Celtics-Pacers: 5 things to watch in Game 2, including how Boston handles Al Horford being hunted

After a Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Eastern Conference finals perhaps best described as chaotic, here are a few things to keep an eye on as the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers get set to tip off Game 2 at TD Garden on Thursday:

Indiana head coach Rick Carlisle had his Pacers repeatedly attack Al Horford in Game 1 — especially in the second half — trying to drag Boston’s center out to the perimeter and into the action by using his man to set screens on the ball.

At first, it was Myles Turner, who is shooting 47.3% from 3-point range in the postseason and can blister opponents playing drop coverage by alternating pick-and-pop launches and hard rolls to the rim:

Later, after Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla juggled the matchups so that superstar forward Jayson Tatum was guarding Turner, it was Pascal Siakam, a dangerous one-on-one scorer and playmaker whose in-between game has been money in these playoffs — 55% from floater range and 48% on long midrange attempts, according to Cleaning the Glass:

And sometimes, it was whichever Pacer the 37-year-old Celtic had tried to hide out on after pre-switching away from the one who was trotting up toward Tyrese Haliburton to set a pick:

No matter who was responsible for getting Horford into space and under the microscope, Indiana largely feasted on the opportunities it created once he was there. Pull-up 3s against the drop, practice jumpers from the foul line, ankle-jellying stepbacks, calm-as-you-like drives all the way to the rim — the Pacers generated great look after great look against a Celtics defense that finished the regular season third in points allowed per possession and entered Tuesday ranked third in the postseason, as well.

Horford can stay in front and sliding with Indiana drivers on the perimeter, as he proved with a couple of blocks, including a huge one on Andrew Nembhard with 2:31 to go in overtime:

It’s very much an open question, though, whether he can more consistently hold up under such repeated pressure — and, for that matter, what Mazzulla and Co. can do to alleviate it.

There’s an awful lot of responsibility on the plate of the oldest player…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/celtics-pacers-5-things-to-watch-in-game-2-including-how-boston-handles-al-horford-being-hunted-132550670.html

Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-05-23 13:25:50

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