Cavaliers at Celtics
Regular Season Numbers and Rank
Defensive Field Goal Percentage
Boston – 41.90% (1st)
Cleveland – 45.48% (11th)
Rebound Differential
Boston – +3.12 (3rd)
Cleveland – +4.15 (1st)
Point Differential
Boston – +10.25 (1st)
Cleveland – -.35 (16th)
Shooting
Boston – 47.50% (4th)
Cleveland – 43.86% (28th)
3-Point Shooting
Boston – 38.1% (5th)
Cleveland – 35.8 (15th)
Free Throw Shooting
Boston – 77.07% (8th)
Cleveland – 71.66% (28th)
Turnovers
Boston – 15.19 (27th)
Cleveland – 13.96 (10th)
Fouls
Boston – 22.73 (26th)
Cleveland – 20.87 (16th)
Pace Factor
Boston – 93.3 (19th)
Cleveland – 92.5 (22nd)
Individual Match Ups
Point Guard
Rajon Rondo & Sam Cassell v Delonte West & Daniel Gibson – Rondo’s defense is going to be key in this series because he can check every player in the Cavs back court rotation. Rajon should also have no problem shutting down West or Gibson with his superior length and athleticism. Delonte will be best served focusing on cutting off Rondo’s penetration, running his team and creating for others.
Cassell has been a mixed bag for the Celts. Yes he provides leadership in clutch moments, but he is ridiculously slow on defense and tends to freelance on offense (i.e. take bad shots) too much. Gibson shot 50% from 3-point land and was the Cavs third leading scorer (11.8 ppg) in round one. It would be huge for Cleveland if “Boobie” is able to keep that up.
Shooting Guard
Ray Allen & Eddie House v Wally Szczerbiak & Devin Brown – I was a little surprised that Wally got the starting nod against Washington. True his stroke has been off since joining the Cavs, but it’s his defense that concerns me more. Even though Allen has lost quite a few steps, Szczerbiak still doesn’t have the quickness to stay with him. In fact, other than maybe Posey I don’t see anyone on Boston that World can guard. Ray should have field day getting open and hitting shots against most of the defenders Cleveland throws at him.
Brown’s defense is going to be very important for the Cavs, especially if Sasha isn’t fully healed yet, because Devin has the ability to step up and take some pressure off LeBron on that end. The arrival of Cassell has drastically reduced House’s minutes, so much so that Eddie is actually pouting…during the playoffs.
Small Forward
Paul Pierce & James Posey v LeBron James & Sasha Pavlovic – PP versus LBJ is the main event as I see it. Both guys can do it all on offense so the difference here will be which one decides to play defense too. Both are capable defenders, but each has a tendency to lose focus on that end. In this case lack of mental discipline could lead to foul trouble, which will certainly lead to trouble for the club in question. I anticipate some trash talking here and hopefully we are treated to some back and forth crunch time one-upmanship.
Posey’s defense and post season experience are going to be key for the Celts as he is by far their best option to keep James in check. Two minuets in game 6 was Pavlovic’s first action since 4/16 (left ankle). Sasha returning to form would really boost the Cavs perimeter defense.
Power Forward
Kevin Garnett & Leon Powe v Ben Wallace & Joe Smith – KG is going to have to step up his rebounding in this series for his squad to advance. Yes he’ll still have to score, defend and lead by example like he always does, but cleaning the glass really needs to be his focus. Wallace is a shadow of what he used to be, but if he does have anything left now would be the time to show it. Even if Big Ben does perform stiff-like at the very least he’s another big body to throw at Garnett.
Powe is another player that must protect the boards for Boston. I worry about him being undersized here because Cleveland’s front court is so big. Smith’s craftiness around the basket on offense and positional defense are very nice to have coming off the pine. Joe isn’t quick enough to hang with KG anymore, but Smith does have enough strength to bang with Garnett down low.
Center
Kendrick Perkins & Glen Davis v Zydrunas Ilgauskas & Anderson Varejao – Perkins is a big and somewhat athletic body that can defend, but for some reason I think Big Z can take it to him. That would be if the Cavs ever made getting the big Lithuanian regular touches down low a part of their offense. To me Ilgauskas’ variety of post moves combined with his craftiness is enough to keep Kendrick permanently on the bench with foul trouble. Oh yeah, Perk must also rebound the heck out of the ball when he’s out there.
