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Boston Celtics: 3 keys to wanding off Wizards in play-in round

By Owen Crisafulli

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - FEBRUARY 28: Tristan Thompson #13 of the Boston Celtics defends Bradley Beal #3 of the Washington Wizards during the third quarter at TD Garden on February 28, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - FEBRUARY 28: Tristan Thompson #13 of the Boston Celtics defends Bradley Beal #3 of the Washington Wizards during the third quarter at TD Garden on February 28, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /
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Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics guard Kemba Walker (Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images) /

When the NBA season kicked off, the Boston Celtics were expected to be in contention for the top four seeds in the Eastern Conference. Yet with the regular season concluding yesterday, the Celtics finished up the season going .500 on the season with a 36-36 record.

That was only good enough for the seventh seed in the East, meaning the Celtics reserved themselves a spot in the play-in tournament due to their lackluster season.

Regardless of how the Celtics got themselves into this bad situation, there is still a game to be played tomorrow night against the Washington Wizards. The Wizards went on a second half tear to put themselves from the bottom of the East all the way up to the eighth seed, meaning they will get a shot to qualify for the playoffs.

Whichever team wins this game will move on to face the Brooklyn Nets in the first round, while the loser will get another shot to make the playoffs, as they will face off against the winner of the 9-10 seed game.

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Facing the Wizards is probably a worst case scenario for Boston, as they’ve been one of the hottest teams in the league for the past month or two. Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal finally developed a solid rapport and took the league by storm.

The Celtics are going to have to play a really good game if they are going to come away with a victory, so here are three keys to picking up a win and moving onto the playoffs.

 No.3: Boston Celtics must get Kemba Walker involved early

With Jaylen Brown now done for the season, that means somebody has got to step up to fill his shoes, and Kemba Walker is going to be that guy, at least on offense. There are going to be a ton of shots available for Kemba now, and it’s vital that he gets himself involved early and often in the game if the Celtics want to have any shot of winning.

Kemba’s struggles on the season have been well documented, as he’s just never really seemed to be as effective as he previously was. He’s lacked the same dynamic ability to consistently get to the hoop, and his three-point shooting numbers have been his lowest since his early days in Charlotte.

However, we’ve finally seen signs of life from Walker over the last stretch of the season. In his last six games played, he’s dropped 30+ points four times and generally has kept his efficiency intact in the process. He’s also missed some time in between those contests, so it’s a good sign that even a bit of a break from game action hasn’t slowed Kemba down.

The goal should be to start Kemba as the primary ballhandler, and if he struggles, have him play off the ball and sit in the corner for some open threes. It’s usually taken some time for Walker to find his shot, but when he does he heats up very quickly.

If Walker can get involved off of the bat and hit his shots offensively, the C’s will have a good shot to come away with a win.

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