Playoffs

none

Taylor Snow

The Celtics knew exactly what they needed to do to bounce back from Wednesday night’s Game 2 loss to the Heat, and that was to up their defensive intensity as the first-round series shifted down to Miami.

It didn’t take long for C's to right the ship on South Beach.

Boston held the Heat to just 12 points in the first quarter of Game 3 Saturday night, setting the tone for a 104-84 win while taking a 2-1 series lead.

It marked Boston’s best defensive effort – regular season or postseason – in nearly two full years. It hadn’t given up fewer than 85 points since its 93-80 Game 5 win over the Heat in the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals.

Joe Mazzulla described the early portion of Game 3 as a “rock fight,” as the two teams combined for just 15 points in the opening six minutes. Boston accounted for 80 percent of those points, grabbing a 12-3 lead out of the gate.

Jaylen Brown noted, “We put an emphasis on defense, trying to make them uncomfortable a little bit. They had a slow start, we had a good start on defense, and I think that opened up the game.”

Boston’s defensive effort sure opened things up for its offense, as it came alive for a 42-point second quarter. Meanwhile, its defense remained steadfast, taking a 63-39 lead into the break.

“It was just more about our attention to detail on both ends of the floor, mainly on the defensive end," said Jayson Tatum. "Just start the game and not let them be comfortable – regardless if they hit shots tonight, just try to make them work for everything that they get.”

Miami’s shot-making – particularly from 3-point land – was the main issue in Game 2. It made a franchise playoff-record 23 3-pointers Wednesday night at a 53.5 percent clip. On Saturday night, that number plummetted to nine makes at a 32.1 percent clip, similar to its 12 makes at a 32.4 percent clip in Game 1.

For a Celtics team that led the East in 3-point defense during the regular season, they felt much more like themselves on that end of the floor.

“Teams can come out and hit a plethora of shots,” said Brown, “they had a record-breaking night the other day, but we don't panic. When we watched the film, we broke it down seeing where we could make some improvements if we came out we executed, and I thought that's what we did tonight.”

On the offensive end, the Celtics put forth another balanced attack, just like they did in Game 1. Brown and Tatum tied for the game lead with 22 points. Kristaps Porzingis bounced back from a tough Game 2 with 18 points on 55.5 percent shooting. And Derrick White chipped in with 16 points.

As a team, the Celtics were deadly from inside the arc, where they shot 62.2 percent.

Overall, it was the type of bounce-back effort that their head coach expected.

“I don’t expect them to play perfect and I don’t expect a series to be easy or to go a certain way,” Mazzulla said. “But I trust them and I know they want to win, and I know they’ll do whatever it takes, and I trust their preparation, and I trust who they are.”

His players have that same trust in themselves, and they believe that through their preparation, they are just getting started in these playoffs.

Brown pointed out how the team needed a little time to regain its rhythm after playing just two games in the previous 12 days, and he is looking forward to playing every other day for the remainder of this series.

“I feel like we’re still getting it going,” he said. “I think we’ve still got another gear to kick into, so I’m looking forward to (Game 4) Monday.”

sidebar-post-20240427-cs-tighten-up-defense-hold-heat-to-84-points-in-game-3-win

C's Tighten Up Defense, Hold Heat to 84 Points in Game 3 Win

Marc D'Amico

Boston dominated Game 3 from start to finish, all while delivering a message to the Heat that their shocking Game 2 victory had no chance of being repeated Saturday night.

The Celtics scored the first points of the night off a 3-pointer from Kristaps Porzingis and never looked back from there. They eventually pulled ahead by as many as 29 points, all while never trailing for a single second.

Bam Adebayo did answer Porzingis’ 3-pointer with a conventional three-point play of his own to knot things up at 3-3. However, the Celtics were off and running from there.

Boston scored the game’s next nine points to pull ahead 12-3 and to take early control of the game. All nine of those points were scored by the dynamic duo of Cookies & Cream.

Cream, AKA Porzingis, jumpstarted the run with five straight points, the first two coming off an alley-oop slam from Jrue Holiday, and the next three arriving from beyond the arc off a dish from Jayson Tatum. Cookies, AKA Jaylen Brown, then got into the mix with a driving layup and a tip-in off a missed 3-pointer from Derrick White.

