Boston Celtics Playoff Preview: The Most Dangerous Team In The East?

Prediction

The difficulty in making a prediction for the Celtics is that it depends almost entirely on who they play. They don’t posses the sheer talent to dominate regardless of who they play the way that Cleveland or Golden State can. That’s just not their brand of basketball. The C’s are all about exploiting the favorable matchups they get, and forcing other teams to make mistakes.

By Atlanta Hawks in Round 1, they very well could be finished. Boston was 1-3 against Atlanta in the regular season, and the Hawks are capable of matching the Celtics’ defensive ability. Furthermore, it’s hard to imagine Sullinger, Johnson, and the rest of the Celtics big men being able to handle Al Horford and Paul Millsap for an entire series.

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In the end, it will be the Celtics themselves who dictate the extent of their playoff success. They are fully capable of making a run in the East, especially if they get a couple of favorable matchups. At the same time, their weak 3-point shooting and thin interior D could sink them early on. Ultimately, their destiny is probably a Round 2 exit.