After their first conflict in Oklahoma Metropolis on January fifth, the Celtics will as soon as once more tackle the Thunder. Led by MVP front-runner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC presently sits atop the Western Convention with a stellar 53-12 file. This marks Boston’s remaining probability to check themselves in opposition to the Thunder earlier than a possible Finals showdown.
In case you forgot, the Celtics led that first sport 65-55 at halftime earlier than collapsing within the second half, scoring simply 27 factors and falling 105-92. On the time, Boston was within the midst of an uncharacteristic 11-9 stretch over 20 video games. Since then, they’ve discovered their rhythm, however that matchup nonetheless serves as a beneficial intel transferring ahead.
Let’s dive into the three key takeaways the Celtics should apply to Wednesday night time’s rematch.
Limiting turnovers
The Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder power extra turnovers than any group within the NBA, with a jaw-dropping 17.5 per sport. That’s their motor. With an athletic, fast-paced assault, the Thunder power errors, after which zip the ball down the ground or let Shai Gilgeous-Alexander slither by the protection and masterfully end on the cup.
Within the first half of the final matchup, they solely turned the ball over six occasions. Then, the Celtics’ second-half turnovers opened the floodgates. Six of these ten turnovers have been described as “unhealthy go turnovers,” two have been Jaylen Brown dropping the ball driving into the center, and the opposite two have been offensive fouls.
With the unhealthy passes, the Celtics can’t panic within the face of the Thunder’s swarming protection. A lot of these passes have been compelled over-the-top publish entries or failed bounce passes by site visitors. The C’s simply by no means received settled into the second half.
With higher rhythm, home-court benefit, and prior expertise in opposition to OKC’s defensive schemes, the Celtics needs to be higher ready to deal with the stress this time round.
As for Brown’s turnovers, they have been a product of forcing the difficulty in opposition to a stagnant offense. Credit score to him for making an attempt to spark one thing, however head-down drives into the guts of OKC’s protection merely received’t work.
A helpful comparability? Final weekend, the Celtics dismantled Luka Dončić by forcing him into 5 turnovers, most of which got here when Doncic tried to assault by the center. The Thunder, with entrance workplace and training roots from New England, have adopted the Celtics blueprint, and boast an identical tenacity for stopping center drives — like killer whales, if you’ll.
The reply is spacing out the Thunder protection to open up driving lanes, which ends up in the following adjustment.
Spacing and using the pick-and-roll
After the final matchup, Joe Mazulla said that the Thunder “took benefit of [the Celtics] poor spacing and [their] poor screening.” Like he at all times does, Coach Mazzula received proper to the purpose.
The Celtics’ offensive struggles in that sport stemmed from their lack of ability to tug OKC’s rim protectors out of the paint. Isaiah Hartenstein was left largely unbothered inside, and the Celtics didn’t assault him in pick-and-roll conditions, which eliminated a key a part of their traditional offensive method. This error was evident in Brown’s second-half struggles, the place he went scoreless.
Normally, a giant man anchoring within the paint would open up kick-out for the Celtics. Nicely, it did; nevertheless, the Celtics shot simply 12.5% from the three-point arc within the second half. We are able to’t anticipate the Celtics to shoot that poorly from three-point land once more — belief me, if I may title one in all these classes “make your three-point photographs,” I might.
Nevertheless, even when the C’s flip it on from three on Wednesday, they nonetheless have to open up house within the paint. This turns into much more essential with Chet Holmgren now within the combine, as he wasn’t obtainable for the primary matchup.
Holmgren is averaging practically three blocks per sport and is an arguably a greater inside presence than Hartenstein. Nevertheless, his skinny body presents a possibility: by dragging him out and attacking him in switches, Tatum and Brown ought to discover simpler driving lanes.
Win the “different” matchups
When these two groups meet, it’s like trying in a mirror: an MVP-caliber celebrity main the way in which, an elite All-Star wing in assist, and a productive, savvy supporting solid.
In January, that supporting solid battle swung decisively in OKC’s favor. Lu Dort (14 factors), Cason Wallace (13), and Aaron Wiggins (15) all delivered, whereas Boston’s function gamers struggled. Derrick White scored simply 11, and Jrue Vacation, Al Horford, and Sam Hauser mixed for under 11 factors. Payton Pritchard didn’t make a single bucket.
Importantly, Kristaps Porzingis put up 19 in that sport, and he’s formally questionable for tonight. This makes it much more very important that some mixture of White, Vacation, Pritchard, Horford, and Hauser can discover their rhythm early. Though Tatum and Brown are greater than able to placing up historic performances, an isolation-heavy method received’t bode effectively in opposition to the Thunder’s dynamic depth.
Fortuitously, Derrick White is on the opposite finish of his capturing stoop, Pritchard has been extra constant, and Jrue’s capturing has improved in his first two video games again from damage. And naturally, Horford simply placed on a masterclass in opposition to the Lakers.
In the meantime, the SGA’s sidekick, Jalen Williams, will likely be out on Wednesday. Naturally, this provides extra stress on the remainder of the Thunder squad. Nevertheless, it’s value noting that Williams scored simply 10 factors within the first matchup, but OKC’s supporting solid nonetheless propelled them to a dominant victory. The Celtics should concentrate on containing that supporting group and forcing SGA to shoulder the majority of the offensive workload. If it comes right down to a battle between SGA and Boston’s depth, the Celtics’ energy in numbers provides them the sting.
Ultimate ideas
In the end, this sport is ready to be a chess match between two of one of the best groups within the league. The Thunder are on a mission to grab the Celtics’ spot as championship favorites, but it surely’s as much as Boston to remind them who really runs the league. In a attainable Finals preview, that is greater than only a regular-season matchup – it’s time for the Celtics to show they’re nonetheless the group to beat.
