The day after OG Anunoby’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer handed the Celtics a stunning Game 3 loss, Boston coach Brad Stevens made it clear he did not have concerns about his team’s resolve against the Raptors.
He said that he loved this team’s competitive spirit. He loved that they were intrinsically motivated. These qualities were not always present last season, but they’ve been consistent this year.
“You asked whether we were going to play hard or not because it was 2-0, and that’s not anything I’m ever worried about with this group,” Stevens said then. “They’re going to bring it. They’re going to give everything they have. And if we get beat, we get beat. Last night wasn’t the way we wanted it to end, but we’re looking forward to getting a chance to compete again, because we like to compete.”
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But then Game 4 began, and it did not look like Stevens had been prescient. There were missed assignments on defense and missed opportunities on offense, and there was just a general feeling that the Raptors were the hungrier, grittier team.
Afterward, the Celtics acknowledged what had appeared somewhat obvious.
“They played harder than we did,” Jayson Tatum said, “and I think that was just noticeable on both ends of the floor for most of the game.”
Added Kemba Walker: “Those guys just out-toughed us and got loose balls, got offensive rebounds, things that we weren’t doing. That’s really it. We’ve got to be better. We’ve got to be tougher. We’ve got to want it more.”
They were unusual admissions from these Celtics, especially following the biggest game of their season. And they might be cause for concern.
Toronto, a team that just a few days ago look almost resigned to its season’s end, has been reinvigorated. And these Raptors have shown how dangerous they can be when they are reinvigorated.
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Last season they climbed back from a 2-1 deficit to defeat the 76ers in the conference semifinals before wiping away a 2-0 disadvantage in the conference finals against the Bucks and going on to win the NBA title.
Kawhi Leonard is gone now, but this team remains dangerous. Nevertheless, on Sunday, Stevens remained confident that his team would regain its fire before it was too late.
“I thought that we had moments of excellent play [in Game 4] and moments where they were quicker to things,” he said. “But I still believe greatly in our competitiveness and I think our guys are looking forward to playing [Monday].”
Williams limited due to matchups
Celtics big man Robert Williams has played well off the bench for the Celtics in this series, supplanting Enes Kanter as the backup center due in large part to a favorable matchup. But after playing 13 productive minutes in the first half, Williams played just two in the second half and was not on the court at all in the fourth quarter.
On Sunday, Stevens explained that it was once again based on matchups.
“The [Serge] Ibaka pick-and-rolls were obviously giving us fits,” he said. “So we went to a smaller, switching lineup there during his normal stint.”
Rookie Grant Williams played nine minutes in the second half, and the Celtics outscored the Raptors by 4 points during that stretch. The Celtics were outscored by 11 points during the other 16 minutes of the half.
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Offense struggles against man defense
The Raptors have constantly mixed up defenses during this series, alternating between man-to-man, matchup zones, and box-and-one and triangle-and-two sets. There were times earlier in the series when the zones appeared to throw off Boston’s rhythm. And in Game 4, the Celtics made just 7 of 35 3-pointers. But Stevens thought Toronto’s more traditional defense was the primary roadblock.
“We’ve played pretty well against their zone, and we have really in the last couple of games,” he said. “We played great against the box and the triangle, too, when they’ve done that. We’ve gotten good looks and played the right way. So I’d say most of our lesser possessions came against man, so it didn’t have anything to do with the zone, per se. But they’re good. They get into you. They’re tough.”
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/09/06/sports/celtics-let-their-guard-down-game-4-its-not-time-panic/
2020-09-06 18:58:53Z
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