Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.

The Cleveland Cavaliers might be one win away from facing the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals for the third straight season, but Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said his team’s current opponent in the Celtics is enough of a handful.

“I don’t even think about them,” Lue said of the Warriors to a small group of traveling Cleveland beat writers following the Cavs’ Game 4 win Tuesday. “We’re just focused on Boston. The stuff they’re running, it’s harder to defend than Golden State’s [offense] for me, as far as the actions and all the running around and all the guys who are making all the plays, so it’s a totally different thing.”

Wait, the Isaiah Thomas-less 53-win Celtics are harder to defend than the Kevin Durant-supercharged 67-win Warriors? Come again, Coach?

“Like, they hit the post, Golden State runs splits and all that stuff, but these guys are running all kinds of s—,” Lue said of Boston coach Brad Stevens’ schemes. “I’ll be like, ‘F—.’ They’re running all kinds of s—, man. And Brad’s got them moving and cutting and playing with pace, and everybody is a threat. It’s tough, you know, it’s tough.”

ESPN — Cavaliers’ Tyron Lue: ‘I don’t even think about’ Warriors”

“I said that before the series even started about Brad Stevens’ ATOs,” James said. “If you go back and look at my transcript, I said he’s very good out of ATOs. He has so many different wrinkles, misdirection, thinking the ball is going this way, he has a misdirection going the other way. You’ve got to kind of keep your head on a swivel. He has a lot of packages. So you can plan for a few, but then he might run something you’ve never seen before.”

CSNNE — Praise grows for Celtics coach Brad Stevens… and the Boston Celtics benefit from that

Two quotes and two random asides before we get to the basketball implications of what was said by the Cavs’ player-coach and their former NBA player who happens to wear a suit and stand just off to the side of the basketball court and yell out fake plays: Ok, one, the Ty Lue quote may be the funniest quote I’ve seen in the NBA this year. Perfectly dropped profanity and the sentence “F— they’re running all kinds of s—, man” is just incredible. Two, Lebron James is the Donald Trump of the NBA. “If you go back and look at my transcript…” Congratulations, Lebron, of all the things we marvel at about your NBA career, it’s that you called out Brad Stevens’ ATO play-design BEFORE the series started. No, no, this was not something that dawned on you during game three or four, because you’re way too clairvoyant for that and you just had to clear the air and let the world know.

Ok, back to basketball, these are just fantastic press clippings for the Celtics. There’s no myth surrounding Brad Stevens anymore– he’s just a flat-out damn good coach. If tomorrow serves as a eulogy for the Celtics’ season, which it very well might, words will be rightfully spilled commending a really fun and talented team led by an all-star guard who took his game to unexpected heights. But the architect behind it all is the team’s true star, Brad Stevens, and everyone knows it.

Lebron and Lue talk like guys who know they’re moving on. They can heap praise on Stevens (Lue, it seems, may actually be doing that to take subtle digs at his likely next opponent) and know it will only benefit the Celtics down the road, but they have bigger fish to fry. John Wall would have never said this in the previous series, tied at 2, unless he wanted management to fire Scott Brooks. The Cavs are on a different plane than everyone else, so their comments echo differently.

But just as the Cavs marveled at Stevens two years ago, they continue to be impressed with him today. Lebron’s going to be here dominating the East for at least a few more years, but the Celtics serve as an ever growing threat poised to take the king’s throne. If it ends tonight, that’s ok, because James knows Stevens and company aren’t going anywhere.

Related links: 

CSNNE — Tyronn Lue says: “Celtics Harder to Defend Than Warriors”

Herald — Cavs know how hard Brad Stevens is making it on all of them

On page 2, we may not see Jaylen ’til next season

The Boston Celtics could need to play Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals without the assistance of rookie Jaylen Brown.

The team announced Wednesday evening that Brown is questionable due to a right hip pointer. It’s not clear exactly when the wing picked up the injury; he did not reveal any issue while meeting with the media after Boston’s 112-99 Game 4 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

Amir Johnson (shoulder) and Jae Crowder (groin) are each considered probable for the Celtics’ first elimination game of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Mass Live — Boston Celtics injuries: Jaylen Brown questionable for game 5; Amir Johnson, Jae Crowder probable

What is it with hips for the Celtics in these playoffs?

Here’s hoping Jaylen plays tonight. The most impactful part of this series, long-term, may be the graduate-level basketball courses it provides Brown. Primetime games on the league’s penultimate stage against an all-time great. Brown barely played in the Bulls’ series and to be honest, I rolled my eyes when Stevens said something along the lines of Jaylen helping the team win games later in the post-season. I’ve since learned that rolling my eyes at Brad Stevens is akin to having gone up to Albert Einstein in 1905 and saying, “I don’t know, Al, that Theory of Relativity sounds iffy.” Only to be proven wrong and mutter, “F—, Einstein’s out here trotting out all kinds of different theories and s—, man.”

Brown’s done just what Stevens’ postulated. He’s also put up some duds, but this post-season snippet serves as microcosm of Brown’s season as a 19-year-old lottery pick on a winning team.

Ideally, he plays again tonight as a capstone to his crash-course in “Advanced NBA 301.”

Related links: 

ESPNBoston — Celtics rookie Jaylen Brown questionable with hip pointer