The Celtics Path to the Finals: Cleveland Cavaliers

The Boston Celtics are one of the most up-and-coming teams in the NBA, but don’t let their experience deceive you: They have the tools to beat any team in the Eastern Conference.

This season, the Boston Celtics have surprised just about everyone with their breakout performance as a whole, surging to as high as third in the Eastern Conference and are showing no signs of leaving. But, it has been widely spread that the East belongs to the Cleveland Cavaliers and LeBron James.

It hasn’t quite been the way this season as it was last for the Cavs. Several teams are giving the Cavs a run for their money to be the king of the hill, and the Celtics are leading that surge. With that being said, there are specific reasons why and how the Celtics can beat the Cavaliers if they ever meet up in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Cleveland Cavaliers: 2015-2016 Regular Season Record: 50-20; Head Coach: Tyronn Lue

Last season, the Cleveland Cavaliers dominated the Eastern Conference, easing their way through the playoffs with a 12-2 record, which included a sweep of the Celtics in the opening round. They ran into the Golden State Warriors in the Finals which ended up ending their run.

It is debatable that if the Cavs had Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, the two members missing from the “Big 3”, that they could have won the title. Now, they are back this year with virtually the same skill-sets and roster, but the chemistry just doesn’t seem to be there.

Love isn’t having the year many envisioned, Irving was out for a lengthy period of time, LeBron has diminished a bit, and Cleveland’s supporting cast’s new-found trouble have all led to this outcome. I’m not taking anything away from Cleveland, but it seems now that they are vulnerable, and the Celtics have the skill set to repay Cleveland from last year’s one-and-done run for Boston.

It’s no secret that Boston can beat the Cavs, as they have given them a run for their money in all three games the two teams have met. There is several things that they have done consistently well, and other things that they need to improve on in order to put them in the best situation.

Things To Improve On:

Field-Goal Percentage: In the teams three head-to-head match-ups so so far this season, the Cavaliers have lead the Celtics in field-goal percentage in total and in two of the three games thus far. While this may seem like a miscellaneous fact, the team that has had both the higher field-goal, and three-point percentage, has won that game.

Not that it is a shocking stat, but the main reason why this is involved is because if the Celtics do want the best chances to win a potential series against the Cavs, shot selection will be a big key to victory

Second-Chance Points: The Celtics aren’t necessarily under average at this, but second-chance points have to be a big part of Boston’s gameplan against Cleveland. The Celtics have the tools to get this done, and with their size and physical presence, they do have the traits to out-muscle Cleveland on the offensive glass and potentially change the games pace and momentum.

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Things To Build On:

Rebounding: The Celtics have the third highest total rebounds in the NBA season so far, while the Cavaliers fall in the bottom five in this category. This comes to the advantage of Boston, as that category was one that helped lead Cleveland to a series sweep over Boston and eventually lead them to the NBA Finals. Boston has become a consistent rebounding team, and they will need that to carry over into the playoffs, especially if a match-up between the two comes to fruition.

Assists: Not only is this big to contribute to more scoring chances, but team chemistry has to play a big part in a team’s success, whether that be in the regular season or postseason. The Celtics have landed in the top five in assists in the NBA, while the Cavs are just above the top 50 percent mark in the league for this category. Boston, while they have had a little trouble in the assist category against Cleveland this year, have gradually gotten better finding opportunities and have been closer with Cleveland as a result.

Next: How Important is Getting Home-Court Advantage?

Boston can pride themselves on what they have done correctly, not just against Cleveland, but as a whole this season. There are certain places where they need work on in order to unlock their full potential, especially against a wildly talented team like the Cavaliers. If the Celtics can continue to improve in areas they are struggling, they can possibly be the biggest threat to Cleveland in the conference.

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