#1 Pressure defense
The biggest question coming into Game 3 was whether the Boston Celtics could adjust their defensive strategy after being decimated by the Miami Heat in Game 2. Joe Mazzulla’s team answered that question while also throwing down a gauntlet. They won three of the four quarters and didn’t take their foot off the gas until the game was out of reach.
This possession is a good example of the additional pressure Boston applied on the defensive end. Miami was looking to attack Kristaps Porzingis off the switch, with Tyler Herro the ball-handler. Porzingis did a great job of staying on his man’s hip and getting between him and the basket, forcing Herro to kick the ball back out.
The Heat initiated a second side rotation and then looked to attack the mismatch with Jaime Jaquez Jr. on Derrick White. The Celtics guard did a great job with his footwork and positioning, forcing a tough turnaround jumper.
Miami found success in Game 2 by limiting Boston’s ability to punish mismatches. As you can see, the Celtics repaid the favor on Saturday.
These two clips show one full offensive possession for the Heat. A core issue for Miami throughout this game was their inability to consistently challenge Porzingis and Horford in the middle of the floor. A lot of their offenses came via secondary and tertiary attempts. As you can see above, the first clip begins with a kick out onto the perimeter after Porzingis had taken away the basket.
Jrue Holiday is pressuring the ball and almost gets a steal. Jaylen Brown gets a block near the sideline. The Heat kicks it back out before Jaquez finds some success with a bully drive to the rim with under two seconds left on the clock. Yes, the Heat got points on the board with this possession, but they had to work incredibly hard. It took three different attempts to find a gap in the Celtics defense. Those possessions will wear you down throughout a game.
#2 Dribble-drive offense
Another issue that blighted the Celtics in Game 2, was their inability to consistently get into their dribble-drive game. That’s the whole point of a switching defense, it encourages isolation play or high PNR’s. On Saturday, Boston made a concerted effort to drive the lane, force collapses and make reads to find the open shooter.
Both of these plays ended in an assist. There were multiple others that created hockey assists or gave the Celtics an advantage to attack. The Celtics have a wealth of versatile scorers on their roster. It makes sense that they would look to put the ball on the floor, attack the defense and create out of the rotations that follow.
When Mazzulla’s team is playing like this and sticking to the game plan that saw them dominate the NBA throughout the regular season, they’re a tough prospect for any defense to deal with. They are, after all, the best offensive team in the NBA this season.
Here is another example, this time with Holiday drawing the defense before making a pocket pass to Al Horford, who was situated around the nail.
#3 Derrick White does Derrick White things
We’ve already seen a clip of Derrick White doing his thing on defense. That was true for most of the game, be it as a switch defender, a chasing defender, guarding mismatches, or pressuring the ball handler as a point-of-attack option.
On offense, White was a reliable outlet for the Celtics. The above hustle bucket to get the tip-in is a great example of how his aggressiveness on the offensive end provided the Celtics with an additional offensive outlet throughout the game. I was a big fan of this give-and-go play between White and Porzingis in the second quarter, too.
When White is playing well and showing some aggressiveness on offense, the Celtics’ overall approach is elevated. The more members of the rotation that are forcing the defense to keep track of them, the more spacing that is generated, and the less willing the Heat are to help off or send doubles — simply because shots are coming from, and falling from, everywhere on the floor.
White had a great game on both ends. He played his role and was the connector he was acquired to be.
#4 Attacking the switch
A great way to attack a switching defense is to slip a screen before the contact occurs. Most switching defenses are predicated on switching on contact. That’s why slip screens and ghost screens are so effective at creating confusion on the perimeter against a switching defense.
In the above play, the Celtics threaten to go to their “Oklahoma” set out of a stagger screen. The Heat would likely defend this by switching each screen and pressuring Brown before he shoots. Instead, Holiday slips the flare screen and short-rolls toward the nail. A little back and forth between him and White creates and opening on the perimeter as Miami’s defense collapses to defend the paint. Easy three.
Little adjustments like these can shred an over-aggressive switch.
#5 Kornet was back in the rotation
After missing his first two games, Luke Kornet got a few minutes last night. Some of them came with the game tied up. And some of them came in the first quarter. I’m not sure whether Mazzulla is planning on expanding his rotation to nine guys for the remainder of this series or whether he was just seeing what the additional size would do to Miami’s coverages.
Either way, Kornet has earned the opportunity to get some playoff minutes. Although, I do feel like a potential second round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers is where we would see the most of him. For this series, it may be spot minutes to attack the switching defense or add another zone-busting option into the mix.
