Celtics ☘️ Sentinel

 The issue with the Boston Celtics that is not often discussed is - how much longer can the team rely on a 3-headed big man at the center spot? T he Green really have not seen that since the 1969-70 season when Red Auerbach and Tommy Heinsohn were forced to go with Rich Johnson, Jim Barnes and Hank Finkle sharing the 5-spot. The 6'7" Johnson jumped center - Barnes came in when muscle was needed - and Finkel racked up the most minutes (23.3 MPG) following the retirement of Bill Russell . Boston fans now see the aging Al Horford, the undersized Grant Williams and the oft-injured Rob Williams filling that role .  We read about Boston having a plethora of guys at the guard position and needing another wing to hopefully cut the minutes of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown . But not much is seen or heard on finding a long-term remedy at the center slot.  There is general agreement that Nikola Jokic and his Denver Nuggets could very well have another two or three Titles in their ...

 Ten-time Celtics Champion, Sam Jones , was expected to retire after the 1968-69 season, but Bill Russell calling it quits was a bit of a shocker . Sam was going to be sorely missed, but John Havlicek, JoJo White and Larry Siegfried were still arouind to pick up some of the slack. But who was going to replace the seemingly-irreplaceable Russell? Well, it wasn't going to be 7-footer, Hank Finkel , traded to Boston prior to the 1969-70 season. Finkel had his best statistical season in his first stint in Beantown, but he was not Russ - not even close . As Hank's wife, Kathy, said at the time - she knew her husband was not Bill Russell every time she saw his paycheck. Then came "The Savior". 6'8.5", 130 pound Dave Cowens, taken at number-4 in the 1970 NBA draft.. "Too small to play center in the NBA" is what many critics uttered, but "Big Red" proved them wrong. He never lived-and-breathed basketball, but once on the court, he gave you eve...

 The Miami Heat All-Star center, Bam Adebayo, is averaging 21.5 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 4.5 APG, 2.0 SPG and 1.3 BPG versus the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Finals - all while earning a plus/minus of +7.3. Boston now sits with a 1-3 deficit in the series, and Miami has had various heroes in the four contests. But Bam has been tough, productive and consistent.  In the center spot for Boston, Brad Stevens has gone with Daniel Theis as his main weapon - sporadic views of Rob Williams - rare minutes from Enes Kanter - and ditto for Grant Williams. It isn't working. . @kendrickperkins is calling out Brad Stevens for not putting the Celtics in a position to win. "How many lobs is Bam gonna get in this series?! ... Right now Erik Spoelstra is coaching circles around [Stevens]." pic.twitter.com/kgSFIVdymQ — First Take (@FirstTake) September 25, 2020 Miami guard, Goran Dragic, has been a thorn in the Celtics side, and rookie Tyler Herro was a major factor in the Heat's Game 4 victory...