In Friday night’s Game 7, the Boston Celtics defeated the defending champion Toronto Raptors, 92-87, concluding what was an extremely competitive and entertaining Eastern Conference Semifinal series. Next, Boston will face the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Tuesday, another series that should be must-see TV for the impartial basketball fan, but that represents a nightmare scenario for Philadelphia 76ers fans.
Both Boston and Miami have reached their current level of success on the backbone of getting the vastly better end of trades with the Sixers. The Celtics’ deal with Philadelphia just prior to the 2017 NBA draft will go down as a major turning point in the league’s trajectory.