Symbol of the insolent offensive success of the Celtics during Game 1 of the NBA Finals, the trio Al Horford – Marcus Smart – Derrick White had a much more discreet evening last night during the second round. If we suspected that these three were not going to shoot like Stephen Curry throughout the series, they still fell from their cloud this Sunday.
“They hit 21 threes and Marcus Smart, Al Horford and Derrick White combined for 15 of them… 15-23 from those guys so, we’ll be fine”
Draymond Green following Warriors Game 1 loss pic.twitter.com/wDYZZzVRFx
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) June 3, 2022
“Al Horford, Marcus Smart and Derrick White made 15 3-pointers. They’re good shooters, but 15/23 3-pointers from these guys… we’ll be fine. » In a post-match press conference a few days ago, Draymond Green had kindly made it clear to everyone that such a success on the part of the Celtics was more or less an anomaly. No doubt this upset the green camp a little, but we must admit that the big mouth of the Bay was right on this one. The Boston trio tonight? Only 6/23 shooting including 2/7 from 3-pointers. Derrick White was the most visible of the three, the latter finishing the match with 12 points on the clock (4/13 in shooting, 2/4 from a distance) while the DPOY provided very good defensive assistance to the Warriors (1 /6 shooting, 0/3 from distance, 2 points), and that Al Horford was obviously not part of the plans for Boston’s attack this time around (2 points to 1/4 shooting, no shots from 3-point attempt). Of course, Golden State’s defense has something to do with it all. We remember that in Game 1, the Warriors tended to be behind on their defensive rotations, the Celtics chaining open shots on catch & shoot thanks in particular to the attention generated by players like Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum which can hurt in penetration. And it is specifically this point that coach Ime Udoka wished to emphasize in press conference to explain not only the drop in success of his trio, but also the drop in his 3-point attempts (10 this night once morest 23 in Game 1).
“I think we didn’t penetrate the racket as much as in Game 1. They switched a bit more. And then there were the turnovers, which reduced our offensive opportunities. »
As often, the Celtics coach first highlights what his team failed to do before talking regarding the opponent, just to show his group that Boston still holds the keys to correcting its mistakes once morest Golden State. But clearly, the Warriors defense has evolved to a much higher level than in Game 1, at least if we take into account the whole meeting. The Dubs had already dropped a very big third quarter a few days ago, and did it once more tonight. But Golden State this time put the lid on maintaining this great defensive intensity until the end. If Draymond Green is the greatest symbol of all this, it is really on the collective level that the Dubs have managed to undermine Boston’s attack, certainly successful from afar in the match (15/37 from the parking lot to the total) but struggling and uninspired to find openings inside the 3-point line (15/43 only on 2-point baskets). And when you combine this low success with a total of 18 turnovers, inevitably it quickly becomes complicated to beat a team like the Warriors.
The big reaction from Golden State was notably boosted by the defensive intensity of the Dubs. Intensity that set the record straight following the Celtics’ explosion in the fourth quarter last Thursday, although Boston can clearly do better than that on offense. That’s good, we expect much better from the Greens on Wednesday evening at TD Garden.
