The Celtics officially saw their NBA Cup dreams fall last week when they didn’t advance as the wild card team in the East. The elimination didn’t register too much noise in Boston, though the C’s themselves voiced how they wanted to go to Las Vegas.
But there is a subtle benefit from missing the knockout stages: Rest. The C’s now have an 11-day stretch where they only play two games, which were added to their schedule to make up for missing the NBA Cup. The C’s host the Pistons on Thursday then face the Wizards on the road Sunday. Otherwise, that’s it for the week aside from some practices.
“It’ll be good to get some days off,” Jaylen Brown said after the Grizzlies loss Saturday. “It’s been tough scheduling. Tonight I don’t think was the best indication of Celtics basketball. I feel like we fought to the end, but I think today’s a night we put it behind us. We look at the film and get ready for what’s to come in the future.”
So the C’s will rest up and watch the tourney from home this week. The quarterfinals of the NBA Cup will take place Tuesday and Wednesday. In the East, the Magic are at the Bucks and the Hawks at Knicks. In the West, the Mavericks are at the Thunder and the Warriors at the Rockets. Those are some fun matchups in the second year the league has hosted the in-season tournament. The semifinals are Saturday while the finals will be Dec. 17 in Las Vegas.
The NBA Cup stage is great for some unproven teams looking to take that next step in their development. The Pacers made it all the way to the finals of the tourney last season, giving them a glimpse at high-intensity basketball. They then used some of that experience to help them make an East Finals appearance.
The Celtics are coming off a stretch where they played six games in nine days. The veterans got rest days mixed in while the C’s looked gassed by the end of that stretch. That’s natural considering the stress of an NBA schedule. So an 11-day break where they can practice and play only two games certainly has its perks. So, C’s fans won’t watch their team compete for a title in December. But, of course, the goal is always playing for a title come June.
“It’s been kind of a tough stretch, but it’s no excuse,” Payton Pritchard said. “We’re the best team in the NBA, we gotta come out and show it every night. That’s gotta be our mentality and just try to take care of business.”
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