What the Boston Celtics need to do to keep their NBA title hopes alive
The sky seems to be falling as the Boston Celtics find themselves in unfamiliar territory for the first time in these NBA playoffs.
The Celtics lost game two at home Friday night by a score of 111-105, going down 2-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals to the Miami Heat.
Now, a lot of fans are having the reaction of “the season is over, it’s done, there’s no way they come back from this!”. Guess what? You have every right to feel that way!
But I’m here to say that this series isn’t quite as finished as some fans might think. There ARE ways that the Celtics can turn this series around and dare I say…maybe even WIN the series. Let’s deep dive into it.
Boston Celtics need to get Jaylen Brown going
It’s no secret that when the Celtics are at their absolute best, they get contributions from stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Tatum has played well so far. Brown? Not so much.
Particularly in game two, Brown was silent for most of the night. He had 16 points on 7-23 shooting.
But the startling part is the woeful three point shooting from the Second-Team All-NBA member.
In the first two games of the series, Brown is shooting a combined 2-13 from three point range. Credit to Miami for their gameplan of tightening the floor, specifically around the perimeter. But Brown has just also flat out missed shots!
So the Celtics need to get Brown going and fast. Get him some easy shots and let him go back to the way he was shooting the ball earlier in the playoffs. Otherwise, the Boston Celtics will have incredible difficulty coming back in the series.
Boston Celtics need Jayson Tatum in the 4th Quarter
For the first two games, Jayson Tatum has disappeared in the fourth quarter. There’s no other way to put it!
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In the fourth quarter of the first two games, Jayson Tatum has zero field goals and five turnovers. No, that is not a typo. Those are horrible numbers for a guy that made First-Team All-NBA this season!
If the Celtics still want to have a chance to win a championship this year, Tatum has to be aggressive and have the ball in his hands as much as possible. Also, make the right reads when the ball is in your hands.
If you’re doubled, get it out to someone else immediately. If you have a favorable matchup, make a move to the basket or hit the shot from the outside.
The Celtics need their star player to start showing up in the fourth quarter.
Boston Celtics doing whatever it takes to slow down Jimmy Butler
Jimmy Butler is as advertised, a clutch playoff performer and plays his best in the fourth quarter. The Celtics need to do whatever it takes to get Jimmy off his game, if that’s even possible.
Keep a hand in his face, don’t motivate him more than you need to (Grant Williams!), and don’t fall for the pump fakes.
Butler is crushing the Celtics so far this series. If that trend continues, this series could be over by Tuesday night. But if they can make some adjustments so he can’t get his mid-range jumpers off, then you can fight your way back into this series.
Time for the Celtics to make a statement
The Celtics need to respond and quickly as the series shifts to Miami. Joe Mazzulla better have a solidified gameplan in order to get back in this thing.
But it’s also up to the players. We’ve seen this done under Brad Stevens. There were times where this happened under Ime Udoka. Now it’s happening with Mazzulla. Execute late in the game!
Next. Celtics getting punk’d by Jimmy Butler and their own mental mindset. dark
If you can’t win close games in the playoffs, then you don’t deserve to win a championship. Plain and simple.
We’ll see what Sunday night brings, hopefully a Boston Celtics win. It isn’t over until a team has four wins, and last time I checked; Miami only has two. Win Sunday, start there.