The Celtics only needed 1 game to separate themselves from their supposed biggest threat
Welcome to Layup Lines, For the Win's basketball newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Have feedback for the Layup Lines Crew? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey. Now, here's Prince J. Grimes.
What's up hoops fans. It's Prince here, and I'm so honored to deliver your first Layup Lines after the start of the new NBA season. Thanks for reading.
Though there were just two games Tuesday, the teams in action delivered plenty for us to overreact to. But I want to take a second to zero in on the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks for a second, because whew, that game a stinker.
We knew the Celtics were going to be good again. We knew they'd be the biggest threat to ending the NBA's six-year run of not having back-to-back champions. But the Knicks were supposed to be the biggest threat to Boston, and they looked like anything but a threat in what ended as a 23-point beatdown.
Related: Celtics unveil their incredibly detailed championship rings
That single game was all it took for oddsmakers to put some separation between the teams' respective title and conference championship odds. The Knicks are still second in the East, but they moved from +650 to +800 to win the NBA title. Boston made a more modest move the other way from +325 before the game to +310.
That's not insignificant movement after just one game out of 82. And maybe I'm just being naive, but that makes me want to bet on the Knicks even more.
Odds to win NBA Championship at #BetMGM
Before Game 1
▪️ Celtics +325
▪️ Knicks +650
After
▪️ Celtics +310 🚀
▪️ Knicks +800
It's only one game but... @celtics embarrassed the Knicks. pic.twitter.com/wF7wIqzpff— John Ewing (@johnewing) October 23, 2024
Look, I get it, the Celtics are great. They'll probably repeat as champions if they stay healthy. But they aren't as good as that game made them look, just like the Knicks aren't as bad as they looked.
Don't get me wrong, it was ugly. The Celtics looked like world-beaters. Jayson Tatum was unstoppable. So, if you're asking yourself, who's supposed to stop that? I get it. But the truth is nobody is going to have to stop that, because the Celtics are never going to make 29 of 61 3-pointers again. I know because they never made 29 threes before last night. Only one team in NBA history had. They were one away from breaking the record.
That was a super-shooting performance that basically required the perfect alignment of every star in the galaxy to happen. And even still, the Knicks shot almost five percent better from the field. Jalen Brunson still appeared capable of dialing up instant offense when his team needed it. Miles McBride was a sniper off the bench. Even Karl-Anthony Towns scored easily when the Knicks actually made an effort to get him the ball.
The biggest concern for New York was the defense. ... OK, and maybe Mikal Bridges' shooting form. But if you're asking me whether I think a Tom Thibodeau-coached team with three of the best wing defenders in the NBA is capable of improving on that end, there's no doubt in my mind.
So, again, I say, I love those declining odds. Because it takes a lot of luck to win a title, and even more to do it twice. If the Celtics falter at all, the Knicks remain as good an option as any to supplant them.
1 down, 81 to go for the undefeated Lakers
In the second game of Tuesday night's double-header, the Los Angeles Lakers hosted the Minnesota Timberwolves in a game that will go down in history as the first to feature a father and son playing in the same game.
LeBron and Bronny James took the floor together in the second quarter for a special and just all-around cool moment. And the Lakers came away with the win too.
It was a good day in LaLa land. But will the good times continue? Not if JJ Redick's offense doesn't hold up, as our guy Mike Sykes wrote in his list of potential fatals flaw for every team.
"JJ Redick completely revamped the Lakers’ preseason offense from a ball-dominant, LeBron James one to a more movement-centric, free-flowing style. Early returns look good. It seems that the Lakers players have also enjoyed it so far.
But we’ve seen offensive style changes around LeBron before. They don’t usually stick. After a few hiccups here and there, his teams tend to revert back to what worked before.
Will the Lakers be able to stick with it this time? Or will they revert to old habits? We’ll find out."
Check out the full list to see what might sidetrack your favorite team's season.
Also see: JJ Redick plans to file complaint with NBA about the game balls
Shootaround
-- Barack Obama talked about hilariously reenacting the Key & Peele handshake sketch with Team USA
-- Bronny James' debut was likely a reality check for NBA Rookie of the Year bettors
-- Anthony Davis took a not-so-subtle shot at Rudy Gobert with his DPOY comments
-- When will Paul George and Joel Embiid return from their injuries? Here's what we know
That's all for today. The NBA action continues with 10 more games tonight. Enjoy!
This article originally appeared on For The Win: The Celtics only needed 1 game to separate themselves from their supposed biggest threat
