Inside The Celtics

Bradley Beal Makes Bogus Claim About 2016-17 Celtics

What is Beal talking about here?

Matt John

Isaiah Thomas, Bradley Beal
Isaiah Thomas, Bradley Beal / David Butler II-Imagn Images
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One of the most entertaining the Celtics have played in recent memory was their second-round matchup against the Wizards in 2017. After so many twists and turns, the Celtics pulled away by the skin of their teeth, thanks mostly to Kelly Olynyk.

The Celtics were then humiliated in the next round, as the Cavaliers tore them limb from limb in a gentleman's sweep in the Eastern Conference Finals. Isaiah Thomas didn't make it past Game 2 because of a hip injury, but it was clear from the start of Game 1 that they were out of their depth.

Seven years later, Bradley Beal, one of the Wizards' marquee players on that team, made a rather curious claim about the Celtics during his appearance on "Run Your Race."

"We feel like we would have gave (Cleveland) a better matchup than Boston because that was the year we took Boston to seven when (Isaiah Thomas)."

Beal also acknowledged that John Wall believed they could have beaten the Cavaliers that year too. Note that Washington never came that close again with Wall and Beal after 2017.

Cutting right to the chase, the bottom line is that the Wizards didn't beat the Celtics. In fact, if Wall hadn't hit a miracle buzzer-beater in Game 6 of that series, it would have ended right then and there. Funny how they conveniently forget that part when talking about hypotheticals.

Without getting too much into it, this narrative is fueled primarily by Cleveland spanking Boston in the next round. But anyone who thinks it's proof of the Wizards being better than the Celtics that season is looking through the wrong end of the telescope.

What happened in that Eastern Conference Finals was more of a testament to how that Cavaliers team was head and shoulders better than everyone in the East. No matter who faced them, Cleveland was going to eviscerate them.

Among those who find this notion ridiculous is ex-Celtic Jae Crowder, the Celtics' starting small forward in 2017, who had this to say about Beal's words via his X account.

Beal can entertain any what-if that he can think of regarding the previous teams he played for, but it will always remain an objective fact that the Celtics not only came up victorious in that series, but also by extension ended the Beal-Wall era in Washington.

To quote The Departed's Frank Costello, "If you coulda, you woulda..."

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Matt John
MATT JOHN

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