While Porzingis and Brown were scoring nine straight, Boston’s defense was putting the clamps down on Miami’s offense at the other end of the floor. The Celtics forced Miami into nine consecutive misses and a turnover following Adebayo’s early bucket.

The game might as well have ended there, with the Celtics leading 12-3 at the 6:20 mark. All Boston did was pull away from there before coasting into the winner’s circle to take a 2-1 series lead.

The Jays tied each other for Game 3’s top scoring mark, so how do we break the tie? On this night, it’s by efficiency and defensive numbers, so Jaylen Brown gets the nod.

Brown tied Jayson Tatum for the game’s top scoring mark with 22 points. He scored those points on 11-for-20 shooting from the field, good for a 55 percent conversion rate. That field goal percentage was the highest in the game among the seven players who attempted at least 10 shots. Brown also added in three assists at the offensive end, while committing just one turnover.

The star wing put in work at the defensive end, too. He grabbed six defensive boards and eight rebounds overall to finish second on the team in that category, trailing only Tatum’s 11 total rebounds. Brown led the game in steals with two and tied Miami’s team total with that number. He also was one of four Celtics to block a shot during the game, as he swatted away one shot.

"We had two days off, so any days off after a loss in the Playoffs is tough. So we were just ready to come out here and play. We played right poise on both ends of the floor, and we gotta repeat it on Monday."

- Jayson Tatum on bouncing back from Game 2

gamerecap-keys-20240427-bosmia

Keys to the Game: Celtics 104, Heat 84

Boston Celtics

All eyes will be on the 3-point line on Saturday when the Miami Heat host the top-seeded Boston Celtics in Game 3 of their first-round NBA playoff series.

In Game 1 on Sunday, host Boston prevailed 114-94. The Celtics made 22 3-pointers, shooting 44.9 percent from deep.

Miami made just 12 3-pointers, shooting 32.4 percent.

In Game 2 on Wednesday, also in Boston, Miami prevailed, 111-101, tying the best-of-seven series, 1-1. The Heat made 23 3-pointers, setting a franchise postseason record. The Heat shot 53.5 percent from deep. Boston made just 12 3-pointers, shooting 37.5 percent.

Miami's Tyler Herro scored just 11 points in the series opener, shooting 4 of 13 overall. On Wednesday, he scored a team-high 24 points, making 7 of 13 shots, including 6 of 11 from deep.

The Heat also got 21 points each from Bam Adebayo and Caleb Martin.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra called Martin, "the X-factor of X-factors."

Meanwhile, Jimmy Butler, who is out for several weeks due to a knee injury he suffered in the play-in round, is the Heat's spiritual leader. But he has passed the metaphorical baton to Herro.

"(Butler) texted me to take the team and lead the guys," Herro said.

Herro did just that on Wednesday, serving up a game-high 14 assists.

Losing Butler has been a big blow for the eighth-seeded Heat. He helps the team across the board, averaging 20.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.3 steals.

He also averages a team-high 7.7 free throws, making 85.9 percent, and it is that skill of getting to the line and converting that is especially valuable late in games.

The Heat are also missing Terry Rozier, who is averaging 19.8 points this season in his two stops, including Charlotte.

Due to those injuries -- and the fact that the Celtics had the best regular-season record in the NBA this season -- Miami was not given much of a shot in this series.

But now the Heat return home with confidence. They also know that they knocked off the Celtics, 4-3, in last year's Eastern Conference Finals.

Then again, the Heat struggled at home this season (23-18). In fact, the Celtics had a better road record (27-14) than Miami's performance at home.

Overall, Boston finished 18 games ahead of the Heat in the standings this year, which should give the Celtics confidence.

Certainly, though, it will help Boston if Kristaps Porzingis plays better than he did in Game 2, when he was held to eight points on 1-for-9 shooting, including 0 of 4 from deep.

For the season, he averaged 20.1 points, and he had an effective field-goal percentage -- which accounts for the value of 2-pointers and 3-pointers -- of 58.9.

In Game 1, Porzingis had 18 points in his typically efficient fashion: 7-for-13 from the floor and 4-for-8 from deep.

"We have to do a better job of getting (Porzingis) the ball in the right spots," Celtics star Jayson Tatum said. "We're going to do that on Saturday."

