As Thursday’s observe on the Auerbach Center wrapped up – 48 hours earlier than their NBA playoff run was set to start – the Celtics had been letting unfastened.
On one court docket, Marcus Smart was tossing up half-court pictures, attempting to sink one whereas not leaping. When he made one, the Celtics level guard repositioned behind the 3-point arc to bounce a shot in, and hit a kind of, too. On one other court docket, Derrick White, Grant Williams and assistant coach Ben Sullivan had been taking part in a recreation of HORSE, a standard incidence throughout shoot-arounds all through the season.
Just a bit enjoyable earlier than a very powerful video games of the season get underway.
The Celtics used their painful defeat in final season’s NBA Finals as motivation throughout summer time exercises and carried that over to the beginning of this season, once they performed with an edge. That wore off over the course of the season. But as they start the postseason on Saturday, that edge is again.
“We’re back to (being) pissed off,” Smart mentioned. “We’re happy and we’re smiling here, we’re getting ready, we’re having fun with it. But Saturday, when we step on that court, you’re not going to see many smiles.”
The purpose has been clear and easy all season – get again to the Finals and end the job. But they know they’ll’t skip steps to get there. Mission No. 1: Beat the Hawks.
“Nobody’s really looking at the Finals right now,” Jayson Tatum mentioned. “We got this Game 1 on Saturday. Nothing after that is promised. We’re just worried about taking it one game at a time.”
Five issues to look at because the Celtics start their first-round sequence towards the Hawks:
1. Joe Mazzulla’s first postseason as head coach
Mazzulla has carried out admirably because the Celtics’ head coach this season within the face of distinctive circumstances. He was promoted to the job simply days earlier than coaching camp after the suspension of Ime Udoka. He confirmed humility and understanding in serving to a shaken locker room get by way of adversity that would have derailed the season. Despite being a first-time head coach, he guided a staff with championship aspirations to 57 wins.
But now comes the most important highlight as Mazzulla tries to turn out to be simply the sixth rookie head coach in NBA historical past to win a championship.
Mazzulla had some pure rising pains this season and it will likely be attention-grabbing to see how he applies the teachings and experiences he went by way of. But he feels prepared.
“I feel prepared because of the roster we have, the team that we have,” he mentioned. “I really feel ready due to the coaches that I’ve labored for. Brad (Stevens) and Ime have achieved a terrific job in playoff settings and so I really feel that preparation simply from these two conditions.
“As big as this is, I still think it comes down to the most simple of details. Through all those playoff series I’ve been in, as much as it was about sub patterns and matchups, it was also about not sending guys to the free throw line, sprinting back in transition, getting more shots than your opponent, rebounding the basketball. All those things, I think you have to do the little things at a higher intensity while being ready to adjust.”
2. A superb downside to have
This sequence presents a tantalizing matchup of guards. Dejounte Murray joined Trae Young to type an thrilling, high-scoring backcourt in Atlanta this season. But the Celtics are deeper and extra well-balanced with Marcus Smart, the maturation of Derrick White and the addition of Malcolm Brogdon.
It might be attention-grabbing to see how Mazzulla handles taking part in time for that trio of their first playoff sequence collectively. As a veteran, Smart has an understanding of what it takes to win playoff video games. White has arguably been the Celtics’ third-best participant this season. Brogdon has been the lacking piece of the bench and constantly makes the suitable performs offensively. But all of them can’t play on the identical time, and with rotations shortened within the postseason, at the very least one among them goes to be the odd man out throughout crucial moments. Smart mentioned they know one among them should sacrifice, which they’ve achieved all 12 months.
“All three of us, we’ve all sat down and talked and let each other know we’re here to win and that’s our main goal,” Smart mentioned. “We’re going to sacrifice, no matter meaning, to achieve that. And for us, we perceive that all of us three can’t play on the identical time. There’s not sufficient minutes. We perceive that a few of us may be on the court docket for a superb time frame collectively, however anyone’s gotta go to the bench and we perceive that if that occurs, it’s nothing private.
“We’re all trying to win and it’s for the betterment of the team. When you got guys that buy into the system and understand what we’re trying to reach, it’s easy to get along and it’s easy to make the strides that we have been making. Especially going into the playoffs.”
3. Rebounding should be a precedence
The Hawks get after it on the offensive glass. In their play-in recreation win over the Heat on Tuesday, they corralled 22 offensive rebounds that led to 26 second-chance factors.
Mazzulla identified Atlanta’s offensive rebounding as one among its strengths since Quin Snyder took over for Nate McMilan in late February. The Celtics coach has burdened successful on the margins all season and rebounding will definitely be a good larger emphasis for this sequence. In a loss to the Cavaliers final month, Mazzulla admitted he was irritated that the C’s hadn’t realized the significance of defensive rebounding late in video games. They’ve gotten higher since, nevertheless it should stay a precedence.
“I think it’s just understanding where they’re crashing from, understanding personnel,” Mazzulla mentioned. “They’re very deliberate in who crashes, and then knowing … (Clint) Capela had eight offensive rebounds in the play-in game, and so he has the ability to change the game so you have to do a great job on him and all five guys got to do it.”
One of these guys might be Robert Williams, who missed all three of the matchups towards the Hawks this season however ought to make a serious distinction on the glass.
“We all know what Rob can do. We’ve all seen it time in and time out. We love it,” Smart mentioned. “When you have someone of Rob’s caliber, he definitely swings the margins back towards our way and helps us with that. And obviously, it’s not just going to be on Rob. Everybody has to get in there and help, he’s only one guy. And they got a couple that’s going to the glass and they’re going to keep crashing, so we all have to get in there and help Rob.”
4. Keeping up the tempo
When Mazzulla was starting his transition as a head coach, he mentioned he modeled a few of what he needed his id to be from Snyder, who engineered a potent offensive system when he was with Utah that was constructed on spacing. Mazzulla used those self same rules to construct his Celtics offense that was on a historic tempo to start out this season and completed as one of the crucial explosive in league historical past.
Now, the 2 will face off in a sequence that would evolve right into a observe meet. The Hawks have been one of many fastest-paced groups within the league since Snyder took the job, and Mazzulla is aware of the Celtics need to be organized and detailed on each ends to counteract them, particularly their transition protection.
“Transition defense starts with our offense. And so if we do a great job with our spacing, with our reads, and our offensive organization, that will limit some of their transition opportunities,” Mazzulla mentioned. “At the same time, they do get out, and so we have to do a great job. But I think building a connection between how we play offense and how we start our transition defense is very important.”
5. Short sequence?
The oddsmakers are predicting this to be a brief sequence within the Celtics’ favor. The C’s are +275 to comb the Hawks and +180 to win the sequence in 5, that are the 2 finest odds amongst all of the outcomes.
The Celtics caught a break when the Hawks beat the Heat within the play-in recreation. The Heat, whereas wildly inconsistent this season, had been nonetheless the No. 1 seed final season that took the Celtics to seven video games within the Eastern Conference Finals, and it was extra doubtless they might push the C’s to a protracted sequence within the first spherical. It’s vital that Boston takes benefit and makes this a brief sequence – like once they swept the Nets within the first spherical final 12 months – since they’ll doubtless need to endure a protracted, grueling sequence with the 76ers and doubtlessly the Bucks in ensuing rounds. An straightforward first spherical – and getting some further relaxation – will solely profit them of their pursuit of a championship.
Source: www.bostonherald.com