Four tendencies the Celtics need to quell heading into Game 4 in Miami

Four tendencies the Celtics need to quell heading into Game 4 in Miami originally appeared in NBC Sports Boston

Perhaps the best part of Boston’s Game 3 victory in Miami on Saturday night was the way coach Joe Mazzulla balked at the idea of ​​adjustments. Mazzulla suggested the word gets out a lot this time of year and sometimes improvement comes down to playing with more purpose.

The Celtics increased their intensity and focus on both ends of the court, really made the Heat feel them after Miami I was very comfortable in game 2and the result was an unequal victory that fought at home–legal advantage.

Here are four more Game 3 things we’d like to see the Celtics clamp down on this postseason, starting Monday night in Game 4 in Miami (with coverage on NBC Sports Boston):

1. Vacations set the tone

Masked slightly by Kristaps Porzingis’ Game 2 jalopy, which the big man would admit may have been his worst game in a Boston uniform, offseason teammate Jrue Holiday also became a bust that night. Holiday missed eight of his 12 shots, was a step slow on perimeter contests and finished with as many turnovers (two) as assists.

Both players bounced back in Saturday’s Game 3, but Holiday was particularly excellent.

Holiday didn’t even try in the first 26 minutes of Saturday’s game. He put all his energy into defense and playmaking and helped the Celtics take control of the game. Holiday’s first-half scoring: five assists, one steal, one block, zero shots and +26 plus/minus in 18 minutes, 32 seconds of playing time.

Miami players made 3 of 10 shots when defended by Holiday, according to NBA tracking. After Tyler Herro dominated play in Game 2, Holiday logged a team-high five minutes against him and limited the Heat star to 3 points on 1-of-3 shooting with zero assists and two turnovers.

No player has sacrificed more counting stats this season than Holiday. But fresh out signing The four-year, $135 million extensionHoliday continues to put his energy into impacting the game beyond scoring.

The Celtics have a net rating of +23.5 in the 105 minutes Holiday has been on the court this postseason, second-best on the team behind Sam Hauser (+33.3 in 49 minutes). Boston drops to a net rating of -21.3 in the 39 minutes Holiday has been on the bench in three games.

Speaking of the impact of the holiday…

two. US Men’s Team + Bench Lineup

The Celtics love to keep Holiday on the court during Jayson Tatum’s minutes and have had a lot of success pairing up that team USA set with virtually any combination of countertop parts.

A lineup of Tatum, Holiday, Al Horford, Payton Pritchard and Hauser has a net rating of +60.3 in 31 minutes together this postseason. At 11:11 of Game 3, this lineup left Miami wanting an answer. That Tatum/Holiday-led combo was a team-best +15 in plus/minus over that span, doubling up the Heat and scoring 30 points on 9-of-18 shooting, including six 3-pointers.

Through three postseason games, this five-man combo is +35 in 30:34 of playing time while shooting 50 percent from the floor (26 of 42 overall) and 43.8 percent from beyond the arc. 3 points (14 out of 32). What’s more, the Holiday-Pritchard tandem is capable of really getting into Miami’s fleet of non-ball handlers and making them uncomfortable. When Herro wasn’t being tormented by Holiday in Game 3, he was 0-for-7 when Horford and Pritchard were the primary defenders.

The fact that Team USA’s men’s roster + bench is thriving is nothing new. Boston had four five-man lineups that played more than 100 minutes during the regular season and that group was a team-best +16.8 in 105 minutes combined.

What’s more, a branch with Luke Kornet in Horford’s place was an impressive +33.7 in 96 minutes together, and of the 116 lineups in the NBA with at least 96 minutes played this regular season, that Kornet-infused group had the second-best rating. net behind just a couple of Philly.

3.Stagging each other

Fresh out Jaylen Brown stomping behind Caleb Martin After Jayson Tatum was fouled in Game 1, Pritchard got into a little war or exchange of words with Herro after the Miami guard hit the ball on Hauser in the third quarter of Game 3.

Herro overreacted to being tripped by Hauser and threw the ball at him. Pritchard barked back at Herro and made a point of defending his teammate.

Pritchard has routinely infused energy during his time on the court this season, which may have been why it was so jarring to see him struggle to make an impact in Game 2 when the Celtics couldn’t make much of anything happen. But Pritchard returned to his positive ways on Saturday, scoring seven points on 3-of-5 shooting. He was aggressive attacking the basket off the dribble and again struggled for offensive rebounds despite his size.

4.Ttuna passage

Jayson Tatum is averaging a team-high 6.3 assists per game through Boston’s first three playoff games. His 59.3 passes per game are 16 more than the next closest player on Boston’s roster (Derrick White, 43.3). Tatum is averaging a team-high 10.3 potential assists per game and has created 51 assist points (17 per game), a top-10 mark in these playoffs.

Midway through the second quarter of Game 3 Tatum produced a highlight-worthy coin sticking a left-handed zipper into a cutting Hauser this caught Herro napping and generated an easy layup.

The Celtics put the ball in Tatum’s hands more each postseason, and especially as his playing time increases, it’s imperative that he quarterback the offense with confidence. It’s no surprise that the Celtics have navigated assist-heavy games from Tatum and struggled when he generated just three helpers in Game 2.

Most notable in Game 3: Tatum finished with zero turnovers despite a team-high 74 total touches in the game.