Boston Celtics need Marcus Morris to get back to scoring effectively

The Boston Celtics need Marcus Morris to be an effective scorer against the Philadelphia 76ers

The Boston Celtics got out of the first round, but the Milwaukee Bucks exposed a lot of problems, The Celtics clearly cannot take their shooting for granted, and they know how much more important it is for them to win on defense.

The problem is that defense alone is not going to be enough in the playoffs, especially against a team as strong as the Philadelphia 76ers. The Celtics now that their success has to start with defense, but they will not be able to overcome underwhelming offensive performances from their top scorers.

When you add on the Jaylen Brown injury, it might be impossible for this team to overcome poor offensive performances, even when the defense is playing well. The Celtics know everything has to be a collective effort with them, and their overall success will be able generating the open shots that people can hit.

The reality is that the Celtics will often go into slumps, and they need players to bail them out. The Celtics would love to see Jayson Tatum take on more of that responsibility, but he does not always play with that mentality.

More from Hardwood Houdini

Marcus Morris, on the other hand, is all about bailing out the offense, and the Celtics need him to get back to his best form this season. Morris has been arguably the most important scorer while dealing with injuries late in the season, but when he starts to struggle, he hurts the team more than anyone else.

Morris is known for hitting difficult and contested shots when things are breaking down, and the Celtics need that bail out option against the shooting of the 76ers. Timing is always vital for Morris, because you do not want him to be too much of a ball stopper. That being said, getting Morris at his best transforms what the second unit can offer on offense.

Morris was having one of the most effective seasons of his career, hitting just under 37 percent from three point range, a mark that is even more impressive considering how many difficult shots he takes.

Morris has also come up in the clutch on multiple occasions, and Brad Stevens has shown a tremendous amount of trust in Morris, even in games where he is struggling.

In the first round against the Bucks, Morris had a strange series. He did a great job shooting from deep, but an overall shooting percentage of 38.8 is unacceptable. The problem is that Morris will not force the shots from deep. He takes what is given to him from three, and stays away from contested shots from deep.

When Morris starts forcing things, he does it in the mid range, and when you are not effective in the mid range, every single shot is hurting the team. The Celtics want Morris to tone down on how much he forces, but they really just need him to get hot and hit these shots.

Morris had all kinds of success hitting those difficult bail out shots this season, and that is the role the Celtics want him to play. It is risky, because his mentality never changes, and he always has that aggressive edge.

Morris is going to be taking these shots, and the Celtics need the points he has the potential to manufacture, so getting back to his effective regular season form will be a huge factor in this series. The Celtics do not need Morris to be the most efficient shooter on the team. In fact, Morris has the biggest leash when it comes to efficiency, because of the kind of shots they need him to take.

Next: Celtics clearly focused on transition

The problem is that the second unit really does not get much offense when Morris is not hitting the difficult shots, and the Celtics need to get that boost off their bench if they are going to keep up with the 76ers.

Home/Celtics News