Porzingis' importance as Boston's third option behind Tatum and Jaylen Brown is clear.

Tatum is averaging 26.9 points for the season and 25.5 points in the playoffs. Brown is averaging 23.0 points for the season and 25.0 points for the playoffs.

Porzingis can punish smaller defenders in the post, and he can pump in 3-pointers in the pick-and-pop game.

But the Heat got rough with Porzingis in Game 2.

"They upped the physicality," Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said of Miami. "They did a good job pushing his catches higher."

Added Tatum: "There's a lot of history between these two franchises. We knew it wouldn't be easy."

gamepreview-preview-20240427-bosmia

4/27 Game 3 Preview: Celtics at Heat

BOSTON – Heading into Game 3, there is one glaring area where the Celtics say they must return to form: defending the 3-point arc.

Such was their downfall in Game 2 Tuesday night, when the Miami Heat shot a playoff franchise-record 23-of-43 from deep, propelling them to a 111-101 series-splitting win.

It wasn’t just an anomaly for the Heat; it was also an unusual event for Boston, which led the Eastern Conference in 3-point defense during the regular season by allowing opponents to shoot just 35.2 percent.

However, Al Horford says there’s no room for such anomalies in the playoffs.

“You just have to be better,” he said Thursday before heading down to Miami for Game 3. “You have to be better defending the 3-point line. They shot a lot of them, a high frequency, and I know we will be better coming in the next game. There'll be more of an awareness to that. And for us, defensively continuing to make sure that we do a good job of getting stops and holding them to one shot.”

In order to get stops, Joe Mazzulla says his team will need to close out better, get their hands up in Miami’s airspace, and not allow as many open threes in transition. Boston did a much better job of that in Game 1 when it held the Heat to just a 32.4 clip from deep.

“We can control our transition defense and we can control a decent percentage of those 3s,” Mazzulla said. “And so that's the first step is always going back to taking away the things that you can control.”

Typically, the Celtics are in control of that area of the game. Not only do they have a top-tier 3-point defense, but they were also the third-leading team in shot contests this season.

Horford played a huge role in that area, claiming the fourth-best shot-contesting rate in the league.

“They are going to do what they are going to do, so we just have to be prepared to execute what we do and making sure that we're engaged at a high level defensively, which I expect our group to be,” said the veteran big. “We've been very consistent with that all year, and we have to show it again.”

Another rare occurrence in Game 2 was how limited Kristaps Porzingis was on the offensive end. Miami held him to just 1-of-9 shooting from the field, which represented his fewest field goals in a game all season in non-injury-shortened games.

However, Porzingis is not letting such a performance affect him mentally. He expects to bounce back in Game 3 and deliver something closer to the 7-of-13 effort he had in Game 1.

“Nothing changes for me; good game or bad game, I stay the same,” he said. “We looked at the things we can do better. I looked at my possessions. I’ll make sure I’m better offensively, 100 percent.”

sidebar-prac-20240426-celtics-confident-their-3-point-defense-will-return-to-form-in-game-3

C’s Confident Their 3-Point Defense Will Return to Form in Game 3

BOSTON – A palpable buzz has been building around the Boston Celtics for the past several months as they’ve geared up for what could potentially be a special playoff run this spring.

A large portion of that hype has been self-generated from the team’s production on the court, where it went a league-best 64-18 during the regular season – its best mark since going 66-16 during its 2007-08 championship season.

But much of this year’s excitement has also been initiated by the production of another Celtics team off the court – a team of creatives operating behind the scenes who have stirred up a rousing playoff campaign through various marketing strategies. And it is their boldest, most technologically-advanced campaign to date.

All of those playoff hype videos and graphics that you’ve likely seen on the team’s official social media pages, all of the street banners, the digital signage, the in-arena motion graphics that you may have encountered in person – every one of those assets has been a result of countless hours of work put forth by the organization’s Creative and Content Teams, which consist of 10 talented artists and creative minds:

Those 10 individuals, with their varying titles and responsibilities, all came together in the months leading to the postseason, pooled their ideas into a creative cauldron and conjured up a cohesive game plan that would have made Boston’s coaching staff proud.

Their brainstorming sessions create an iron-sharpening-iron effect where they learn from and feed off each other’s ideas. This allows them to level up their efforts and helps to push them closer toward their collective goal of becoming the cream-of-the-crop creative/content group in the NBA.