Varejao has somewhat surprisingly seen his minutes decrease with the arrival of Wallace and Smith. That should change here as “Sideshow Bob” is probably Cleveland’s best option on KG, especially if Big Ben is disinterested. Davis can throw his weight around with the best of them, but I don’t think he has the height or length to be effective in this series. P.J. Brown is also an option here, but he has been brutal every time I’ve seen him play since he came back.
Coach
Doc Rivers v Mike Brown – If the first round proved anything about the Celts it’s that Doc is shaky at best on the sidelines. It’s not like Brown is a Hall of Famer though either. These guys both struggle with in game and game-to-games adjustments alike. So I’ll lean ever so slightly toward Mike here because he’s a better diagrammer of plays out of huddles...but just barely.
Overall
These teams split the season series 2-2 with the home side going undefeated. The Cavs won by 5 & 1 and Boston by 10 (no LeBron) & 5. In the two games played at the Gah-den both clubs tallied less than 100 points. Whereas the two contests in Cleveland featured both squads scoring over 100. Sound familiar Celtic fans? Anyhow the biggest statistical difference was that the Cavs out rebounded Boston by 5 rpg total and 4.5 rpg on the offensive glass.
Cleveland was the third worst shooting team in the league during the regular season so I wonder if they’ll be able to score enough points against one of the best defensive clubs of all time. Since it goes without saying that James will do his thing it’s up to the Cavs shooters to make outside shots. One of West, Gibson, Brown, Szczerbiak or Pavlovic is going to have to step up nightly or Cleveland will be in trouble.
If I haven’t stressed it enough already the Celts *must* rebound as a team since the Cavs have more active big bodies up front. Given that Cleveland can’t shoot straight a big part of their offense comes off second chance opportunities. So if Boston can limit those, close out on shooters and keep Bron under 50 they should be fine.
I’m really excited for LBJ versus the Celts, and not just because it’s the most hyped player going up against the most hyped team in the NBA either. These games should actually be low scoring and pretty boring until about the last four minutes. That’s when they’ll really get interesting though. Can James handle another round of hard fouls? Can Garnett finally step up and carry his club when the chips are down? I don’t know, but I’m willing to bet it makes for some great theater.
Prediction: Lots of close games decided at crunch time. LeBron can win one or two by himself, but in the end he won’t have enough help. Boston in 6.
Defensive Field Goal Percentage
Boston – 41.90% (1st)
Cleveland – 45.48% (11th)
Rebound Differential
Boston – +3.12 (3rd)
Cleveland – +4.15 (1st)
Point Differential
Boston – +10.25 (1st)
Cleveland – -.35 (16th)
Shooting
Boston – 47.50% (4th)
Cleveland – 43.86% (28th)
3-Point Shooting
Boston – 38.1% (5th)
Cleveland – 35.8 (15th)
Free Throw Shooting
Boston – 77.07% (8th)
Cleveland – 71.66% (28th)
Turnovers
Boston – 15.19 (27th)
Cleveland – 13.96 (10th)
Fouls
Boston – 22.73 (26th)
Cleveland – 20.87 (16th)
Pace Factor
Boston – 93.3 (19th)
Cleveland – 92.5 (22nd)
Individual Match Ups
Point Guard
Rajon Rondo & Sam Cassell v Delonte West & Daniel Gibson – Rondo’s defense is going to be key in this series because he can check every player in the Cavs back court rotation. Rajon should also have no problem shutting down West or Gibson with his superior length and athleticism. Delonte will be best served focusing on cutting off Rondo’s penetration, running his team and creating for others.
Cassell has been a mixed bag for the Celts. Yes he provides leadership in clutch moments, but he is ridiculously slow on defense and tends to freelance on offense (i.e. take bad shots) too much. Gibson shot 50% from 3-point land and was the Cavs third leading scorer (11.8 ppg) in round one. It would be huge for Cleveland if “Boobie” is able to keep that up.
