Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from major Game 2 loss to Golden State

Boston Celtics takeaway No. 3) Finishing at the rim

With all of this being said, the Boston Celtics had an uncharacteristically bad shooting night. Give credit to the Warriors, as they have an amazing defense in their own right, but the C’s missed tons of layups and floaters which usually go down, and have for the majority of the playoffs.

Boston shot 12-of-30 in the paint while only attempting six shots in the restricted area. Some of those could have been called fouls, and others are looks that the Boston Celtics are happy with.

Furthermore, they only hit three of their 13 2-point attempts from outside the paint, a jarring number when your team employs both Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.

The C’s need to be more aggressive in attacking their individual matchups, drawing help, and either looking for a potential lob at the rim or kick out to the perimeter. Boston looked considerably rattled after the first half, one that experienced some lopsided officiating in favor of Golden State.

That took away some of their aggressiveness in the halfcourt, with the refs swallowing their whistle on multiple drives to the paint. Despite this, Boston cannot let the officiating take them out of the game like it did on Sunday no matter the calls.

Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart, and Derrick White combined to go 3-of-12 in the paint and 2-of-8 on every other 2-pointer. As a team, Boston shot 15-of-43 inside the arc. They shot better from beyond the arc than inside it.

That trend cannot continue if the Celtics want to win an NBA championship.

Expect a big bounce-back game from both the C’s supporting cast and their stars on shots they usually hit at a high percentage.