Defense is one of the biggest keys to success in the NBA, and for the Celtics, playing good defense may be atop the list of priorities.
Defense is the reason the Celtics are going back to the Eastern Conference finals.
The C’s turned in a vintage defensive effort against the Philadelphia 76ers on the way to a 85-75 win in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals at TD Garden.
From the beginning, the Celtics looked to have been recommitted to playing the defense that has become one of their hallmarks in the last half-decade. It’s not that their defensive efforts were lacking in the first six games of the series, but they took it to another level in Game 7.
“Defensively, it was a beautiful game for us,” head coach Doc Rivers said. “We took away the paint a lot tonight, more than we had in the game before. We got out to the 3-point line tonight. You know, they made some, but overall it was pretty good.”
Specifically, Kevin Garnett was once again a monster on the defensive end. His constant presence in and around the paint clogged things up as the Sixers tried to get into the lane, and they were often left settling for jump shots. Garnett was also incredibly active with his help defense.
Garnett, and the rest of the Celtics frontcourt, had their jobs made easier by the Celtics backcourt, too. Much of the C’s troubles in Game 6 stemmed from the Philadelphia guards getting into the paint and wreaking havoc. That did not happen Saturday night.
Even without Avery Bradley, the Celtics did a much better job of ensuring the quick Sixers frontcourt could not just do as they please.
“I think they played the screen and rolls a little different,” Sixers guard Jrue Holiday said. “They started trapping and we didn’t really get to play one-on-one with the bigs like we did in the first game. They did a really good job of containing the point guard and after that, really contesting jump shots.”
Those contested jump shots turned into misses, which turned into Celtics defensive rebounds, which turned into fast-break opportunities. Even for a team as old as the C’s, they still look to get out and run, and that’s obviously much easier when they’re able to get the ball off the rim and go. The Sixers wanted to get out and run themselves, but with the Celtics pushing the ball, it made it much more difficult for Philly to run.
“In the first half, we were down 13-2 in fast-break points,” Sixers coach Doug Collins said. “When we don’t get fast breaks, it’s tough to manufacture our offense.”
It’s all part of the continued commitment to defense, something that has never changed under this Celtics regime.
“Defensively we did a great job,” Rajon Rondo said. “Defensively, our rotations were there, Mickael Pietrus has been big for us. Brandon Bass, switching out on guards and getting stops — things that don't go on the stat sheet, but our team is doing a good job of getting stops.”
“It was just team,” Rivers said. “Really, we won on defense. Rajon Rondo made some big shots and Ray [Allen] made some 3’s, but we got stops. We got key stops.”
Things aren’t going to get any easier in the conference finals. A rested Miami Heat team awaits the Celtics, who will be without their best on-ball defender in Bradley. If the C’s are going to have any shot of getting back to the NBA Finals, the key to success begins with the defense.
It always does.
