Celtics host Atlanta Hawks For Game 2 of the opening round NBA Playoffs. The first game was a story of two halves. The Celtics controlled a 30-point lead in the first half of Game 1, but then fell behind in the second half, allowing the Falcons to narrow the lead to 12 points at one point. The Celtics ended up winning Game 1, 112-99.
The Hawks will enter this game with some momentum from the second half of Game 1 and they will come into the game looking to give it their best shot because they don’t want to go back to Atlanta down 0-2. Quin Snyder will be going over the movie and making some adjustments, so Joe Mazzulla will need to be ready to counter these with some of his own.
This is the thirteenth time these two teams have met in the playoffs. Boston has won 10 of the 12 series to date. Their last meeting was in 2016 when the Falcons won the series 4-2. In the off-season, the Celtics signed Al Horford away from the Hawks in free agency. The Hawks’ only other victory over the Celtics was in 1958 when the St. Louis Hawks won the series in 6 games. Since the Hawks moved from St. Louis to Atlanta in 1968, the Celtics have won seven of their eight playoff series in this game.
Danilo Gallinari is the only Celtic player on the injured list at this time for this match. Jaylen Brown reopened the cut on his hand during the first game. He did not need more stitches and at this time he is expected to play in this game without restrictions. The Falcons don’t have anyone on their injury list.
Potential Celtics appetizer
Celtics reserves
Malcolm Brogdon
Grant Williams
Sam Hauser
Luke Cornet
Blake Griffin
Mike Muscala
Peyton Pritchard
Robert Williams III
Justin Champagne
2 players way
JD Davison
Mviondo Capangel
out / injuries
Exit by Danilo Gallinari (ACL).
Coach
Joe Mazola
Hooks likely beginners
Falcon reserves
be honest with you
Bogdan Bogdanovich
Bruno Fernando
AJ Griffin
Aaron’s holiday
Galen Johnson
Vit Craigsey
Therese Martin
Garrison Mathews
Mr. Okongwu
2 players way
Trent Forrest
Donovan Williams
out / injuries
Nothing included
Coach
Quinn Snyder
major matches
Marcus Smart vs. Tra Young
Young averaged 26.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, 10.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game in the regular season. He shot 43.0% from the field and 33.5% from outside the arc. In two games against the Celtics this season, Young averaged 31 points, 4 rebounds and 11 assists per game. However, in the first game, he had 16 points, 3 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals. He shot only 27.8% from the field and 20% from outside the arc. He will definitely come into this game looking to be more efficient and have a great game. The Celtics will need to guard him tightly again.
Derek White vs. DeGonte Murray
Murray averaged 20.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game in the regular season. He shot 46.4% from the field and 34.4% from outside the arc. In two games against the Celtics this season, he averaged 16.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Murray was the only Falcon to play very well in the first game. He had 24 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals. He shot 40% from the field but only hit 0-6 on three shots. Murray is also one of the Hawks’ best defensemen. The Celtics will need to work hard on both sides of the field to get the most out of this matchup.
honorific
Malcolm Brogdon vs. Bogdan Bogdanovic
In the regular season, Bogdanović had 14 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.8 assists off the bench. He shot 44.7% from the field and 40.6% from outside the arc. In Game 1 he finished with 9 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Although he only shot 28.6% from beyond the arc in Game 1, he’s a very good 3-point shooter and is a player the Celtics need to defend well because he can heat up quickly if left open. Malcolm Brogdon also had a less-than-stellar Game 1 with 5 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists. I hope he can move forward with this game.
game keys
defense Defense is always the key to winning matches and defense becomes even more important in the qualifiers. Defense is especially important to the Celtics in this game because the Hawks are a good scoring team, averaging 117.9 points per game, fourth in the league. The Celtics are third with an average of 118.4 points per game. The Celtics have a Defensive Rating of 110.6 which is 2nd while the Falcons have a Defensive Rating of 115.4 which is 22nd. The Celtics showed off their championship defense in the first game but let that defense slip in the second half. The Celtics have to make defense a priority in this game and they have to play this strong defense for 48 minutes without letting up.
recovery Besides defense, rebounding is key to winning. Much of the bounce is effort and desire. When the Celtics go the extra mile on the boards, it usually carries over into the rest of the game. The Hawks averaged 44.4 rebounds per game in the regular season (10) while the Celtics averaged 45.3 rebounds per game (7). In the three regular season games, Atlanta outscored the Celtics 143-136. The Celtics were only 19-19 when they came out of the rebound in the regular season. The Hawks beat the Heat 63-39 in game play. The Celtics beat the Hawks 54-45 in Game 1. In the first half they beat the Hawks 32-18 but in the second half the Celtics had 26 rebounds to the Hawks’ 27. The Celtics need to go hard after every bounce. They can’t afford to give the Falcons extra possessions by letting them grab rebounds.
Take care of the ball The Celtics averaged just 13.4 touchdowns during the regular season (7th). In the playoffs last year, they turned the ball over 353 times, which was the most of all playoff teams. They had over 30 more turnovers than Golden State. In Game 1, the Celtics had 17 turnovers, which led to 19 points for the Hawks. The Celtics must stay focused, not make sloppy passes, and be careful not to let the Falcons steal with careless dribbling. They have to take care of the ball and not give the Hawks easy points by turning it around.
Play hard 48 minutes The Celtics played hard and played the right way in the first half of the first game. They shot 60% from the field and 56.3% from beyond the arc in the first half and held the Hawks to 44 first-half points. They lost focus, hustle and effort in the second half, shooting just 34.9% from the field and 23.5% from outside the arc. They also let the Falcons put them out once in the second half. The Celtics scored just 38 points in the second half while the Hawks allowed 55 points on 44% from the field and 30.8% from outside the arc. The Falcons will come away ready to play and the Celtics will have to match that energy and effort to get started. But, they also have to maintain their focus, effort, and energy throughout the game and not give up any amount of time in the game until the last buzzer.
Be aggressive – The Celtics can’t afford to expect an easy win after beating the Hawks in the first half of Game 1. That would be a huge mistake because the Hawks play hard and will come in the Celtics hard, especially after the game is over. The loss and after the Celtics gave them life in the second half of the first game. The Celtics should be the team that plays harder and wants to win more. They must be aggressive in diving for loose balls, in going to the basket, in getting stops on the defensive side, and in pursuit of rebounds. The Celtics need to play hard and aggressive for 48 minutes in this nonstop game.
X-factors
main court– Celtics at home for the second game in a row before heading to Atlanta to participate in the third game. The Hawks were only 17-23 on the road in the regular season while the Celtics were 32-9 at home. The Celtics need to take advantage of the home crowd, which should be loud and do everything they can to support the Celtics and rock the Falcons. The Celtics must win their home games and not let the Falcons steal the game at home.
training The Hawks have a very veteran coach in Quinn Snyder, but he’s only coached the Hawks in 23 games. Snyder was the head coach Utah Jazz For 8 seasons before resigning there. This is Snyder’s seventh straight playoff, and the longest streak by any active head coach. Game 2 is where training becomes most important. Snyder will watch the movie and make the edits and it will be up to Joe Mazzola to counter them. Mazzola won his first ever playoff game. Can the veteran coach come out with two straight wins?
verdict Synthesis is always an x-factor. All the game staff describe the game a little differently with some describing it as aggravating and others as letting it play. Some referees make head scratching calls while others try really hard to get it right. In some games, the halves are called completely differently. They usually allow more contact in the qualifiers but this is not a guarantee. The Celtics have to adjust to how the game is called and focus on playing the game and not on bad or no calls.