The Celtics had the ball for the last 14 seconds of Sunday’s game, and Jayson Tatum didn’t touch it until there was about 1.5 left on the clock. A lot of patience and trust was shown in that possession, especially from Tatum, who was ready for the ball around the 3-point line once the Celtics got over halfcourt — after the forward forced Kevin Durant into a tough shot on the other end.
Amazing what quality ball movement can lead to.
“First off, you got to credit Ime (Udoka) for trusting us in that situation with one timeout to just go,” Marcus Smart said following Boston’s 115-114 Game 1 win. “Then you got to give credit to JB (Jaylen Brown). Pushing the pace, drawing four and then making the right read. And then of course me. Always been told that you have more time than you realize you have, so I just — when I caught the ball, if I was open, I was going to shoot it. Then I saw two guys fly at me, so I (took) a pump fake and, actually, I was about to throw it to Al (Horford) off the dribble, and then I saw JT cut at the last minute. Just wanted to get the easiest shot we (could), and that was closest to the basket. So, I found JT, and he made a great play.”
Throughout this season, the Celtics have shown they can take some serious punches, but Brooklyn’s late surge was a tough storm to weather. Sunday’s win says a lot about Boston’s resiliency, which is something the Celtics need to be if they want to make a real run.
But now that moment is gone. It’s something the Celtics can reflect on after their playoff run ends — whether it be on a positive or negative note. The C’s need to keep their momentum alive, but they need to assess Sunday’s win as if it were a loss — because it nearly was.
“They made some tough shots. We made some mistakes that allowed them to get some of those shots. We got to clean that up,” Udoka said.
Durant didn’t shoot well, largely because of Boston’s tough defense, but almost all of the other Nets did — especially Kyrie Irving. Surviving a night where the other team was far more efficient on offense is huge, but that’s going to be a lot harder to do if Durant and Irving are clicking at the same time. Being vigilant on the glass like the C’s were on Sunday can help if that happens, and Brooklyn’s supporting cast isn’t always going to be as efficient as it was on Sunday.
“We guarded Durant extremely well — 9-for-24,” Udoka said. “They’re still going to get their numbers, they’re going to get their shots and they got a bunch of free throws. But, for us, I think that’s kind of a microcosm for our season — guys moving the ball, playing unselfish.”
The Celtics need to figure out what they’re going to do when attacking the rim late. Building on Game 1’s final basket might be the place to start. Either way, the refs swallowed their whistles late, making it harder for the C’s to finish at the rim. Still, they have to make more of those bunnies in crunch time.
“They called a lot of touches early in the game — on both teams, it was even,” Udoka said. “Both teams were complaining about the close calls. Then they let it go late, and we were still complaining about the no calls. It was a little bit of both ways. I told our guys, especially with the foul trouble and early bonuses, we got to play better and adjust how the refs are calling it. They were calling it tight early, and we did a better job more so in the second half.”
Scoring at the rim is another area in which Boston feels Robert Williams’ absence. Not having him as an alley-oop threat allows more Nets to commit to whichever Celtic is attacking the rim. But if the Celtics aren’t shooting well from deep, they need to be able to score inside, so some work has to be done in that regard.
The Nets have their own issues to deal with, but they are not mentally beaten yet. A serious blow from Boston in the first quarter of Game 2 could have a major impact on Brooklyn, so the Celtics need to make that a priority when preparing for Wednesday’s contest.