Curious to find out who the Boston Celtics will play in the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs? So are they.
With one day left in the NBA season, the Boston Celtics are still waiting to find out their first round playoff opponent. The Celtics face the Milwaukee Bucks in their final game of the season on Wednesday night and a win will clinch the top seed in the Eastern Conference.
A loss by both the Celtics and the Cleveland Cavaliers will achieve the same result, but a Celtics loss and a Cavs win will give Boston the second seed. In addition, the final two seeds in the Eastern Conference are still not yet determined.
As the Celtics wait to find out their own position and who will end up in the opposing position, take a look at the three potential match ups the Celtics could get.
Indiana Pacers
Currently sitting in the seventh seed is the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers are 41-40 but have won four straight games led by a red hot Paul George. George’s name should be familiar to Celtics fans, as he was one of several names attached to the team at the Trade Deadline in March. George is averaging 30.0 points and 7.4 rebounds over the Pacers’ last ten games. Second-year forward Myles Turner and a rejuvenated Lance Stephenson have helped the Pacers keep just ahead of the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls over the season’s final weeks.
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The Boston Celtics have fared well against the Pacers this season, though all three games have been close. The green won the first game on November 12th by a score of 105-99, the second game on December 22nd by a score of 109-102, and the third game on March 22nd by a score of 109-100. Isaiah Thomas has been the key in all three games. He has averaged 25.3 points against Indiana this season.
The Pacers and the Celtics are even in rebounding, with Indiana averaging 42 per game and Boston averaging 41.9.
The Boston Celtics biggest advantage comes in their three point shooting. While the Pacers have a better percentage, the C’s average twelve made threes per game and Indiana only averages 8.6.
The only way the Pacers could miss the playoffs is if both the Heat and Bulls win, so they are in the best position to clinch. They hold the tiebreaker over the Bulls, but not the Heat, so the only scenario where the Pacers could fall to the eighth seed is if Miami wins and both Indiana and Chicago lose.
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls, thanks to the NBA’s tiebreaker rules, currently hold the eighth seed over the Miami Heat and would face the Celtics in the first round if the playoffs started at this very moment. Jimmy Butler, another name known well in Boston thanks to deadline rumors, has put the Bulls on his back and carried them to a 40-41 record.
Butler is averaging 23.9 points per game, while former Celtics Rajon Rondo has played his best basketball in years, though a sprained wrist has forced him to sit for the past three games.
The Bulls have split the season series with the Celtics, with both teams winning two games and losing two. One Chicago win came in the final seconds as Butler drew a questionable foul call on Marcus Smart and hit two free throws give the Bulls a 104-103 win. Isaiah Thomas again led Boston in scoring against Chicago, averaging 24.8 points in the four games. Butler averaged 25.3 points in the first three games against the Celtics, but managed to put up only five in the teams’ last matchup, which resulted in a 100-80 Celtics win.
Slowing Butler down would be the key to beating Chicago in a seven game series.
Chicago’s biggest advantage over Boston is in, like most teams, rebounding. The Bulls have averaged 46.1 rebounds per game this season but, similarly to Indiana, cannot keep with the Boston Celtics three point shooting. The rebounding numbers are also less worrisome after a deadline deal sent Taj Gibson (who averaged 6.9 per game) to Oklahoma City. Without Gibson, Robin Lopez serves as the Bulls biggest threat on the boards, though his 6.4 rebounds per game put him behind Al Horford‘s 6.9.
All the Bulls need to do to make the playoffs is win. A loss will knock them out, unless both Indiana and Miami lose as well. The Bulls can only take the seventh seed if the Pacers lose and the Heat win, as all three teams will finish with the same record. Otherwise, the Bulls simply need to defeat the Brooklyn Nets (who are resting their starters) to guarantee entry to the playoffs.
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat are currently on the outside looking in. At 40-41, the Heat are currently tied with the Bulls for the eighth seed, though Chicago holds the tiebreaker. After an 11-30 start, even coming this close is an impressive feat for Erik Spoelstra’s club.
The turnaround has even brought Spoelstra’s name into the Coach of the Year conversation, especially considering what he had to work with. Dion Waiters has been born again as a sharpshooter, though he has been out since March 17th with a sprained ankle. Waiters is averaging 15.8 points in 46 games while shooting 39.4% from three. As usual, Hassan Whiteside has dominated on the glass and defensively for the Heat. Whiteside is averaging 14.1 rebounds per game (including 3.8 offensive boards), to go along with 16.9 points and 2.1 blocks per game.
The Celtics have handled Miami this season, winning all four games in the season series and averaging 111.5 points per game. Isaiah Thomas, as expected, leads the Celtics against the Heat with 32.5 points per game, though that is inflated by Thomas’ 52 point performance on December 30th.
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Keeping Whiteside in check has been difficult for the Celtics, as he has averaged 19.5 points and 14.3 rebounds in the four matchups. Dealing with his height and length would be tough, but Boston has shown the ability to limit his impact on the rest of his team’s performance so far.
The Heat actually match up decently against the Celtics, showing a clear advantage on the boards and with blocking shots. Just like Indiana and Chicago, though, the Heat have a harder time making threes than the Celtics do. They shoot less than one percent better than Boston (36.6% for Miami, to be exact), but the Celtics make three more three pointers on average.
The Heat also struggle at the free throw line where they shoot only 70.5% as a team. As long as the Boston Celtics make their free throws and limit Whiteside’s ability to dominate a game, they should have little trouble with the Heat.
Miami is in the worst position of all three teams going into their final game. Simply put, if they lost they are out. They are in a must-win scenario and would need one of Indiana or Chicago to win while the other loses in order to get in.
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The only way they can get the seventh seed is if they win and the other two teams lose. It will be a difficult task to sneak in.