Heat-Celtics Game One: Boston's Frontcourt Flexes Its Muscles In Victory

Many prognosticators believe that with the peaking Miami Heat and fading Boston Celtics traveling in opposing directions, their series will be prime for a first round upset.

For roughly the first 30 minutes of their game one matchup, it looked like the Heat would confirm the suspicions of those expecting a quiet Celtic spring.

But then reality set in and Boston ultimately prevailed 85-76, less on the basis of their own merit, and more on what Miami didn’t and couldn’t do.


Why Miami Lost

Miami’s starting defense had too many holes that ultimately got picked apart.

By my very unofficial count, about half of the combined interior rotations of Jermaine O’ Neal and Michael Beasley were on point, and half were late, absent, or ineffective. That’s a number that will get a team to the playoffs, but won’t have them winning series.

Quentin Richard jumped like a jack rabbit whenever a Celtic perimeter player offered the slightest head fake.

Richardson and Dorell Wright couldn’t stop Paul Pierce’s quick post moves, and Wright was particularly affected by Pierce’s strength.

Beasley’s individual defensive efforts were frequently chumped.

Miami’s post trapping strategy isn’t necessarily a faulty one, but weak side help was often late when a Celtic, usually Rajon Rondo, cut down from the top of the key when his man went to double.

Boston had success generating open looks from curling Ray Allen off of Kendrick Perkins and having Allen drop a pass to Perkins after Miami’s bigs showed on the screen. Because of this, late game curls were defended much softer, and Allen was afforded relatively clean looks.

Though O’Neal and Beasley were mediocre at best defensively, Udonis Haslem’s and Joel Anthony’s defensive efforts ranged for solid to awesome. Interior rotations were on point, the middle was effectively jammed, screens were bottled up with aggressive hedges and Miami’s defense generated run out opportunities that led to easy scores.

However, because Haslem relies on teammates and execution to set up his looks, and Anthony is merely an offensive garbage man, having both of them on the floor is a liability when thirsting for offense.

Unfortunately for Miami, their offensive frontcourt didn’t bother to show up.

O’ Neal played as brittle and timid as he always has—3-14 FG, 2-2 FT, 8 PTS. The Heat tried to establish his mid-post and face-up game because of his height advantage over Perkins, yet two of O’Neal’s makes were simple mid-range assisted jumpers, and a third make came on an early offensive drive. O’ Neal didn’t register a single field goal when trying to attack Perkins one-on-one.

Michael Beasley’s lack of feel for the game resulted in multiple awful passes and decisions with the ball—5 TO—an airballed jumper, and limited production. His poor basketball IQ relegates him to being an iso scorer, but he doesn’t have the savvy to beat good defenders one-on-one. He was a disaster against the Celtics on both ends.

Without O’Neal or Beasley stepping up, the Heat were relegated to hoping Dwyane Wade would turn in a vintage Wade performance.

For the first three quarters, Miami’s defense was able to unleash Wade in early offense, and any open crack Boston presented would be blown wide open by Wade’s electric assaults on the basket.

But then Boston roused itself from its collective slumber and was totally focused on keeping Wade out of the paint. Tony Allen did a Grade-A job of sticking to Wade’s hip around both on- and off-ball screens, the Celtics’ hedges and backline rotations picked up, and Miami’s offense ground to a halt—so much so that when other players began to make boneheaded mistakes

• Richardson jumped in the air before trying to blow by his defender.
• Haslem missed a couple of layups, and then missed an open court dunk.
• O’ Neal and Wade were so careless on an inbounds pass that Tony Allen recorded a steal under the Heat basket.

With Miami’s offense so stagnant, whenever a Heat player did receive the ball they were timid and unsure of themselves and simply passed it back to Wade for a high screen that opened up nothing.

Miami’s offense devolved into a series of 24-second violations, forced attempts against the shot-clock buzzers, turnovers, and missed Wade jumpers.

If Miami can’t get any production from Beasley and O’Neal, Wade will have to be superman for the Heat to pull off an upset. However, Boston is well aware that his kryptonite is his long range jumper and will take away his drives if necessary.

Why Boston Won

Boston’s defense over the final 18 minutes was smothering.

Boston’s frontcourt dominated Miami’s in every aspect, particularly in the battle of each team’s starters.

Pierce missed a few layups early and then became uninvolved in the offense, but he always broke down Richardson and Wright near the basket—4-12 FG, 7-8 FT, 16 PTS.

52 of Boston’s 85 points came in the paint, and 22 more came at the free throw line, a testament to Boston’s physicality and offensive execution.

If Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen were profoundly ordinary, Glen Davis and Tony Allen performed rousing imitations.

Davis’ hustle, quick-toed defense, and bowling ball barrages at the basket, combined with Tony Allen’s athletic drives and adhesive defense were the difference in Boston’s win.

With Rasheed Wallace providing nothing—a made turnaround jumper from the mid post, horrible screen defense, a pathetic job of defending Mario Chalmers along the baseline, and a blatant offensive foul—it’s urged that Boston make Davis the first big off the bench and relegate Wallace to spot duty.

Rajon Rondo had the flu and didn’t play with the spunk he usually plays with, a disease that trickles to the rest of the team. As he picks up in health and picks up his play, expect his teammates to follow suit.

Game One was a story of the Celtics getting key supporting cast members to step up, while the Heat were stuck watching and waiting for a Wade miracle.

Still, there are ways Miami could be more effective.

• In one fourth quarter sequence, Wade posted Tony Allen in the middle of the paint and wound up with a made mid-range jumper. Try getting Wade in the post more to force different angles for Boston’s help.
• Also, a penetration by Chalmers, with Wade simultaneously curling off a baseline screen netted the Heat a late layup.
• The onus is for Eric Spoelstra to find more creative ways to get Wade the ball.
• Run more weak side curls or combo screens involving Beasley. Try to use him as strictly a finisher rather than someone who has to read defenses and make decisions on how to attack. The flip side to this is that, off course, Beasley has to convert his layups.
• O’Neal has to pick up his play. If he can’t produce, than Miami has no chance.
• If he’s not as steady a decision maker as Carlos Arroyo, Chalmers is better able to break down Boston’s defense off the dribble. Miami should be able to compensate for his ineffective defense with Haslem and Anthony in the game.
• Should Kevin Garnett be forced to sit out because of his silliness at the end of the game, Boston will be forced to play Wallace or Sheldon Williams more minutes—matchups that work in Miami’s favor.

As such, game one was only one game of a potentially long series. Now we wait for the adjustments, counter adjustments, and counter-counter adjustments as the chess match begins.