The Boston Celtics suffered an excruciating loss at the hands of the defending NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal battle Wednesday night. The Celtics led by 14 points with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter and by six with under two minutes left. Yet, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday made big play after big play, pulling off the shocking comeback for a 110-107 win.
After the loss, Celtics guard Marcus Smart appeared to call out his teammates, saying they were standing around on the last set inbounds play for Boston. That's certainly not ideal as the Celtics will need to come together as they head to Milwaukee, hoping to avoid elimination.
Boston led by double digits for much of Game 5, but it all fell apart. There were numerous things the Celtics did poorly that led to the blown lead. They will need to rectify those issues and bring their best effort if they want to extend the series to a Game 7 back in Boston.
Without further ado, let us dive into the 3 biggest things the Celtics must do to force a Game 7 vs. the Bucks.
3 Things Celtics Must do to Force a Game 7 vs. Bucks
1. Jayson Tatum Must Make Better Decisions
Everyone knows that Celtics' Jayson Tatum is the team's best player. If they are going to win this series, and eventually win a championship, he will obviously have to be the one that leads them there. But he simply needs to be a better decision-maker.
The box score from Game 5 says he had a really good game. After all, the Celtics superstar scored 34 points. But if you know basketball and watched that game, I don't believe you can say that with a straight face. The Bucks defense has turned Tatum into a volume scorer who is struggling with his shot.
Jayson Tatum in 5 games so far vs the Bucks:
24.8/5.8/5.2 on 39/30/77 shooting. He’s taking 22 shots to score just under 25 points a game.
Will he turn it around in time for Boston to win this series? pic.twitter.com/V38MYiSlXu
— SQ Sports NBA Podcast (@SQ_Sports) May 12, 2022
He's shooting just 39 percent from the field this series, and only 30 percent from downtown. It's taking over 22 shots to get 25 points per game. This was the Tatum we saw the first two months of the season. Not the guy we saw the final four months who dominated the NBA.
During the collapse in the fourth quarter, Tatum took a number of bad shots. I mean, early in the shot clock, pull-up mid-range jumpers or three's. He also failed to get back in transition a couple times. It's possible he is just really tired. The Bucks have been doing a great job making sure he has to work on both ends of the floor.
Tatum is definitely one of the 10 best players in the NBA right now. But his decision-making needs to be better if this series is going to go the distance.
*Watch NBA Games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)
2. Celtics Must Rebound Much Better
This series has gone back and forth the entire way, with Boston and Milwaukee alternating wins. That trend will need to continue if the Celtics want to see a Game 7.
Milwaukee is the bigger team, there is no denying that. They have beaten Boston on the glass in all games but one. The Celtics showed in Game 4 they don't need to win the rebounding margin to win in Milwaukee. But they do at least need to make it competitive, particularly when it matters most.
During the fourth quarter of Game 5, the Bucks created a plethora of second chance opportunities from offensive rebounds. That includes the game-winning basket. Antetokounmpo missed the game-tying free throw with just over 10 seconds remaining. If Boston had corralled that rebound, they likely win the game and people are talking about Giannis choking.
The Celtics really missed Robert Williams’ rebounding tonight…
Bucks offensive rebounds: 17
Celtics offensive rebounds: 5— KJ Doyle (@kjdoyletv) May 12, 2022
Instead, Bobby Portis snatched the rebound from Marcus Smart and hit the put back layup. Smart was then blocked by Holiday and the rest is history. But that wasn't the only offensive rebound that killed the Celtics. With just under two minutes left, the Bucks got another, ending in a three-pointer from Antetokounmpo. A couple possessions prior to that, Brook Lopez hit a jumper after three straight offensive rebounds and missed shots.
Boston has to team rebound, especially if Robert Williams is unable to return. That's more important than getting out on the break.
3. Boston Needs to Make Giannis Antetokounmpo Inefficient
It's nearly impossible to stop Antetokounmpo. He has proven time and again that he is the best two-way player in the NBA. But the Celtics have shown at times that they are capable of slowing him down and making him inefficient scoring.
In the Celtics' two wins this series, Antetokounmpo is just 25-for-59 (42%) from the floor. Whereas, the last two Bucks wins he is 32-for-57 (56%). He is going to get his, but the Celtics need to make him take a ton of shots to get there.
If Boston can keep the Bucks off the glass, make Antetokounmpo less efficient, and Tatum can make better decisions, the Celtics likely will have earned a Game 7 back in TD Garden in Boston.
Follow Us
Subscribe