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The Boston Celtics have found themselves in quite a tough situation in their Eastern Conference semifinals series against the Philadelphia 76ers. After losing Game 5, the Celtics are now heading back to Philadelphia for Game 6, and if they lose this game, their season will be over in the blink of an eye. Considering all the C's have accomplished this season, it would be a crushing result to lose at this stage of the playoffs.
We have already gone in depth about the Celtics struggles and how they found themselves in this spot in the first place, but none of that matters anymore. The only thing that matters is finding a way to stave off elimination on the Sixers home court and force a Game 7 in this series. It will be easier said than done, but Boston has the talent to pull this off.
There are a lot of things the C's need to fix after their Game 5 loss, but this crucial Game 6 contest is going to shine a much bigger spotlight on the Celtics two star players in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Both have had their ups and downs so far in this series, but they are going to have to be at their best if they want to return to TD Garden for at least one more game, making this a potentially huge legacy-defining contest for Boston's star duo.
Why Game 6 is so important for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown
During Boston's recent ascent into one of the best teams in the NBA, Tatum and Brown have gradually turned themselves into the best duo in the league. Tatum is now an MVP-caliber player, finishing fourth in the voting this year, and even leading the pack for the first quarter of the season, while Brown is set to be an annual All-Star at this point, and has only continued to improve with each passing season.
Tatum and Brown's recent All-NBA selections only further push this narrative. Tatum was First-Team All-NBA for the second straight season, while Brown earned his first All-NBA selection by making it on the Second-Team. No other team in the league had two players be labeled among the ten best players in the NBA other than the Celtics.
While that's a mighty accomplishment, it also feels like the stakes have been raised significantly as a result. There's no hiding that Tatum and Brown are dominant, and they must prove that now that their backs are against the wall. These guys are both eligible for (and almost certainly will receive) super-max extensions from the Celtics in the future; now they need to prove that they are truly deserving of those deals.
This isn't to say that they aren't, because they surely are, but this isn't Tatum and Brown's first rodeo in the postseason with Boston. Tatum has already been to the Eastern Conference Finals three times in his first five playoff runs, and Brown was a part of a fourth ECF run the year before Tatum entered the league. The Celtics finally made it to the NBA Finals last year, but fell victim to the Golden State Warriors dynasty.
Considering how Jayson Tatum is just 25 years old and Jaylen Brown is 26, it's safe to say Boston should be a championship contender for as long as these two are in town. But at some point, the results, particularly in the postseason, are going to have to appear. Paying these guys supermax deals would make adding the type of depth the C's currently have nearly impossible, so if they can't win with this depth, can they win without it?
It's been championship or bust for Boston all season long, which is why crashing out of the postseason in the East semis would be such a massive disappointment for this team. The Celtics have two of the top ten players in the NBA currently, and if they are unable to make it out of the second round of the playoffs, some big questions would have to be raised regarding what the future looks like for this team.
For years, Tatum and Brown have been working on cementing themselves as some of the best players at their craft. For the first time in the same season, they have finally earned that recognition, and now it's time to prove why. If they are All-NBA players, dominating a do-or-die Game 6 should be something they are capable of, correct?
The time has come for Tatum and Brown to take the reins for a Celtics team that desperately needs them right now. All the inconsistencies they have endured will be forgotten about if they can overcome a 3-2 deficit for the second-straight season to advance to the ECF. But if they lose, the team will have to seriously consider whether or not this duo is capable of winning a championship or not. We won't get all the answers in Game 6 on Thursday night, but it's clear that the stakes have never been higher for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
