We're used to titles, and let's face it, right now the Celtics are all we've got, and other thoughts

Boston Globe

25-04-2025

The New England sports world is very different now.
The once-stable Patriots are coming off back-to-back four-win seasons, working with their third coach in three years, and selected
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And then we have the Celtics, kings of New England, princes of Basketball America, and stars of NBA, HBO, TNT, ABC, ESPN, and radio-free Scalabrine.
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Here in the spring of 2025, the Celtics are by far our best hope for champagne and balloons. They won the NBA crown last season with a 16-3 playoff run and we fully expect another duck boat parade down the Champs de Boylston sometime after Flag Day. It's not going to be Orlando Easy for the next three rounds, but — fair or unfair — Joe Mazzulla's got the best team and anything shy of Banner 19 will be a disappointment.
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Let's enjoy the playoff ride. At this hour, the Celtics are all we've got.
It's hard to know what to make of the other three.
The Red Sox have the same record as this time last year (14-13) and continue to lead the majors in strikeouts and errors (that's bad, right?). They're in Cleveland for the weekend, wobbling in second place behind the Yankees but totally capable of staying in the race for the top of the mediocre American League East. It's been tough to watch Rafael Devers and Triston Casas at the plate, but Alex Bregman, Garrett Crochet, and Aroldis Chapman have been great additions and the team is more fun to watch than it's been since 2018.
There's a lot of enthusiasm around the 4-13 Patriots and the selection of Campbell represents an important move to protect franchise quarterback Drake Maye. But the Pats still have a thin roster, a dearth of offensive skill players, and persistent questions regarding chain of command. Fans want to believe that new coach Mike Vrabel gets to shop for the groceries, but the ongoing presence of Eliot Wolf underscores the nagging notion of Kraft family interference.
The Bruins' autopsy press conference Wednesday was a tension convention featuring Charlie Jacobs, Cam Neely, and Don Sweeney. It's always good to see ownership accountability, but this awkward session featured a level of pushback ('Can you just elaborate on that a little bit, Kevin?' — Neely to the Globe's Kevin Paul Dupont when asked about poor drafts) and stubbornness that makes one worry about the future of the franchise. It's redundant to amplify the
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⋅ Quiz: 1: Name the top five Celtics in playoff points; 2. Name seven MLB sluggers who hit 40 or more homers in a season after playing for the Red Sox (answers below).
⋅ Don't look now but Ted Wells is back in the news. The man who filed the infamous
⋅ The Dallas Mavericks should have checked with the Boston Red Sox before trading Luka Doncic. Some decisions cause irreparable franchise harm. We are in year six of the post-Mookie rubble and only now are the Sox beginning to emerge from the damage done.
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⋅ Hope you're watching Knicks vs. Pistons to scout the next round for the Celtics. The first three games of the series were an homage to the 1980s roller-derby ball the Celtics played vs. the 76ers and Pistons.
Cade Cunningham is one of the main reasons the Pistons went from 14 wins last season to 44 this season and a first-round playoff matchup with the Knicks.
Angelina Katsanis/Associated Press
⋅ Disappointing to hear Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau complaining about free throw disparity after New York's Game 2 loss. After Detroit took 34 foul shots to New York's 19, Thibs said, 'Obviously, huge discrepancy in free throws. Huge. I gotta take a look at that, right?' Actually, no, Coach. You've been around too long. That's the lament of a sports talk-radio caller. When the other team takes a lot more free throws than your team, it generally means the other team is working harder than your team.
⋅ Shortstop J.P. Crawford, who did damage when the Mariners were in town this past week (
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⋅ The Oklahoma City Thunder's 12.9-point average margin of victory during the regular season is the best in NBA history. Swell. I still wish they were the Seattle SuperSonics.
⋅ The Farce of College Sports 2025: St. John's men's basketball coach Rick Pitino has got his top six rotation set for next season. Zuby Ejiofor is St. John's lone returning starter. He'll be joined by a fab five bought from the transfer portal: Ian Jackson from North Carolina, Bryce Hopkins from Providence, Fall River native Joson Sanon from Arizona State, Oziyah Sellers from Stanford, and Dillon Mitchell from Cincinnati. Nice recruiting class there. Boola-boola!
St. John's men's basketball coach Rick Pitino's team will undergo a lot of turnover next season.
Emilee Chinn/Getty
⋅ Speaking of Pitino, the coaching legend did himself no favors with his appearance in the
⋅ Who hired Pitino as men's basketball coach at Providence College back in 1985? Lou Lamoriello, that's who. Lamoriello, who turns 83 in October,
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⋅ Juan Soto isn't even warmed up yet, but the Mets are flying. The Amazin's swept the estimable Phillies at home this past week and are 12-1 at Citi Field.
The Mets are off to a hot start, including winning 12 of their first 13 games at Citi Field.
Kent J. Edwards/Getty
⋅ Hall of Fame lefthander Jim Kaat sent a missive to remind me that the first home run he issued was to Red Sox shortstop Don Buddin.
⋅ Best short-armed athlete of my lifetime: Former NBA All-Star big man Jeff Ruland (was he 'McFilthy' or 'McNasty'?). A star at Iona for Jim Valvano, Ruland was drafted by the Bullets and became a two-time NBA All-Star despite notoriously short arms. Ruland once had a dental emergency while attending an Orioles game at Memorial Stadium in the 1980s, and the tooth was pulled by Orioles team publicist Dr. Charles Steinberg, DDS. Atlanta Hawk Kevin Willis ('T-Rex Arms') was another short-armed pro sports star.
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⋅ Holy Cross plans to retire the baseball jersey numbers of Ron Perry Sr., Louis Sockalexis, Jack Barry, Owen Carroll, and Jim O'Neill before Saturday's 1 p.m. game. vs. Lafayette at Fitton Field.
⋅ Now that Jerry Lewis has passed, who'd be a good running mate for future presidential candidate Stephen A. Smith? Carl Everett?
⋅ Quiz answers: 1. Larry Bird (3,897), John Havlicek (3,776), Kevin McHale (3,182), Sam Jones (2,909), Paul Pierce (2,843); 2. Babe Ruth (1920, '21, '23, '24, '26, '27, '28, '29, '30, '31, '32); 2. Ben Oglivie (1980), Brady Anderson (1996), Ellis Burks (1996), Jose Canseco (1998), Carlos Pena (2007), Kyle Schwarber (2022, '23).
Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at