreaking havoc on the Celtics' defense?

To take stock of the loss and talk about what might be coming for Game 2, the hosts of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast sat down with "Pro Fan Sports" podcast host Barry Ebua.

After, we hear from Cameron Tabatabaie live from TD Garden to relay what head coach Joe Mazzulla and Boston's players had to say in light of the loss.

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The Boston Celtics did their job and put away the Atlanta Hawks on the road in Game 6 to advance to the 2023 Eastern Conference Playoffs' second round on Thursday night. Now, they will face the Philadelphia 76ers as Philly tries to get injured MVP candidate Joel Embiid ready in time for Game 1, set to tip off on Monday, May 1.

Will Embiid be ready? And for that matter, will a Celtics ball club that struggled against the Atlanta Hawks at times be prepared for a steep step up in competition? How will the Sixers face their own spike in the quality of their opponent from one round to the next after dispatching the Brooklyn Nets in just four games?

On this episode of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast, your usual hosts link up with Sixers Wire general editor Ky Carlin to get up to speed on all things 76ers, as well as a quick look back at the Hawks series and some news catch up as Celtics alumni abroad are getting into trouble on the court.

Celtics Lab is brought to you by Fan Duel and Better Help.

(Apologies for the echo, a minor microphone mishap occurred).

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The Boston Celtics told us they were not messing around this time, and like Lucy and her football in Peanuts, we fell for it once again as the Celtics mailed in their Game 5 performance against the Atlanta Hawks in the first round. And while we'd be remiss to avoid it altogether, on the latest episode of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast, we elected to focus more on the postseason ahead (we hope) for Boston.

While we certainly say our piece on what went wrong in Game 5, we're more concerned about the games ahead of the Celtics in the remaining tilts of their series with Atlanta, a potential second-round collision with the Philadelphia 76ers, and how injuries and unexpected twists are reshaping the narrative of the 2023 NBA postseason before our very eyes.

Is the path to the finals really opening for Boston, or is it exactly the sort of scenario that tends to bring out the worst in the Celtics? Who will end up in the conference finals? And how is the West's postseason playing out?

 We also get into things much bigger than basketball, from accountability and second chances in the NBA to honoring those who've shared the best of themselves with us along the way.

The Celtics Lab podcast is brought to you by Fan Duel and Better Help.

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The saying goes that you do not have a series in the NBA playoffs until a team wins a game on the road, and despite the fact that the Boston Celtics dominated Games 1 and 2 at home, the Atlanta Hawks showed signs of life on their own home court, winning Game 3 convincingly.

Have the Hawks found the formula to beat the Celtics, or was this simply a desperate team getting over on a ball club that dropped its guard just enough to be mortal after building a 2-0 series lead? Could Atlanta win another at home and draw the series out to six or even seven games?

What needs to change for a Boston series win, if anything? What went wrong in State Farm Arena on Friday night? And how is Boston's path to the finals looking in light of everything else happening around the league?

The hosts of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast (powered by Fan Duel and BetterHelp) got together with the founder of the CLNS Media Network Nick Gelso to talk it over, as well as get caught up on news in the league more generally.

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The Atlanta Hawks have struggled in their first round series against the Boston Celtics, and the limits of Hawks star Trae Young and the rise of Boston guard Derrick White have been two major reasons why. Now, the series is heading back to Atlanta with the Celtics holding a 2-0 series lead.

Can the Hawks make a series of things with the small ball lineup that found a modicum of success against Boston in the second half of Game 2? How important is White's breakout play for the Celtics' title hopes? And what else can this series tell us about the rest of Boston's postseason?

To answer these questions and get our bearings on the first round at what increasingly seems like it will be the halfway point of it, the hosts of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast (powered by Fan Duel and Better Help) got together with NBC Sports Boston's Max Lederman to talk it over.

They also talk about the details of the new CBA that were recently revealed, check in on season-long award chatter, and more.

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The Boston Celtics may have swept the regular season series with the Atlanta Hawks, their opponents in the first round of the NBA's 2023 Eastern Conference Playoffs, 3-0. But with new head coach Quin Snyder on board and starting to reshape the team's style of play to something more dynamic than what we've seen from them for most of the season suggests there's at least a chance the series won't be quite the sweep some are predicting it will be.

Could the Hawks drag this series out to five or even six games? What would have to happen for that to take shape? Can we trust Boston to take a perceived lesser foe as seriously as they ought to? Do the Celtics simply have too much talent for Atlanta to have a chance of stealing multiple wins?

To get a picture of what we ought to expect from the team heading into Game 1 on Saturday, the hosts of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast (powered by Fan Duel and Better Help) got together with Sports Illustrated's Pat Benson to talk it over.

 We also get into the latest news about awards races, merchandise sales, and the health of key players on both teams, so be sure to tune in ahead of Hawks-Celtics.

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The Boston Celtics are ready to take another swing at hanging a banner in the 2023 NBA Playoffs, and they know who will be the first team standing in their way after the results of the play-in game to determine the Eastern Conference's 7 seed elevating the Atlanta Hawks over the Miami Heat to face the Celtics in the first round of the East postseason.

To take a first look at the season ahead just minutes after learning the selection, this episode of the CLNS Media "Celtics Lab" podcast (powered by Fan Duel and Better Help) takes a short look ahead at the Hawks series with guest Jimmy Toscano of the "Garden Report" podcast, as well as a long look back at the season that was.

With two educators on the call, we hand out player grades and get caught up on the news since our last episode. Join us as we take the first step in documenting and breaking down a journey that hopefully ends in duck boats come summer.

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