Can the Boston Celtics bounce back one more time to force a Game 7 in the NBA Finals?
The Boston Celtics came out swinging to begin the NBA Finals as they stole Game 1 on the road in San Francisco. After Game 3, everything was looking up as they appeared to steal the momentum from the Golden State Warriors after going up 2-1 with a chance to go up 3-1 on their home floor.
But the Warriors had other plans as Stephen Curry dropped 43 points in Game 4 en route to a victory in Boston. Game 5 was a complete nightmare for the Celtics as they got off to a slow start. They actually came back and took the lead after halftime but that lead was short lived due to the turnovers and stagnant offense.
Can Jayson Tatum and company get it together and keep their championship hopes alive?
Turnovers are what plagued the Celtics in Game 5 as they committed 18 of them. They have to stop being reckless with the ball and blowing leads when they have them. Turnovers are one thing but the Celtics also went 21-31 from the charity stripe which also hurt them. I
t’s a proven fact that free throws can be the difference between winning and losing and that was the case for Game 5. That was the perfect scenario for the Celtics to steal the series lead especially with the way Curry struggled shooting the ball. The Celtics turnovers stem from bad decisions with the ball from errant passes to Tatum and Jaylen Brown dribbling into double teams late into the shot clock.
While Tatum, Brown and Marcus Smart have been steady on the offensive end providing most of the production, the Celtics other players have to step up, most notably Al Horford. He played fantastic in the Game 1 victory scoring a team-high 26 points but has only averaged 7.5 points per game since.
Horford must be more aggressive offensively, especially with all the attention on stopping Tatum and Brown. The Celtics have to find a way to get him involved whether it’s on the perimeter or posting up in the paint. Derrick White also needs to be more consistent with his scoring. The Celtics depend on his production once Tatum and Brown go to the bench.
In Game 5, White had just one point on 0-4 shooting as he struggled to get open. The Celtics are going to have to get better shots down the stretch as Tatum is going to have to be able to rise to the occasion and have a statement game. When the Celtics execute their halfcourt sets and get into the rhythm of their offense they find it easier to score and break down defenses.
At times the Celtics appear to depend too much on Tatum and Brown which often leads to them being worn down at the end of games. The Celtics will need an all out maximum effort from every player who touches the floor in order to force a Game 7.
They may also want to try and put the Warriors away early and try to avoid a close game due to the fact that Tatum or Brown hasn’t shown any killer instinct or ability to put the team on their back and close out. There were possessions the Celtics had down the stretch when they just settled for faraway and contested jump shots when they should have been more aggressive, especially with some of the Warriors’ key players in foul trouble.
So which Celtics team is going to show up for Game 6? The team that has had a hunger to succeed playing lockdown defense, attacking the basket, protecting the ball and playing with a purpose? Or will we see a team that is already defeated, being careless with the ball, stagnant on offense, lacking physicality and intensity?
There is still a chance for these Celtics but they have a huge challenge in front of them to overcome.