The Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets will meet in the first round of the 2021 NBA Playoffs in an Eastern Conference series. The Celtics come in as heavy underdogs as the 7th seed, as the Nets start what they hope will be a title run as the 2nd seed. The series schedule is as follows:
- · Game 1 – Saturday 5/22 at Brooklyn – 8:00 PM ET - ABC
- · Game 2 – Tuesday 5/25 at Brooklyn – 7:30 PM ET - TNT
- · Game 3 – Friday 5/28 at Boston – 8:30 PM ET - ABC
- · Game 4 – Sunday 5/30 at Boston – 7:00 PM ET - TNT
- · Game 5* – Tuesday 6/1 at Brooklyn – TBD - *if necessary
- · Game 6* – Thursday 6/3 at Boston – TBD - *if necessary
- · Game 7* – Saturday 6/5 at Brooklyn – TBD - *if necessary
During the regular season the teams met three times, with Brooklyn winning all three games:
· Brooklyn 123 – Boston 95
· Brooklyn 121 – Boston 109
· Brooklyn 109 – Boston 104
The lopsided first matchup came early in the season, before the Nets traded for James Harden. The Celtics played without Kemba Walker. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving combined for 66 points in a runaway Christmas Day victory.
The second matchup saw Jayson Tatum wage a shootout with Irving. Harden played for Brooklyn, but Durant missed this game. The Nets buried 19 three-pointers, as they pulled away late for the win.
The final contest was the closest of the bunch, but probably the least instructive. Tatum and Irving were the only ones to play of either team’s top-three players. Irving struggled, but the other Nets stepped up. Joe Harris, Jeff Green, Blake Griffin and Bruce Brown combined for 67 points, as Brooklyn swept the season series.
While Brooklyn enters the playoffs relatively healthy (Spencer Dinwiddie remains out, as he has for several months), the Celtics will be without All-Star Jaylen Brown. An already tough task of hanging with the trio of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving becomes monumental for a shorthanded Boston team. In addition, Robert Williams availability is unknown. Williams’ will likely be a game-by-game decision as he battles turf toe.
On the plus side, the Celtics injury management plan for Kemba Walker seems to have worked. He should be full-go for the series.
Starting Guards
Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart vs Kyrie Irving and James Harden
The regular season matchups aren’t overly instructive here. Smart and Irving both played in all three games, but Walker and Harden only appeared once apiece. Smart was solid on offense against Brooklyn, but his defense wasn’t up to par, much like the teams as a whole. Irving put up big numbers against his former team, as he averaged 31 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in the Nets sweep.
If the Celtics are to be competitive in this series, they need Walker to be the high-scoring player he was over a four-game stint in May. Boston can’t stop Brooklyn’s offense. No one can. Because of that Walker’s got to score in the mid-to-high 20s in points. That will give the Celtics a chance to keep pace and stick around late in games.
It’s maybe never been more important for Smart to play under control and take what comes his way. If Smart tries to fill the Jaylen Brown void on offense, it could go sideways on Boston really quickly. If Smart can focus on his playmaking, he’ll really help the Celtics. The Nets regularly give teams driving lanes with some soft defense. If Smart can get in those gaps to find shooters, or set up the bigs at the rim, he’ll be helpful. If he’s driving to score, it might not go in Boston’s favor.
On defense, Smart has to be the All-Defense level of player that the Celtics expect him to be. He’ll guard everyone from Harden to Irving to Kevin Durant on a fairly regular basis. While the most expected matchup for him would probably be to start games on Harden, Smart might be better off covering Irving out of the gate. That would put Walker on Harden (or on a lesser player), but Walker does a good job of keeping his body in front of guards who play more of a power-game.
Ultimately, Smart can do his part to slow down whoever he guards, but it’s impossible to limit the Nets ballhandlers too much. They’re going to score. It’s up to Boston to exploit them as much as possible going the other way.
Advantage: Brooklyn. Unless Walker and Smart play out of their minds, this matchup will favor the Nets. Harden and Irving are All-NBA level guys, while Walker is an All-Star guy when in top form and Smart is one of the game’s best role players. That’s a pretty drastic difference. The Celtics can hurt the Nets by forcing Harden and Irving to defend. Look for Walker to use a lot of screens, as Boston will inflict a little punishment on whoever is defending him. If Walker can put up points, the Celtics will hang around. If his jumper is off, it’ll be a short series for Boston.
Starting Forwards
Jayson Tatum and Evan Fournier vs Kevin Durant and Joe Harris/Bruce Brown
It’s not clear who Brooklyn will start alongside Kevin Durant. Bruce Brown has pretty regularly gotten that call, but it’s really Joe Harris’ spot. Harris is coming off a gluteal strain, but is expected to be ready for Game 1.
If Brown starts, expect him to open games by checking Jayson Tatum. Brown is a physical defender and will get into Tatum’s body on that end of the floor. Tatum has a size advantage, but smaller defenders who can disrupt his dribble have given Tatum trouble.
If Harris starts, Boston will have yet another place to attack. James Harden and Kyrie Irving are already two attack-points for the Celtics, but Harris would be another. He’s a competitive defender, but he often struggles to keep up with quicker players, especially off the dribble.
Flip it to the other end of the floor, Harris starting makes the Nets that much more unstoppable on offense. Focus too much on the Big Three and Harris kills with you jumpers and basket cuts. Brown has done a solid job, playing almost like a rim-rolling big at time. But he gives a spot for Boston to “hide” Kemba Walker. He’s also the logical player to help off of, as Brown shot just 28.8% on three-pointers this year.
Much like Kemba Walker, the Celtics need Evan Fournier to consistently put points on the board. Fournier’s role as his role as a secondary or tertiary playmaker off Tatum and Walker will be key. Boston can use him in pick-and-roll actions, or Fournier can attack off closeouts. And if teams don’t close out hard, Fournier can hit open jumpers. The trade deadline acquisition probably has to average 20 points per game for the Celtics to keep pace with the Nets offense. He’s certainly capable of that, but his jumper can be a little streaky.
There isn’t much to say about Tatum or Durant. We know they’ll both be great and each will probably average around 30 points per game. Tatum will have to push that closer to 40, if Boston is to have a chance at the shocking upset. The key will be efficiency for Boston’s young star. If he’s getting downhill and getting layups and to the free throw line, that’s huge for the Celtics. If it’s all jumpers, that puts a lot of variance in how efficient Tatum can be.
Expect the two stars to guard each other a good amount, especially late in games. Tatum may need to open games on Durant as well, but the Celtics switching system will limit how often he’s checking the Nets superstar at the end of possessions.
Advantage: Boston. This one is very, very slightly in the Celtics favor. Tatum and Durant could be a wash, if Tatum is able to be efficient offensively. Fournier should be able to give Boston more production than either Harris or Brown. But that’s an “if” and a “should”. If the Celtics are to have any chance in this series, those need to turn to “when” and “will”.