Getting Back into the Groove
A few hours before tip-off, Boston learned that it would be without the Defensive Player of the Year, Marcus Smart for arguably its biggest game of the season so far. Milwaukee had all the momentum and had Boston doing exactly what it wanted in Game 1. Right from the tip, the Bucks knew that this was a different team than they saw on Sunday afternoon. Boston got after it on the defensive end, and the shots that it wasn't knocking down in Game 1 were falling through the cup just the second time around. With Smart out, the Celtics rotation shrunk, and Udoka played with just seven guys who all found a way to contribute in their own valuable ways. Tatum and Brown combined for 59 points, and with Grant Williams playing out of his mind on both ends of the floor, the Celtics evened the series that is heading to the Fiserv Forum with a crucial Game 3 on Saturday. In a contest that the Celtics had to win, its star players stepped up under the brightest of lights in a season where Boston has the potential to do something incredibly special.
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Following the much-needed victory at the TD Garden, head coach Ime Udoka spoke on the performance, stating, "We've been a bigger, physical team all year, and did not love how we reacted to them being physical...we adjusted well, learned some things from Game 1, and it felt like we knew we didn't react accordingly...We haven't lost two games in a row in a while, we talked about it, and it was very evident on tape the things we let them get away with...Maybe the Brooklyn series not being as physical...caught us off guard a little bit...we expected our guys to respond like the way they did tonight."
If there was one thing for certain in Game 1, it was that Jaylen Brown was not on the top of his game. He only managed to score 12 points on just under 31% shooting from the field. Game 2 looked more like the Brown that Boston fans have been used to seeing the entire season. From the first basket of the game where Brown knocked down a mid-range jumper that rolled around the rim, the crowd knew this was a different player than the individual two days before. He was aggressive, confident, and relentless to start off the game as he demonstrated just how dangerous he can be in the first quarter of games. Brown came out firing from the start as he scored 25 of his 30 points in the first half. From the paint from behind the arc, Brown was showing his offensive skills at their fullest potential leading the Celtics to a 25-point lead at the end of two quarters. The ability to rebound off a dismal game in the playoffs, especially the first one of the series shows a lot of Brown, and who he is as a player and a budding superstar.
In Game 1, the Celtics played a lot of stagnant offense with lots of isolation basketball as they shot plenty of threes. In the first half, Boston took that extra drive and kick, and moved the ball the exact way it had been during its second-half turnaround. Forcing Milwakke into playing halfcourt offense was exactly what Udoka dreamed of as he made adjustments from the first contest. While the Bucks did score a number in transition, the Celtics were able to match the physicality that they were shocked by in Game 1. 28 assists for Boston as it moved the ball significantly better than the first time around. It was the most assists in a single game this postseason while Game 1 was where Boston had its fewest number of assists in the playoffs this year. Out of the 25 contests during this season, the Celtics have only lost three games where they have 28 or more assists.
There were some points in Game 2 where the offensive hit a wall and the Bucks continued to make their presence known on the defensive end. While Boston had problems scoring the basketball, its defense was always there for it to lean on. When the offense falls through for just a few minutes during a contest, the defense is always there. Getting into passing lanes, and out in transition turned the Celtics' offense back into what the coaching staff wanted. In Game 2, Boston held the Bucks to just 16.7% from three which was the franchise's lowest three-point shooting percentage since April of 2017 against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Milwaukee will no doubt put up a shooting performance at that poor of a level again this series, but seeing Boston shift the entire complexion of the clash with its increased physicality on defense forced the Bucks into extremely tough, and contested shots. Guarding Giannis more one on one with Horford and Williams was one adjustment Udoka made which helped Boston get out on shooters faster on top of limiting any sort of outlet pass.
While Brown was the game-changer on the offensive end, Grant Williams was no doubt the most salient player on the defensive end. Otherwise known as "Batman", Williams used his superpowers to prevent the two-time MVP from getting to the rim. Williams was like a rock wall as he guarded Giannis on the perimeter and in the post with unmatched intelligence, and effort. Williams's drastic improvement from last season has elevated Boston into a whole different atmosphere potential-wise. He guarded Giannis on 31 possessions and gave up just eight points on 4-10 shooting from the field. Williams is the perfect role player around Tatum and Brown will use his ability to knock down threes at a consistent clip and take on the opposition's best offensive player when called upon. With Smart hopefully recovering soon, Williams will be all the more ready for matchups like this after Game 2. From offensive rebounding to putting up a solid contest with the reigning Finals MVP, Williams announced himself to the league on national television on Tuesday night.
With the series now shifting to Milwaukee for the next two games, Boston has the chance to steal back home court with at least one win on the road. During the season, the Celtics had been phenomenal on the road with a 23-18 record away from the TD Garden. The last time Boston was defeated away from its home floor was against the Bucks in the regular season, but the last time the Celtics lost on the road with Tatum and Brown in the lineup was all the way back in February. Boston's adjustments worked to perfection for the majority of the game, but the question now becomes, what will Mike Budenholzer do to help his team recover from a performance where the game was essentially lost after two quarters?
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It starts with knocking down shots, but ideally, the Bucks have to get back to what they did in Game 1. Get out on the fast break and score points that way. Make the Celtics force the ball into a difficult area for a possible turnover that leads to a layup on the other end. Watching how the first half unfolded, it was clear that this Boston team had another gear that Milwakke just simply cannot stop. If the Celtics play with that much constant movement, and physicality, the Bucks could see their hopes of a repeat title dwindle right before their eyes.
This series is a lot about adjustments and what the team and coaching staff sees on film. Boston learned its lesson in Game 2, but now the question is if Milwakke will learn from its outing that tied up the series. As the Celtics leave Boston, there is no question that if the Celtics did not have that adjustment period game, this series would be 2-0 heading to Wisconsin with all the pressure on the reigning champs.
The role players of Brook Lopez, Grayson Allen, and Jevon Carter all combined for just nine points and did not have the same impact on the game as they did in the first one. All three of them need to step up for the Bucks with the series now moving into a best of 5. Through much-improved shooting as a whole, and fluid passing inside and outside the arc, the Celtics found their way back into this series with the hope of doing what Milwaukee did to them just three years ago.
