Getty Cedric Maxwell, radio announcer for the Celtics, says he hopes he doesn't have to travel to Denver again this year.
Cedric Maxwell won two NBA championships as a player with the Boston Celtics in the 1980s. Now, the team’s long-time radio color man, he wants another Boston title this year but said on March 10 he hopes the Celtics’ road to Banner 18 doesn’t go through Denver.
The Denver Nuggets have posed a problem for the Celtics and the rest of the league. Despite Boston owning the best record in the NBA, the Nuggets swept the season series from the Celtics.
It’s not that Maxwell wants to avoid playing against the defending NBA champions, it’s just that he wants to avoid going to Denver.
Cedric Maxwell on Denver: ‘Ain’t a Damn Thing to Do’
The Celtics fell to the Nuggets 115-109 during their current road trip, losing to Denver for the second time this year. Many fans believe Celtics vs. Nuggets is a preview of the 2024 NBA Finals. The Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat in the 2023 NBA Finals to earn their first championship.
Maxwell agrees a Celtics vs. Nuggets matchup for all the marbles could be in store, but it doesn’t appear to be what he’s hoping for.
“I’ll tell you what it wouldn’t be,” Maxwell said on “The Cedric Maxwell Podcast.” “It wouldn’t be no happiness for me going to Denver, though, because ain’t a damn thing to do there. There ain’t [expletive] to do in [expletive] Denver.
“The best thing that I did was I went to Capital Grille. Met a nice woman, the bartender, who served me some nice food. Other than that, shaky.”
Inside the arena, Maxwell had no problem.
“It’s a good arena,” he said. “It’s lively there.”
Maxwell was also surprised by the number of Celtics fans in the Mile High City.
“I was more impressed with the Celtics following,” he said. “Man, that place was rocking with Celtics fans.”
Nuggets Would Give Celtics Fits as NBA Finals Opponent
With a 121-99 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday, March 11, the Celtics became the first team this season to reach 50 wins. They own the best record in the league at 50-14 and are significant favorites to win the NBA championship.
The Nuggets sit a half-game behind the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference at 45-20, but they’ve been there, and they have the best player in the game in Nikola Jokic.
Jokic has proven time and again he can take over a game. He dictates the pace of the game and can burn you with his post-up game or his strong outside shooting.
Jokic, the best passing big man in the game, put up 32 points 12, rebounds, and 11 assists in the latest win over the Celtics. Celtics starter Kristaps Porzingis explained just how tough Jokic is to guard.
“He’s just an incredible basketball player,” Porzingis said after the Celtics’ March 8 loss to the Nuggets. “Some things I learned from him today actually. He’s just so smart, so crafty. There’s so many things that you don’t see that he does on the floor that helps that team win. It’s incredible.
“Whenever you overhelp just a little bit, he will find [Aaron] Gordon and all these guys. It just speaks of how valuable he is for them and what he does for them. Really, really, really hard to stop.”