In recent days, we’ve just begun to see the fruits that have been borne from all of their hard work. One of the more stimulating pieces to come out of the campaign was the initial playoff hype video that launched on all of the team’s social media platforms Saturday, the day before the on-court postseason journey officially began.

Duchon was the lead editor for this futuristic, technology-based piece, writing the script and piecing together all of its elements to create a masterpiece. The hours he put into the process were “too many” to count, he said, but it all paid off as the video reached millions of impressions in the blink of an eye.

Though, it wasn’t just Duchon behind the video’s creation. The entire content team played a role in its innovation, bringing individual concepts to the table, which were then executed during the team’s playoff marketing shoot in mid-March at WGBH’s studio in Brighton.

Each segment of the video had its own station inside the studio, and each setup was initiated and operated by a different member of the Content Team. Wilson came up with the cloning concept that you see in the theater at the beginning of the video. Von Iderstine produced the laser station that follows right after. Duchon conceptualized the trailing repetition station. And others helped by providing alternate camera angles and technical support.

The group went to extreme efforts to perfect such a technical project; for example, the laser machine was unexpectedly complicated to master, and so Carney had to seek the assistance of a laser expert up in the middle of New Hampshire so that they could operate it properly during the shoot.

But when a project of such magnitude comes to completion and is put on display, Von Iderstine says, “It’s the most rewarding feeling ever – to be a part of it from the very start of the lightbulb, and now it’s a whole finished piece for millions of people to see.”

That was just one of several incomparable pieces that have gone out on the Celtics’ social media platforms of late.

Hampton has been producing behind-the-scenes “sizzles” from practices and has also been capturing footage used on the digital signage outside the arena:

Carney created an adrenaline-pumping 24-second countdown video leading into Game 1 against the Heat:

Wilson clipped together a sweet-sounding Jayson Tatum highlight pack that was posted soon after Boston’s Game 1 win:

Those are just a few of the plethora of videos logged on the team's socials, and there will be plenty more to come.

The Creative Team has also taken its production up a notch in these playoffs with bold new concepts of their own.

After going with a “Dark Mode” theme last season, the graphics group opted to take a more colorful approach this time by showing off a diverse palette of greens while focusing on gradient usage.

Silver says, “There’s an emphasis on contrast, portraiture, and clean layouts. It’s very minimal, but it’s impactful.”

There is a lot of overlap and collaboration in the artwork produced by Silver, Arndt, and Wu. They spent the past couple of months comparing mood boards, inspired by various visual elements, while also coming up with a plan of how to execute their creativity with consistency.

“This year is a little different because we’re more aligned across the creative team,” Wu said. “So it’s really not starting from scratch each time; it’s more using whatever elements we align on at the beginning of the process and we go from there.”

Their art comes to life in many different forms. Arndt was responsible for laying out the artwork for the street banners and signage that fans see at the Hub on Causeway outside the arena. Silver was responsible for many of the in-arena designs, which are displayed on various digital boards. Many of Wu’s creations can be seen on the team’s social media pages, such as the three-column banner image of the full team lineup that is currently pinned to the top of the team’s Instagram page, which doubles as a highlight reel if you swipe on each frame. He came up with the concept while observing the very same playoff shoot from which the Content Team produced their hype pieces.

Just like the Celtics’ players have put in countless hours to hone their craft, the front office’s creative minds have been hard at work behind the scenes doing the same. Their responsibilities and exposure may differ vastly from one another, but they’re all working together under the same umbrella, inspiring the best fanbase in the world while striving toward the same goal.

sidebar-misc-20240425-celtics-content-amp-creative-teams-produce-boldest-playoff-marketing-campaign-yet

Celtics’ Content & Creative Teams Produce Boldest Playoff Marketing Campaign Yet

If you’re a Celtics fan and feel like you relived a nightmare Wednesday night, we have news for you: You are not alone.

A year after playing Boston and putting forth one of the most shocking 3-point performances over an entire series in NBA history, Miami did it again – at least for one game – Wednesday at TD Garden.

The Heat shot an incredible 53.5 percent from long range during Game 2 while tying for the third-most 3-pointers ever made in an NBA playoff game, with 23. Tyler Herro was the head of the snake for Miami as he made six 3-pointers, while old foe Caleb Martin rediscovered his magic from last postseason to shoot 5-for-6 from distance.

