The Boston Celtics have recently made a bad habit of digging themselves into a hole to climb out of in the end. Now they are doing so with the NBA Finals on the line. After losing Game 1 to the Philadelphia 76ers during their Eastern Conference semifinal series, they have done it again in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat.
Miami took a 1-0 behind a hot shooting night on Wednesday, knocking down 51.4 percent of their shots overall and 51.6 percent of their 3-point attempts. It was an onslaught that the Celtics were unable to keep up with, as Miami had six different players score 15+ points, led by 35 from Jimmy Butler.
Bouncing back when their backs are up against the wall is something the Celtics have gotten used to in recent postseasons. Center Robert Williams III is fully expecting it to happen again Friday night when they take the court for Game 2.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that we’ll come out ready to play in Game 2,” Williams said after Boston’s practice Thursday afternoon. “But the problem is we can’t keep relying on that.
“We can’t rely on our backs being against the wall. There’s no time for it. We have to fix it.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics & Miami Heat Updates
Boston is 4-1 this year coming off of a loss and 11-3 in the last two postseasons. They have responded well, but the inconsistencies in their performance are perplexing given how good of a team they have proven to be.
“There were moments where we executed, there’s moments where we played well, and then there were moments where we didn’t,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said.
“This series is a test of discipline, it’s a test of mentality, and we’ve got to be extremely detailed in our effort and our consistency.”
The Celtics led by as many as 13 points on Wednesday night before losing 123-116. While a lot of the focus is on the players on the court, the biggest disadvantage that the Celtics are at is on the sidelines.
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics & Miami Heat Updates
Erik Spoelstra is arguably the best head coach in the NBA. He coached circles around Mike Budenholzer in Round 1, which led to the Milwaukee Bucks firing him. Spoelstra also had his way against the New York Knicks and Tom Thibodeau in the Eastern Conference semifinal.
“We have a plan to use the depth we need in order to give us the lineups we think can really help us, and obviously, in the playoffs when minutes are expanding, you look to play seven or eight guys throughout,” Mazzulla said. “Grant is always gonna be ready, and we’ve built a lot of versatility in our lineup where we can go a lot of different ways. We trust that anybody we call on will be ready.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics & Miami Heat Updates
It will be interesting to see what changes, if any, Mazzulla makes heading into Game 2. The Heat have done their job, winning Game 1, so now it is up to the Celtics to adjust and find a way to even the series up on Friday night.
Want the latest in NBA analysis, breaking news, and insider information? Click Here. Follow NBA Analysis Network on Twitter and Facebook.
