addByline("Marc D'Amico", "Celtics.com", "Marc_DAmico");
PORTLAND, Ore. – Four nights, two shocking wins. These undermanned Celtics cannot be overlooked.
They’re playing without Kyrie Irving, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and Daniel Theis, and they’re winning without Kyrie Irving, Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart and Daniel Theis.
Tuesday night marked the arrival of the first shocker, as Boston overcame a six-point deficit during the final 30 seconds to down the visiting Thunder, 100-99.
Friday night told a similar story, as the Celtics erased a 12-point, fourth-quarter deficit before upending the red-hot Trail Blazers, 105-100 in Portland.
Boston was undermanned and overlooked during both of those contests, yet here they sit entering the weekend, having taken down two of the best in the West in dramatic fashion.
“We’re learning,” said Al Horford. “We’re growing.”
Amid that process, the C’s have somehow figured out a way to take down two of the top six teams (other than themselves) in the league in a matter of days. How? What is it about this group that makes it so unflappable and resilient?
“I would just say our character is unbelievable,” said Shane Larkin, who jumpstarted a fourth-quarter comeback Friday night by scoring nine points during the first three-plus minutes of the period. “We’re really fighters, and that’s what’s made us so great.”
‘Great’ isn’t an adjective many would use to describe Boston’s active roster at the moment. Six of the 12 active players are rookies, and the majority of them have been more cheerleader than contributor this season.
Yet there were Guerschon Yabusele and Semi Ojeleye Friday night, stepping into the lineup and contributing in big ways. Their effort affected the game, regardless of their modest combined totals of just seven points and three rebounds.
“I thought he was very good,” Brad Stevens said of Yabusele following Friday’s win. “I thought he was very active. I thought he was very strong. I thought he was very tough.”
In regard to Ojeleye, Larkin commented, “(He) didn’t play the whole first half, comes in (during the second half), plays great defense, gets some key rebounds, just plays extremely hard.”
Similar comments were made Tuesday night about Nader, who played 18 productive minutes against Oklahoma City that helped Boston stay in the game before it snagged a last-second win.
These players do not replace Boston’s injured players by any means; they just fill in for them. Stevens wants these young players to play to their strengths, not to attempt to stuff the stat sheet in a similar manner to their injured superiors.
That’s why no one should expect the likes of Yabusele, Ojeleye, Nader or any of the other unheralded Celtic to score 20 points or to grab 10 rebounds. Instead, judge their impact by their ability to provide solid, mistake-free minutes that contribute to winning.
They, along with other players like Larkin and Marcus Morris, who scored 30 points Friday night, have provided strong and productive minutes this week – strong enough to push the Celtics to two shocking wins over talented and healthy opponents. There’s no mistaking the fact that they’ve been motivated by their naysayers.
“It gives you that extra motivation when people are out there saying, ‘They have no shot tonight. They’re out there without Kyrie, they’re without Smart, they’re without Theis,’” said Larkin. “Now it’s our opportunity to go out there and play.”
Larkin, who has played for four different franchises, says that this type of top-to-bottom production and belief is a rare occurrence in the NBA.
“We’re so young that it’s really nice to see, because there’s no real egos,” he explained. “A lot of guys on teams I’ve been on in the past, they don’t play some games, and then they’ll get an opportunity and they’ll be like, ‘Whatever, I know next game I’m just going to sit on the bench when this guy comes back.’
“But we’re all so young that whenever they do get those opportunities they go in there and they’re just so hungry that they might make a mistake, but next time down they’re going to go 100 percent, they’re going to dive for the loose ball, they’re going to box out.”
Sometimes, those things stand as the differences between winning and losing. In fact, Boston was able to seal its victory Friday night because Maurice Harkless chose not box out on the most critical possession of the night, and Horford grabbed an offensive rebound to polish off the win.
The Celtics box out. The Celtics give effort. The Celtics play hard, from top to bottom.
That’s what makes them fighters, and that’s what has allowed them to shock two Western Conference powers in the span of only four days