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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 guard Payton Pritchard (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

No. 2: Boston Celtics must not let up on defense

The Boston Celtics defense has been quite lackadaisical for most of the season, and if there was ever a time for the team to turn things around, that time is now. Losing Brown certainly hurts the effort to get better defensively, but there are still a lot of solid defensive pieces on this team that coach Brad Stevens can use to his advantage.

The defensive gameplan starts with containing Beal and Westbrook. Beal has developed into one of the premier scorers in the NBA this season, and he finished second in the scoring title race this season with 31.3 points per game.

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And then there’s Westbrook, who just wrapped up his fourth season where he averaged a triple-double, and can pretty much do anything that’s asked of him.

Slowing down these two guys will be key to the Celtics defensive gameplan. Beal is currently dealing with a hamstring injury that he said today isn’t 100 percent, but he’s going to find a way to score if he’s on the court. Boston will throw a number of guys at Beal throughout the game, with Evan Fournier or Marcus Smart probably getting the initial matchup.

Stopping Westbrook may be more important though because when he has looked bad this season, so has Washington. Westbrook simply does so much in every phase of the game that when he doesn’t produce, Washington completely falters. He’s their top playmaker, rebounder, and second best scorer, so limiting Westbrook’s production is going to be a big part of the gameplan.

Aside from these two guys, the defensive effort has to start at the perimeter and work it’s way inward. You can’t let a streaky shooting team like Washington get hot, or else the game could get out of hand quickly.

An effort has to be made to contest shooters and stay with them if they try to make their way to the hoop. If Boston can turn in a decent defensive performance, they will have a really good shot at moving onto the playoffs.

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