#6 Porzingis, here are your flowers
“Probably the most important guy on our team for what we’re trying to accomplish,” Tatum told the media after the game.
Porzingis held his matchups to 35% shooting on the night. He defended 20 shots in total, allowing just 7 makes. He also did a solid job of not allowing himself to be dragged onto the perimeter too often, contesting just 2 threes on the night. On offense, he was more mobile, operating as a screener, working in the mid-range, and taking the shots the defense gave him.
When he’s playing with intellectual aggression, Porzingis is the game-changer we all expected him to be.
He also added two blocks to his playoff tally, as he did a good job of moving his feet and following the ball-handler when they attempted to attack the rim.
The Celtics need more of this defensive impact from Porzingis, regardless of how things are working out on the offensive end. He’s too good not to be a primary factor every night. Especially against a Heat team that’s lacking in on-ball creation.
#7 Payton Pritchard’s energy
Talking of making an impact. Payton Pritchard was another member of the Celtics rotation looking to redeem themself after a dismal showing in Game 2. Pritchard checked into the game and instantly changed the tempo. He crashed the glass. He fought for buckets. And he looked to change the pace of play whenever possible.
I was a big fan of the back-and-forth he had with Tyler Herro simply due to the aggression and passion he was showing. It’s also worth noting that he provided some solid defense. On the 8 shots he guarded from Miami, they scored 2, giving him a .25 DFG%, with his matchups shooting 1-of-4 from the perimeter.
Pritchard also showed heart and hustle when fighting through screens. His screen navigation has improved throughout the season. It may look like his defense allowed an open shot in the possession above, but he still managed to impact the release with a rear-view contest.
For a backup guard, Pritchard produced a solid performance and went some way to redeeming the stinker we saw from him on Wednesday.
#8 Combining the Jays
A nice addition to Boston’s opening-quarter offense was how they had Tatum and Brown working in the same action together. On two separate possessions, we saw the All-Stars combine in different screening actions.
Tatum was the screener in both of these plays. Yes, I would prefer the decision-making to be a little crisper, especially when there’s space created due to the initial scramble by the defense. Nevertheless, it’s encouraging to see Mazzulla putting his two best players into the same action.
Hopefully, Tatum and Brown build on this and make it a staple in the Celtics half-court offense. Their gravity and decision-making will ensure their one-two-punch will be devastating, especially with Tatum slipping or popping off those screens.
We’ve seen flashes of Tatum/Brown actions over the years, but for whatever reason, they’ve never stuck. Hopefully, this will be a subplot to the remainder of the playoffs and potentially one that helps get the team over the hump.
#9 Horford a driving force
Horford has been the most animated member of the Celtics throughout the first three games against the Heat. It’s clear he’s embracing his role as the veteran leader of the team and is looking to hold everybody accountable.
On Saturday, his animated reactions were nowhere to be seen. Instead, he led by example. He fought for offensive rebounds. He battled for space in the middle of the floor. And he defended at a high clip.
Even with the Celtics up big and the game looking like it was over, he was still battling for position around the offensive rim and fighting for putbacks.
Horford’s production has never been something to jump out of the box score. He does his work in the margins. Screening, ducking into the post, sealing defenders, providing help defense, or limiting DHOs.
On defense, Horford held his matchup to 3-of-9 shooting and 0-of-3 from the perimeter. Having him coming off the bench is a luxury for the Celtics. He is still the same player that helped the team make the NBA Finals two years ago. Now, his leadership is taking center stage — and he’s showing he can lead in a multitude of ways.
#10 Got to keep it up
The Celtics lead the series 2-1. It’s always fun to sit here and talk about a win and all the things the team did well. The reality is, we were his after Game 1, too. But as we saw in Game 2, the Heat are capable of making adjustments and punching the Celtics in the mouth.
We’ve seen what the Celtics can do when they’re locked in and approaching games with a ‘defense first’ mindset. Now, they need to keep that level of production, and keep that level of pride. Erik Spoelstra will undoubtedly re-position his team to be a threat. That’s what he does. That’s what he does.
The Celtics have taken back control of the series. Win the next game, and Miami will be heading into the TD Garden for Game 5 one loss away from elimination. This is not the series to mess around and risk dragging it out. The Heat are there for the taking. All the Celtics need to do is keep their foot on the gas and prove they have the dawg in the them to become champions.
