The Boston Celtics lost game 6 on Sunday night to the Miami Heat, and are eliminated from playoff contention. Let’s look at what went wrong.
The Boston Celtics fell to the Miami Heat in Game 6 Sunday night, losing by a final score of 125-113. Up 96-90 in the fourth quarter, the Cs couldn’t seem to close the game, going silent on offense down the stretch.
After shooting 11-24 from distance in the first half, they ended up only hitting four of their 22 attempts from deep in the second half, as they couldn’t keep up with Miami’s offensive firepower.
Jayson Tatum had a productive game, finishing with 24 points, seven rebounds, and a career-high 11 assists in 44 minutes. However, he shot just over 33 percent from the field (9-26), as he had trouble finishing around the rim and in traffic.
Distributing the ball, he’s only getting better, as he has taken over as the main ball handler and zone-breaker for the team. He had another terrible start, scoring zero points in the first quarter.
Nobody should be worried about Tatum’s ability to close games or his slow starts. His play in the bubble has taken him to another level, as he now makes his teammates better rather than just himself.
In the end, Tatum’s still just 22-years-old. The best is yet to come.
Jaylen Brown had another extremely efficient and productive game for the Boston Celtics, scoring 26 points on 10-17 shooting from the field.
He probably should’ve gotten more touches in the offense, as he was often matched up against inferior Miami defenders, but the game played out the way it did.
With three steals he created transition opportunities for his team, something that helped them jump out to an early lead in the fourth quarter.
Marcus Smart scored 20 points on a whopping 22 attempts in an elimination game.
Sure, some of those shots were good looks and he knocked some of them down, but for Smart to have five more shots than Brown is a failure on the offensive end.
He started out hot, hitting four threes in the first half, but ended 4-13 from beyond the arc. Sometimes in big games, Marcus tries to do a little bit too much and, unfortunately, this was one of those times.
If Boston figures out their shot distribution in big situations a little bit better, it could go a long way.
Kemba Walker recorded 20 points and five assists in the loss, as he went 7-15 from the field.
Along with Brown, if some of those Smart shots went to Kemba instead, this game could have turned out a bit different. However, some of that should go on Walker as well, as he could’ve been more aggressive in driving to the basket.
When he did, he found lots of success, as he shot 4-5 on two-point attempts. On threes, he only shot 3-10, contributing to the Boston Celtics’ 32.6 percent shooting from deep.
Gordon Hayward looked off all night, scoring 12 points on 5-12 shooting from the field. He hit a couple of 3’s but missed many makeable shots, including an easy layup attempt in the third quarter. Often times he looked like the slowest guy on the court, being taken advantage of on both sides of the floor.
It’s unfortunate the Hayward experience in Boston has turned out this way, and we’ll all be waiting to see what happens this offseason.
Grant Williams came in for crucial minutes at center in the second half, playing a part in Boston’s 22-8 run to take back the lead in the final period. However, a questionable substitution occurred, as he came out for Daniel Theis, who had four fouls.
Then, Miami coach Erik Spoelstra called for Bam Adebayo to bring up the ball on every possession, driving headfirst into Theis, who had no chance of stopping him. This allowed the Heat to take back the lead, and they would never look back, as the German-native fouled out shortly after.
This substitution certainly will and should be a criticism of coach Brad Stevens, along with his puzzling fascination with Enes Kanter in the first half, even though he was getting beaten in the pick and roll on every possession. By no means does this mean that Stevens should be fired, as some fans are calling for his head, but he certainly did make some key errors in this series.
For Miami, they shot a scorching 56.3 percent from the field and 48.1 percent from downtown.
Sure, the defense for the Boston Celtics could’ve been a lot better, but sometimes you just have to tip your cap and call it a day. If Andre Iguodala, a <30 percent three-point shooter on the year, goes 4-4 from downtown, there’s not much you can do.
Adebayo bounced back from his subpar Game 5, recording 32 points and 14 rebounds in 39 minutes. Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro combined for 41, while Duncan Robinson hit five of his seven three-point attempts.
Good on Miami for advancing to the Finals — they deserve it!
For Boston, it was quite a disappointing end to a season filled with so much promise. The Finals were in reach, but considering the extremely young core of this team, no fans should be worried about the future.
Now, let’s not go crazy. Instead, let’s enjoy the ascent of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown — both of whom Bleacher Report voted onto their All-NBA Playoff teams –, and look forward to a clean-slate in 2020-21.