2024 NBA Playoff BreakDown: Boston Celtics VS Cleveland Cavaliers

 Before the BreakDown 

Another 2nd round matchup that got plagued with injuries. The Boston Celtics eliminated the Cleveland Cavaliers from the NBA playoffs today by winning their series 4-1. The Cavaliers came out of Boston with high hopes after a dominant victory. However, by game 4, the Cavaliers would be playing without Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert, and Donovan Mitchell. What was already a tall task became nearly impossible over the span of a week. As the Cavaliers go home for the offseason, they are filled with a cloud of uncertainty. Although the Cavaliers have 11 players under contract including their young core of Garland, Mobley, Allen, Strus, and Mitchell. Rumblings of Donovan Mitchell wanting out of Cleveland have stirred through the NBA universe. Meanwhile, the 1 seed Celtics continue their mission of championship or bust. Only 4 games away from clinching the East, it seems unlikely that the Celtics will be stopped from reaching the NBA finals. Let’s BreakDown the series. 

Game 1 and 2 in Boston 

It was very hard to gauge where this series was going from the first two games. In game 1, Boston came out fast and aggressive, winning 120-95. Jaylen Brown looked unstoppable going 4-6 from behind the 3 and scoring 32 points. Derrick White added 25 points and 5 rebounds to that effort. Jayson Tatum tallied a double-double with a line of 18-11-5. But the difference came from the bench. Peyton Pritchard outscored the Cavaliers bench by himself 16-15. The Celtics domination ran the entire game, as they outscored the Cavs in all 3 quarters, and led 15 going into the 4th. They didn’t take their foot off the pressure as they outscored the Cavs by 10 in the 4th, the most lopsided quarter of the game. Jaylen Brown scored 8 points in the fourth, knocking down two of his four 3-pointers. 

But before you could write Cleveland off, the Cavaliers bounced back with a blow out victory of their own. Behind the 3 headed monster of Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Caris Levert, the Cavaliers won 118-94. Donovan Mitchell fell short of a triple double, scoring 29 points with 7 rebounds and 8 assists. Evan Mobley recorded a double-double scoring 21 points and providing a presence on the boards. Caris LeVert remained an important contributor for Cleveland scoring 21 points off the bench. The Cavaliers outrebounded the Celtics 44-31 and shot 46% from behind the 3-point line. At the end of this game, Boston fans were stirring in their seats as the Celtics looked as flat as they have all season long. 

Celtic Clap Back in Game 3 

Boston won game 3 despite a poor offensive effort. They were inconsistent behind the 3, got little help from the bench, But the star power showed out for them. Jayson Tatum scored 33 points and 13 rebounds for another double-double, and Jaylen Brown followed for 28 points. The veteran presence of Jrue Holiday was felt in game 3. Holiday scored 18 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. The Cavaliers shot 12 for 36 from behind the 3. 

Game 4 and 5: What is the future for Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers

The truth is that Donovan Mitchell quit on this Cleveland Cavaliers basketball team. Amidst all the reports that Mitchell will be leaving in the offseason, and doesn’t have trust in coach Bickerstaff, Mitchell sat out game 4 with a calf strain. And I understand the concept of wanting to protect yourself from even more serious injury. But he was jumping up and celebrating on the sideline just fine. It’s not like if Mitchell was hellbent on playing, that he wouldn’t be able to perform. It’s the NBA playoffs, you're down 2-1 to the top seed in the East, and you’re at home and have a chance to tie this thing going into game 5, and you don’t play. What future are you protecting? This is the time that you lay it on the line, and Mitchell treated this game like it was a regular season game. To me, that tells me that you and your team didn't have faith that you could compete with the Boston Celtics in a 7 game series. To make matters worse, the Cavaliers came out and gave it an excellent effort in game 4. Cavs guard Darius Garland scores 30 points, 3 rebounds and 7 assists. And a player that was pushing through injuries of his own, Caris LeVert, scored 19 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Evan Mobley played his heart out scoring 19 points and grabbing 9 boards.The final score was 109-102, but this game was as close as a 5 points game at the 3:14 mark in the fourth when Evan Mobley scored a layup. Darius Garland missed two big shots down the stretch in the last two minutes, closing the door for the Celtics offense to shut down any comeback hope and take a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. As good a player as Garland is, it is no doubt that, 100% or not, the Cavaliers have a better chance with Mitchell taking those opportunities. 

After that, in game 5, the Cavaliers threw the white flag. Mitchell sat out again with a calf strain, LeVert sat with a knee injury, and Jarrett Allen was out with a rib contusion. This game was much more of a 1 sided affair, which is to be expected when 3 key players go down against the heavily favored 1 seed. It looked more like an exhibition game and not an elimination game with a trip to the conference finals on the line. Evan Mobley played his heart out with a 33 point game, and Marcus Morris Jr. scored 25 points in case you thought he was retired. It was an absolute mess for Cleveland. The Celtics only needed 8 players to ship the Cavaliers back to Cleveland. They were so banged up that a 37 year old Al Horford scorched them for a 25-15-5 performance. Jayson Tatum was right behind him with his own double-double performance of 22-10-9, falling an assist short of a triple double. 

