The Boston Celtics began their playoff journey for Banner No. 18 with a bang on Sunday night, as they beat the Miami Heat 114-94 in Game 1 of their first-round series.
From the initial tipoff, the C's looked ready to go. They raced out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter and never trailed all game. Although an undermanned Heat squad showed some fight down the stretch, the Celtics closed it out late in the fourth and earned the wire-to-wire win.
Game 2 is on Wednesday night at 7 P.M. ET, but before that contest starts, let's delve into four takeaways from Boston's Game 1 victory.
The Celtics were prepared for the Heat's physicality
Miami has one of the best defenses in the NBA, and head coach Erik Spoelstra does a great job at instilling the importance of physicality in his teams. The Heat's active hands and hard fouls can prove disruptive for many opponents, yet the Celtics weren't thrown off by anything in Game 1.
When asked about Miami's domineering defense, Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis praised his team's performance and resilience.
“I think we matched [the Heat's physicality],” he said. “We did a pretty good job, I'd say … A little bit of action is good during the playoffs. That was fun.”
Celtics star Jayson Tatum wasn't fazed by Miami's aggression either. After Heat forward Caleb Martin upended him with less than a minute to play, he shook it off and knocked down the ensuing free throws.
Some players might've taken offense following this collision. However, Tatum realizes that the playoffs are fiery and that it's all part of the game.
“It's a physical game, playing against a physical team, sh*t's going to happen,” he said. “It's not the last time my body will get hit like that or fouled in this series. I wasn't hurt.”
Boston's head coach Joe Mazzulla didn't seem to mind either. In fact, he was thrilled by the encounter: “I was waiting to see what [Tatum] was gonna do. I was kind of excited about the whole situation,” he admitted. “So I enjoyed watching it.”
Celtics dissected Heat's double teams
In last year's Eastern Conference Finals, the Heat were intent on flustering Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and other Celtics with constant double teams. This created a lot of Boston turnovers, which prevented the C's from developing an offensive rhythm and gifted the Heat extra possessions.
During Game 1, the Celtics worked around Miami's double teams for the most part. Tatum even notched 10 assists en route to his first career playoff triple-double.
“It was real simple,” Tatum shared. “Just making the right play. We talk all the time about not getting bored making the right play. Find the mismatch … and surround yourself with shooters … [The Heat] aren't a team that's gonna let you play one-on-one all night. They do a really good job of being in help and showing a crowd. They just kind of force you to make the right play.”
Whenever the Heat brought two guys against Tatum, Porzingis, or another Celtic, they were generally able to pass out of it right at the critical moment. The ability to overcome Miami's swarming defense should be an important factor in this first-round matchup.
Boston's bench was terrific
Bench players are the unsung heroes of the NBA and are incredibly important in the postseason—especially against a team like the Heat.
Miami is always looking for a way to shut down an opponent's No. 1 or No. 2 option, leaving plenty of wide-open shots for less heralded guys.
In Game 1, Boston's bench made the most of its opportunities. Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser, and Al Horford combined for 30 points on 11-of-21 shooting. They also had zero turnovers altogether and when one of them was left unguarded on the perimeter, they burned the Heat for it on multiple occasions.
Hauser and Horford, in particular, were not discouraged despite a slow start. In the first quarter, they went a combined 0-for-5 from 3-point land. They didn't abandon their shot though, and were rewarded for it with a combined 6-for-11 performance from deep.
Mazzulla provided an anecdote from Hauser's 1-for-18 game against the Sacramento Kings in early April to describe the positive outlook he wants his players to have when they hit a cold streak:
“I texted him after the 1-for-18 game and said the ultimate compliment is you got to miss 12 3-pointers in an NBA game,” Mazzulla recalled. “You have to look at it that way.”
Celtics still need to focus on playing a full 48 minutes
There's plenty of good to take from this win for the Celtics, yet that doesn't mean there's no room to improve.
Boston went up by as much as 34 points in the second half; however, Miami cut the lead all the way down to 14 points with 2:52 left in the fourth quarter. Time was on the Celtics' side, allowing them a greater margin of error.
Still, Miami's barrage in the fourth quarter is something that can't happen in a closer game.
“We weren't perfect,” Porzingis admitted. “We kind of took our foot off the gas just a little bit and any team is dangerous … But, we stayed calm and managed to put the game away.”
Outside of a few regular season collapses against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Atlanta Hawks, the 2023-24 Celtics were good at holding leads. It's been more of a problem for past Celtics groups, but, the current squad should continue to emphasize maintaining full effort from start to finish in the 2024 NBA Playoffs.
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