Hero Ball is Boston’s Biggest Enemy in Game Seven
The Boston Celtics need to find the ball movement that makes them so good in game seven
The Boston Celtics have shown us their absolute best along with their absolute worst against the Washington Wizards. They have thoroughly dominated them with the kind of team play that would allow them to compete with anybody. And, oh yeah, they gave up a 26-0 run, which I did not think was even possible in an NBA playoff game.
There are a lot of different ways the Celtics can be successful. They have a lot of different weapons to attack with, and they have been at their best when players are able to get into the spots they are most comfortable, getting the kinds of looks they need to be successful.
When the Celtics are at their worst, its pretty simply, they turn the ball over. John Wall is too good in transition to give him any kind of head start, and every single run the Wizards have gone on is instigated by Wall in transition, following a flurry of turnovers from the Celtics.
One of the traps the Celtics can fall into is forcing things when shots are not falling. The Celtics have been the best team in the playoffs in generating open looks. The Celtics have their issues hitting open shots, but the bottom line is that the Celtics cannot let that change how they attack.
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What has happened in the past is that the Celtics get all the open looks, miss all of their shots, and then go away from their game. Too often the Celtics fall into these offensive slumps, and then all of a sudden each player feels as though they need to be the one to end that slump. It is when the individuals feel as though they need to personally take on more responsibility that they enter the danger zone.
Isaiah Thomas may be the only player who can get away with this. It is true that time and time again he has bailed the offense out by generating points on his own, but that is still not how they get to their best. It is essential to have that bail out option, but that is not the mentality that is going to win game seven. The moment the Celtics feel as though Thomas has to make up for the rest of the team, they are sorrily selling themselves short.
The Celtics need to make sure that, across the board, the priority is continuing to play as a unit. Thomas, Al Horford and Avery Bradley all need to be instigating offense, but they need to be instigating that offense with their teammates. The Celtics need to make sure that they never lose their ball movement, and they continue to find the areas where the Wizards break down.
When the Celtics descend to that hero ball where each player feels as though they need to force the issue to get a bucket, they will not be getting their open looks. Even if these individuals can have matchups that they can attack, the quality of the opportunity will never be able to compare to what is generated by ball movement, and team oriented play.
The Celtics need to make sure they stay aggressive, but it is how they use that aggression that will determine their success. Their mental toughness is also likely to be put to the test. This is not a team that can expect to hit all their open shots at this point, and they need to make sure that does not lead to any panic.
After six playoff games against the Wizards, Stevens and the players know how they can attack the Wizards, and they know how they can be successful. Even if it is not working right away or all the time, the Celtics cannot lose sight of playing the way that has given them their best success this season.
In the end, it will always come down to shot making. The Celtics have been up and down in that area all season, but one area they cannot afford to be inconsistent is getting the good looks. Each player on the court needs to make sure they are working towards getting any teammate the kind of look they know they can be successful with.
The Celtics need to embrace this moment, not by feeling as though this is the time for them to be the hero and bring the Celtics to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Celtics need to embrace this moment by making sure it does not overwhelm them, changing who they are as a team.
The Celtics have played too many games this season to feel like they need to do more than everyone on the team, just because it is a game seven. No matter who it is, If the Celtics lose this game by forcing shots, that is something they will never forgive themselves for.
The only way the Celtics sell themselves short in game seven is if they forget about what has made them so successful this season. It would still be crushing, but if the Celtics go out, move the ball well, don’t turn the ball over and just happen to miss all of their open shots, then they can go home miserable, but at least know that they did everything to be in the best possible position to succeed.
The Celtics need to focus on what they are doing and make sure that they play their game, because playing hero ball is exactly how the Wizards are at their best. It is a lot harder to get continuous turnovers when the ball is moving well. When individual players are taking turns with isolated contested shots, that is where the mistakes are made and that is how the Wizards get a victory in TD Garden.
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The Celtics know how they need to play to be at their best, and if they are going to win this game it is only going to happen as a team, even if that means not having any individual hero save the day.