Miami’s 3-point shooting was the difference in the game. The Heat outscored Boston by 33 points from beyond the arc and never caught a cold spell. As such, there was never an opportunity for the Celtics to stage a comeback.

The closest Boston got during the fourth quarter was five points at the 6:22 mark. That moment, which featured an and-one driving layup by Derrick White, was promptly followed by a 3-pointer from Haywood Highsmith. Moments later, after a Jaylen Brown scored a driving layup, Miami answered with another 3-pointer from Jaime Jaquez Jr.

That 3-pointer was the back-breaker. It pushed Miami ahead by nine with 5:37 to go, and the Celtics never cut that deficit to fewer than six from that moment on.

Jaylen Brown’s Game 1 did not live up to his standards. He certainly responded during Game 2 by pouring in a game-high 33 points against Miami.

Brown found his rhythm during the second quarter, and particularly at the end of that frame, to fuel his big night. He canned three 3-pointers in a span of just 58 seconds, and then finished the half with a running layup to push Boston ahead by three points at the break.

He finished the contest having shot 13-for-23 from the field and 4-for-9 from beyond the arc. He also grabbed eight rebounds to tie three other teammates for the top mark on the team, all while tallying an assist, a steal and a blocked shot over 37-plus minutes of action.

"We've been built on taking what the defense gives us and being able to win in different ways. And so over the course of the season, winning the shot margin the way that we did, and from the free-throw line, more offensive rebounds and less turnovers, that's a recipe for long-term success."

- Joe Mazzulla's outlook following Game 2

gamerecap-keys-20240424-miabos

Keys to the Game: Heat 111, Celtics 101

Theresa Grannum

photos-heat-vs-celtics-april-24th-2024

Photos: Heat vs. Celtics – April 24th, 2024

The visiting Miami Heat will attempt to pull even in their Eastern Conference first-round series against the Boston Celtics when the teams play Game 2 on Wednesday night.

Jayson Tatum collected 23 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the top-seeded Celtics to a 114-94 victory in Game 1 on Sunday. Tatum was one of six Boston players who scored in double figures.

"Just making the right play," Tatum said after Sunday's game. "We talk all the time about not getting bored with making the right play. ... We've played (the Heat) enough. They're not a team that's necessarily going to let you play one-on-one all night."

Miami's success Wednesday may be determined by how well it can defend the 3-point line. Boston made 22 of its 49 attempts from beyond the arc in Game 1. Kristaps Porzingis, Derrick White and Sam Hauser each made four 3-pointers. Hauser came off the bench and did his damage in 12 minutes of playing time.

"You're going to need things like that to be successful in the playoffs," Tatum said. "It's not always going to be the guys who start the game. On any given night we're going to count on somebody off the bench to change the pace of the game."

The Celtics outscored the Heat 31-14 in the third quarter and led 91-59 entering the fourth. Boston's lead swelled to 34 points before eighth-seeded Miami got as close as 14 in the final minutes.

"You have to give (the Celtics) credit," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "They won the big-muscle areas. Definitely won the 3-point line and the majority of the areas in between, including defensively. They were up and into us, getting us out of our normal flow, rhythm. So we have to do a much better job by Wednesday."

Bam Adebayo scored 24 points and Delon Wright added 17 for Miami, which was without Jimmy Butler for the second straight game because of a right knee injury he sustained during the play-in round. Terry Rozier also remained out with a neck injury.

Boston's Jrue Holiday was among those who did a good job defending Tyler Herro, who shot 4 of 13 from the field and was held to 11 points in 34 minutes. Herro and Butler each averaged a team-high 20.8 points per game during the regular season.

"They came out with the intention to put a lot of pressure on (Herro)," Spoelstra said. "Whether it's on the ball with pick and rolls or off the ball with movement, we have to find some ways to shake him free and get him to his strength spaces within the context of what we do."

Sunday's win improved Boston's record against Miami to 4-0 this season. The Celtics have won 38 of 42 home games during the season and playoffs.

"There's some things that we have to do better, but that's the balance, right?" Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said. "Understanding that we played relatively well, but we have to be better because we know they're going to play better."