All week, Brad Stevens and many of the Celtics that have talked about their upcoming opportunity to upset the favorite to win the title this year have been overly deferential to their first round opponent. It’s been “aw shucks” this and “we’re just happy to be here” that. Heading into Game 1, there are more questions than answers.
Can the Celtics score enough points to run with the Nets? Can Boston even limit them defensively to make it a competitive series? When asked if it was good enough to hold Brooklyn to 115 points, Stevens paused and wryly answered, “if we score 116.