What Celtics need to ask themselves after win over Pacers

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Before he suffered a major quad injury, a 27-point performance from Victor Oladipo wouldn’t necessarily be a big deal. Especially against the Celtics, who he typically does well against.

But this year is different. Tuesday’s game was the 13th Oladipo has played in all season. It was also the first time he reached the 20-point mark in 2019-20.

“You definitely could tell he has another level he can go to, but he’s doing it right. He’s taking it easy. He’s not trying to force it, and he looks good,” Marcus Smart said of Oladipo. “That’s all you can ask for. … Once he finally feels like he can turn it up, he will and then you’ll see the same Vic that we say before the injury.”

But, as Smart also pointed out, it wasn’t good for the Celtics that Oladipo went off for 27 points on 9-for-16 shooting (5-for-7 from deep). Yes, the Pacers guard made life more stressful for the Celtics in their 114-111 win, but there’s more to it. Oladipo is part of a trend. (For a complete recap of the Celtics' win, click here.)

Ever since their loss to the Lakers, the Celtics have allowed opposing guards to post huge games every night. CJ McCollum got it all started with his 28-point game. But things got much worse following the Portland guard’s performance.

Donovan Mitchell scored 37 in Utah’s loss to Boston, then Mike Conley — who’s averaging 13.8 points per game this year — dropped 25 on the C’s when the Jazz visited the Garden. Sure, the Celtics held James Harden to 21 points, but Russell Westbrook scored 41. Then there was Caris LeVert’s cartoonish 51-point performance, followed by Collin Sexton’s 41-point game. Chris Paul and Dennis Schroder accounted for 55 of OKC’s 105 points in their win in Boston on Sunday — both scoring well above their season average.

None of those guys are slouches, but it’s clear there’s a theme.

“We’ve had that issue at times all through the year,” Brad Stevens said about perimeter players scoring well against the Celtics before they hosted the Jazz. “That’s not just been the last couple games. We’ve had our moments where we’ve been OK at that, but we’ve got to be better.”

JT hammers it home -- pic.twitter.com/7eEdwy7HFf

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 11, 2020

Anything on the defensive end starts with Smart, especially as it pertains to the perimeter. While it may seem like an unrelated issue, his shot selection has been a bit off lately, too. Both issues could be the product of the same thing: Smart’s role has been different from night-to-night.

Kemba Walker is back in the lineup, but he’s not quite himself yet on either end of the floor. Jaylen Brown hasn’t played since the loss to Brooklyn, so that creates another set of problems.

Also, on the subject of decision-making, Jayson Tatum needs to adjust on the offensive end in these late-game situations. He’s the focal point for the defenses, but the Celtics need him with Walker is front-rimming everything and Brown sidelined. Gordon Hayward had a very good game in Indy and Daniel Theis hit a big shot late in his strong performance, but Tatum, Walker and Brown are typically the ones who put an opponent on ice for the Celtics. Smart should not be taking as many shots late in games as he has been recently.

Tonight's @jetblue Play of the Game goes to none other than @smart_MS3 for making plays when it counts -- pic.twitter.com/rVbmE3dlTE

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 11, 2020

Again, some of what’s gone wrong with Smart stems from necessity. But as Walker starts to get back in the flow of things and as long as Hayward is healthy, Smart needs to defer to them in those crucial situations more often — along with Brown, when he gets back, and Tatum, of course.

“(The Pacers) made a ridiculous run. Especially with everything we’ve been going through, we could’ve collapsed,” Hayward told reporters in Indiana. “We just tried to hold it together and I think we made some plays there at the end to help us win the game. But, we just have to be better at the end of those games, closing things out.”

Winnings masks flaws. Stevens has said that more than once this season. But maybe the Celtics will notice what went wrong on Tuesday and realize even in their win over the Pacers, the issue that’s plagued them for two weeks is still there. Then they need to ask themselves “Why is this happening?” and come to a solution on that matter. It’s been long enough.

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