6 takeaways from Game 1 vs. Bucks
Celtics
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown struggled mightily in Sport 1.
It’s always ideal to stay clear of overreacting to the to start with sport of a collection, so let’s consider to hold things in standpoint: The Celtics aren’t likely to gain a collection towards the Bucks if Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown shoot a put together 10-for-31 from the ground each individual night, like they did in Sunday’s 101-89 reduction.
The only challenge: The Bucks experienced a large amount to do with their struggles in Match 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Both Tatum and Brown had been harassed and harangued by intense Bucks defenders who seemingly lay in wait for the postseason all calendar year — buoyed by the assurance of successful a title last year. The Bucks seemed like a absolutely diverse staff on Sunday than the just one the Celtics faced through the regular time.
Nonetheless, we need to reiterate that not all is dropped just because the Celtics dropped their to start with reduction of the postseason. The prescription is very simple, even if getting the drugs is not: The Celtics have to have much more from Tatum, who is the setting up place for all of their most effective offense. They also need to have additional from Brown, who relieves a large amount of the strain opposing teams set on Tatum. Right up until those two issues take place, they will continue on to battle.
“We’ve acquired to be prepared for their physicality and they strike us in the mouth early and established the tone,” Brown claimed. “We responded far better in the next 50 % when we gave up 45 details, but we have got to perform greater at the close of the working day and that is what it is likely to arrive down to.”
The wager the Bucks made in Game 1 was that if they bothered the Celtics’ stars with intense, bodily protection, the whole Jenga tower would topple. It labored. If it proceeds to get the job done, this could possibly be a brief series.
A relatively safe assumption, of training course, is that the Celtics will make changes and free up their stars. They will need to determine it out quickly, nevertheless — the Bucks also gambled that they would not will need residence-courtroom benefit in opposition to the Celtics on the remaining day of the common season, and they stole the edge from the Celtics right absent in Match 1.
Suddenly, Activity 2 looms huge.
“Be completely ready to occur again, participate in greater, play tougher, appear in and get a gain,” Tatum mentioned. “That’s how I feel we’re going to respond.”
Far more takeaways
2. Probably the greatest problem for the Celtics offensively was their inability to produce anything at all in the paint, which experienced a ton to do with the Bucks’ defense. Milwaukee harassed Boston into turnovers, pressured them to fruitlessly problem Brook Lopez, and under no circumstances enable them get into their ideal offense. They bothered the Celtics with complete-courtroom defense, and Ime Udoka admitted after the match that the ball-handlers had been “sped up.”
“Got to give them credit history,” Al Horford mentioned. “They seriously arrived out and established the tone. It was just one of these game titles that they permit us enjoy, which was fantastic. And yeah, I certainly think we took a phase back to that, just from the things that they were doing. I felt like we responded at periods, but that had an effect on the game for guaranteed.”
In reality, what the Bucks did to the Celtics was rather historic — the Celtics narrowly missed turning into just the fourth crew in the shot-clock era to transform much less than 10 two-ideas in a video game.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, in the meantime, did things like this.
The Celtics have a lot to figure out prior to Sport 2.
3. Marcus Good went operating off the court in the to start with 50 percent following encountering a shoulder stinger, and the Celtics additional a quad injuries to his list of ailments prior to he returned for the second fifty percent. Sensible could be found limping towards the locker area just prior to the closing buzzer as well. Ime Udoka advised reporters after the sport that he expects Sensible will be fantastic, but the Defensive Player of the Calendar year did not glimpse snug.
“He took a several hits,” Udoka explained. “Took two in the to start with fifty percent. I feel the quad bothered him a lot more than the shoulder. He’s going to perform through a great deal. It could’ve influenced him offensively, finding downhill, driving a minor little bit. But defensively as perfectly, he likes to climb up a minor bit and be a lot more physical. It almost certainly affected him some. He’s finding iced down now and think he’ll be all right.”
Sensible was not by yourself. Robert Williams took a tricky kick to the groin from Antetokounmpo in the 1st 50 percent, but he much too returned to the video game and appeared to be ok.
Brown, in the meantime, was questioned about his balky hamstring.
“I come to feel good,” he explained. “On to the future. Obtained to get some treatment method, some restoration and be prepared for the following a person.”
4. The Celtics also require to do a much superior work of masking the Bucks’ shooters. All through the frequent period, lineups with Antetokounmpo on the ground and Khris Middleton — who is sidelined for the sequence — on the bench had been essentially improved than when the duo shared the court docket. With no Middleton, the Bucks simply encompass Antetokounmpo with shooters and Brook Lopez, which simplifies the video game considerably.
Heading forward, the Celtics may well have to simply belief Al Horford and Grant Williams to do a great plenty of career on Antetokounmpo to retain the defenders home on the Bucks shooters.
5. The Celtics turned the ball around 18 moments, which includes seven by Brown. Derrick White struggled in the initial 50 % versus the Bucks’ stress as very well, as he and Marcus Clever mixed for 5 additional of the Celtics’ turnovers. Tatum coughed it up 3 periods.
6. After the match, Udoka mentioned that it would be hard for the Celtics to participate in even worse.
“I felt it is in a way very good to get this dud out of the way offensively,” Udoka explained. “And so to lose a 12-point video game when we performed that badly offensively, I assume, bodes effectively for us. We’ll determine out what we like as considerably as that, and then I assume our lousy offense fueled their offense. So a lot of ways to clear up and get much better.”
Game 2 guidelines off at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in Boston.
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