So the impending question in the NBA is will Donovan Mitchell will be playing in Cleveland next season? After what we saw in this series, the assumed answer has to be an emphatic NO. Mitchell has been suffering from injuries, and has not been fully invested with this team for almost the entire second half. Not to mention, the internal rumors of a toxic relationship with coach Bickerstaff have rapidly made their way to mainstream media outlets. In addition to all that, there are more larger market teams floating on and off the island of relevancy as ever before. Desperate times lead to desperate moves. I think it’s more than fathomable that one of these teams puts a package together to get Mitchell. The Clippers have a new stadium, and an opening spot with Paul George hitting free agency. Mitchell would be an upgrade from the aging Paul George. Or could the Lakers pass on Trae Young and go directly for another star coming out of Cleveland. Mitchell, LeBron, and Anthony Davis would be a formidable trio and the Lakers would be able to move on from D’Angelo Russell. The possibilities are endless for Mitchell, making it hard to believe that he will want to remain in Cleveland. 

The Future for the Boston Celtics

The Celtics are advancing to the conference finals where they will remain the heavy favorites against the Indiana Pacers. The regular season matchup was competitive, with the Celtics having a slight advantage over the Pacers 3-2. The Pacers, led by Tyrese Haliburton, pulled off a shocking comeback against the Knicks. The Pacers dropped the first two games in New York to go down 2-0, but won all 3 of their home games, and then closed down the banged up Knicks in the garden. But the injuries of the Knicks shouldn’t be used as an excuse, the Pacers are a dangerous team. They had a historic shooting performance in game 7. They earned the right to play the Celtics. But as long as the Celtics continue on their path, and the offense continues to be as efficient as they’ve been, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown should have a shot at competing for their first title. Kristaps Porzingis is currently still injured, and his return is yet to be determined, but that has worked in Boston’s favor as Al Horford has seen more playing time. His energy and leadership that he has brought to this lineup is priceless, and he seems to have helped to instill order and rhythm into what can be a chaotic offensive attack and defensive effort. Derrick White and Peyton Pritchard deserve a lot of credit for their contributions as well. Jaylen Brown has been streaky in the scoring department, yet, it hasn’t been noticeable due to the team picking him up. The Celtics are a deep team when they’re at full strength, which is scary, because the 8-man rotation that beat the Celtics showed little cracks in the foundation. I think with Indiana getting the opportunity to host a conference finals game for the first time since 2014, they’re motivation and crowd should help them win a game or two. However, Boston will be playing for a title in June. I’m taking Boston in 5 games. 

Sources 

1. Game 1: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics: Celtics win 120-95 (Celtics lead series 1-0) 

• CLE: G Donovan Mitchell 33 PTS 6 REB 5 AST; C Evan Mobley 17 PTS 13 REB 3 AST; G Darius Garland 14 PTS 3 REB 5 AST 

• BOS: F Jayson Tatum 18 PTS 11 REB 5 AST; F Jaylen Brown 32 PTS 6 REB 2 AST; G Derrick White 25 PTS 1 REB 5 AST; G Payton Pritchard 16 PTS 5 REB 2 AST; G Jrue Holiday 14 PTS 6 REB 2 AST 

2. Game 2: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics: Cavaliers win 118-94 (Series tied 1-1) 

• CLE: C Evan Mobley 21 PTS 10 REB 5 AST; G Donovan Mitchell 29 PTS 7 REB 8 AST; F Caris LeVert 21 PTS 6 REB 3 AST 

• BOS: F Jayson Tatum 25 PTS 7 REB 6 AST; F Jaylen Brown 19 PTS 4 REB 1 AST; G Payton Prtichard 13 PTS 2 REB 4 AST 

3. Game 3: Boston Celtics @ Cleveland Cavaliers: Celtics win 106-93 (Celtics lead series 2-1) 

• BOS: F Jayson Tatum 33 PTS 13 REB 6 AST; F Jaylen Brown 28 PTS 9 REB 3 AST; G Jrue Holiday 18 PTS 8 REB 5 AST

• CLE: C Evan Mobley 17 PTS 8 REB 1 AST; G Donovan Mitchell 33 PTS 6 REB 3 AST; G Darius Garland 15 PTS 3 REB 6 AST; F Caris LeVert 15 PTS 6 REB 1 AST 

4. Game 4: Boston Celtics @ Cleveland Cavaliers: Celtics win 109-102 (Celtics lead series 3-1) 

• BOS: F Jayson Tatum 33 PTS 11 REB 5 AST; F Jaylen Brown 27 PTS 8 REB 1 AST; G Jrue Holiday 16 PTS 7 REB 5 AST 

• CLE: F Max Strus 15 PTS 7 REB 7 AST; C Evan Mobley 19 PTS 9 REB 3 AST; G Darius Garland 30 PTS 3 REB 7 AST; G Caris LeVert 19 PTS 5 REB 3 AST 

5. Game 5: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics: Celtics win 113-98 (Celtics win series 4-1) 

• CLE: C Evan Mobley 33 PTS 7 REB 4 AST; F Marcus Morris Sr. 25 PTS 3 REB; G Max Strus 12 PTS 7 REB 9 AST 

• BOS: F Jayson Tatum 25 PTS 10 REB 9 AST; C Al Horford 22 PTS 15 REB 5 AST; G Derrick White 18 PTS 5 REB 6 AST