The Boston Celtics have gone back-and-forth with the Miami Heat, flexing their domination during the first two playoff games of this first round series.
In Game 1, Boston tore apart the zone defense Miami deployed, tying the franchise record for made 3-pointers in a postseason game (22) and won by 20.
In Game 2, it looked like the Celtics were caught off guard by the Heat’s switchability on defense and they couldn’t hit many shots from deep, finishing 12-of-32.
The Heat responded to the Celtics production from behind the arc in Game 1 by matching it in Game 2, connecting on 23 3-pointers, which set a new franchise record for Miami.
With the series tied 1-1 and shifting to Miami for the next two games, the Celtics need to do a better job of adjusting from game-to-game and during each game, just like the Heat did.
Let’s take a look at some possible adjustments the Celtics can make for Game 3:
Double Big Sets The Pace
Boston has used an eight-man rotation in the first two games, with Al Horford, Sam Hauser, and Payton Pritchard being the only players to hit the court from the bench.
An adjustment that can be made to increase the pace is to play Horford and Porzingis more on the court together. The Celtics pace through two playoff games runs at its highest when they’re on the court together.
Playing both Horford and Porzingis together could put Heat center Bam Adebayo in a more challenging situation on the defensive end and possibly lure him out of the paint if he has to choose between one of them.
It’s worth noting that Boston tinkered with the double-big lineups at the end of the regular season. It wouldn’t be a complete surprise if they eventually turned to it.
Horford and Porzingis have played 18-minutes together in this series.
Ball Movement
The Celtics need to run more plays and move the ball around the court. They look their best when they drive-and-kick the ball back out to the perimeter but even having more designed plays would be ideal.
In Game 2, Boston tried to feed Porzongis and they ended up over feeding him considering he likely played the worst game since being on the Celtics.
At the guard position, both Payton Pritchard and Derrick White are averaging four assists per game while Jrue Holiday is averaging 2.5 assists. The assists-to-pass percentage is led by Pritchard (13.1), Sam Hauser (10.5), and Jayson Tatum (10.3).
Defensive Matchups
The Celtics need to do a better job of winning their matchups and not over helping on drives to the basket. There were many times in Game 2 where they over helped Porzingis, which left a shooter wide open. That can’t happen.
It’s worth mentioning that the Celtics traded for Porzingis for this specific reason to defeat teams like the Heat that they’ve struggled with over the last few years. They need to trust that he can do what they need him to do.
The Celtics had the best 3-point defense in the Eastern Conference this season, only allowing opponents to shoot just 35.2%. This is another area the team has unnecessarily over helped in this series.
Game 3 is today at 6:00PM in Miami.
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Photo Credit: Bart Young, NBAE via Getty Images
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