Going into this year’s first-round, many picked the series between the Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets as one of the best of the entire playoffs. On Monday night, the C’s completed the sweep in one of the more surprising results in recent history.
Winning by a final score of 116-112, the shamrocks fought off a relatively great game from Kevin Durant and questionable officiating at the end of the game, having to play without Jayson Tatum for the final 2:30 after fouling out.
Now, they move on to face the winner of Milwaukee and Chicago (they’ll be playing the Bucks) for a berth in the Eastern Conference Finals.
After Game 1’s dramatic finish, nobody saw a sweep in the forecast. The Celtics pulled it off, getting some much-needed rest ahead of their next series.
The Boston Celtics simply outplayed the Brooklyn Nets
It’s hard to believe that a team could sweep the dynamic duo of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, but it happened. This is the first time that a team with Durant has been swept in the playoffs– at first, many saw the Nets as favorites to win the series.
A few games could have gone either way, but the last two contests in Brooklyn have been dominated by the Boston Celtics’ hustle and second-chance opportunities, led by young superstar, Jayson Tatum.
JT was the best player on the court throughout all four games, outplaying one of the best offensive players of our generation consistently.
These takeaways will be more geared towards storylines to look for in the next series, with the Nets being sent to Cancun:
Boston Celtics takeaway No. 1) Grant Williams is a productive playoff performer
Grant Williams had another impressive performance on Monday night, finishing with 14 points and three rebounds on 4-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc. In 33 minutes of action, Williams was often switched onto Durant and held his own, forcing him into difficult looks despite the clear size advantage.
For the Celtics to continue to win in these playoffs, they’re going to need to have their complementary players hit shots from downtown. Williams is at the top of that list, hitting 41.1 percent of his shots from distance in the regular season, and that trend has continued into playoff basketball.
With Jayson Tatum seeing more double teams when he gets in the lane, Grant was open again and again in the corner for free looks at the hoop. He’s able to space the floor no matter what position he plays, whether it be the four or the five, and he can defend reasonably well against players that are taller than him.
When he gets switched out onto a traditional quick point guard, Grant may have trouble staying in front of them. However, against a potential Milwaukee opponent, the Bucks don’t have an off-the-dribble creator at the same level as Kyrie Irving.
Expect to see lots more of Grant Williams in the next series.
He’s earned it!
Boston Celtics takeaway No. 2) Where does Derrick White fit?
While Grant Williams passed this year’s playoff test with flying colors, Derrick White has fallen a bit short. His drive and kick game remains a positive for Boston and went on to record a solid nine points and six rebounds in 27 minutes during their Monday night bout.
However, his perimeter game is still a question mark, as he only hit one of his 11 3-point attempts in the series.
In upcoming games, when players like Tatum and Jaylen Brown see multiple defenders, the Celtics will have players open on the perimeter. If White is one of those players, a defender can easily help off of him without much risk/ fear.
The major trade deadline acquisition has to prove that he can make shots from deep, or else he’ll struggle to find a place on the floor.
Against a potential Milwaukee opponent, a team that’s been starting Giannis Antetokounmpo at small forward (!) with the absence of Khris Middleton, who does White defend? It’ll be interesting to see the adjustments coach Ime Udoka takes going into next series.
If we know anything, it’s that we can trust Udoka to figure out a relevant and successful game plan for each series.
Boston Celtics takeaway No. 3) How great can Jayson Tatum be?
Against all odds, Jayson Tatum was the best player in a series against Kevin Durant.
Moving forward, can he do the same against, say, Giannis Antetokounmpo?
It’s obviously a tough ask, and it’s hard to put a ceiling on the perennial All-Star, but the Bucks are a different beast on the defensive side of the ball.
In Game 4, Tatum finished with 29 points and five assists on only 16 shots in 36 minutes of action. Scott Foster decided to reward Goran Dragic’s flop, giving JT his sixth foul of the game, but Boston was able to close out the game anyway.
Tatum got better offensively as the series went on–similar to how the regular season played out–, attacking the slower and undersized Brooklyn defenders in isolation sets.
He’s developed tremendously as a passer both off of penetration and in double teams, buying into the team aspect that’s led to this incredibly successful second half of the season.
With that being said, how good can Jayson Tatum be against a team like Milwaukee? It’ll be extremely entertaining to see JT and Giannis duke it out for a closer series than this one.
We’ll see if Tatum can be as dominant as Giannis was in last year’s playoffs.
If that’s the case… lookout.