NBA: Satisfying Chaos At Bottom Of Eastern Conference Playoff Picture

Mar 8, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Boston Celtics guard

(4) dribbles as Orlando Magic guard

(5) defends during the first quarter at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Boston Celtics

Definitely the most surprising member of this not-so illustrious group is the Boston Celtics. NBA fans entered this season with the expectation that it would be another brutal year of tanking in Boston. So did most Celtics fans.

I think their front office did too. What no one took into account was that their coach, Brad Stevens, was a hyper-competitive psycho who would be diagramming elaborate plays for Jared Sullinger at the end of close games against the Sixers.

The front office continued to make things harder for Stevens, turning the Celtics locker room into a revolving door of trade assets who lasted with the team no more than a week at a time, and guys getting their contracts bought out. Yet Stevens persevered through it all.

Then, Phoenix GM Sean McDonough threw a monkey wrench into the front office’s diabolical plan to tank, basically handing the Celtics Isaiah Thomas with a Godfather style offer. Since the acquisition, the Celts are 10-4, and are just a half game out of the final playoff spot in the East.

Thomas has been on a tear since arriving in Boston, and has propelled them into this meaningless race at the bottom of the conference playoff picture. Can they sustain this success? Probably not. They’ve relied pretty heavily on some pretty unreliable guys during this stroke of success. And as much as I love seeing Luigi Datome and Jonas Jerebko dropping 20 and 10’s, I don’t see it continuing-there’s a reason that the Celtics got those two for Tayshaun Prince and a lightly used Subway gift card.

The Celtics have certainly made things intriguing for their fans, and it should be interesting to see if their success can continue to the end of the regular season, and maybe beyond.

Next: A Verdict?