Shooting Guard
Ray Allen & Eddie House v Wally Szczerbiak & Devin Brown – I was a little surprised that Wally got the starting nod against Washington. True his stroke has been off since joining the Cavs, but it’s his defense that concerns me more. Even though Allen has lost quite a few steps, Szczerbiak still doesn’t have the quickness to stay with him. In fact, other than maybe Posey I don’t see anyone on Boston that World can guard. Ray should have field day getting open and hitting shots against most of the defenders Cleveland throws at him.
Brown’s defense is going to be very important for the Cavs, especially if Sasha isn’t fully healed yet, because Devin has the ability to step up and take some pressure off LeBron on that end. The arrival of Cassell has drastically reduced House’s minutes, so much so that Eddie is actually pouting…during the playoffs.
Small Forward
Paul Pierce & James Posey v LeBron James & Sasha Pavlovic – PP versus LBJ is the main event as I see it. Both guys can do it all on offense so the difference here will be which one decides to play defense too. Both are capable defenders, but each has a tendency to lose focus on that end. In this case lack of mental discipline could lead to foul trouble, which will certainly lead to trouble for the club in question. I anticipate some trash talking here and hopefully we are treated to some back and forth crunch time one-upmanship.
Posey’s defense and post season experience are going to be key for the Celts as he is by far their best option to keep James in check. Two minuets in game 6 was Pavlovic’s first action since 4/16 (left ankle). Sasha returning to form would really boost the Cavs perimeter defense.
Power Forward
Kevin Garnett & Leon Powe v Ben Wallace & Joe Smith – KG is going to have to step up his rebounding in this series for his squad to advance. Yes he’ll still have to score, defend and lead by example like he always does, but cleaning the glass really needs to be his focus. Wallace is a shadow of what he used to be, but if he does have anything left now would be the time to show it. Even if Big Ben does perform stiff-like at the very least he’s another big body to throw at Garnett.
Powe is another player that must protect the boards for Boston. I worry about him being undersized here because Cleveland’s front court is so big. Smith’s craftiness around the basket on offense and positional defense are very nice to have coming off the pine. Joe isn’t quick enough to hang with KG anymore, but Smith does have enough strength to bang with Garnett down low.
Center
Kendrick Perkins & Glen Davis v Zydrunas Ilgauskas & Anderson Varejao – Perkins is a big and somewhat athletic body that can defend, but for some reason I think Big Z can take it to him. That would be if the Cavs ever made getting the big Lithuanian regular touches down low a part of their offense. To me Ilgauskas’ variety of post moves combined with his craftiness is enough to keep Kendrick permanently on the bench with foul trouble. Oh yeah, Perk must also rebound the heck out of the ball when he’s out there.
Varejao has somewhat surprisingly seen his minutes decrease with the arrival of Wallace and Smith. That should change here as “Sideshow Bob” is probably Cleveland’s best option on KG, especially if Big Ben is disinterested. Davis can throw his weight around with the best of them, but I don’t think he has the height or length to be effective in this series. P.J. Brown is also an option here, but he has been brutal every time I’ve seen him play since he came back.
Coach
Doc Rivers v Mike Brown – If the first round proved anything about the Celts it’s that Doc is shaky at best on the sidelines. It’s not like Brown is a Hall of Famer though either. These guys both struggle with in game and game-to-games adjustments alike. So I’ll lean ever so slightly toward Mike here because he’s a better diagrammer of plays out of huddles...but just barely.
Overall
These teams split the season series 2-2 with the home side going undefeated. The Cavs won by 5 & 1 and Boston by 10 (no LeBron) & 5. In the two games played at the Gah-den both clubs tallied less than 100 points. Whereas the two contests in Cleveland featured both squads scoring over 100. Sound familiar Celtic fans? Anyhow the biggest statistical difference was that the Cavs out rebounded Boston by 5 rpg total and 4.5 rpg on the offensive glass.
Cleveland was the third worst shooting team in the league during the regular season so I wonder if they’ll be able to score enough points against one of the best defensive clubs of all time. Since it goes without saying that James will do his thing it’s up to the Cavs shooters to make outside shots. One of West, Gibson, Brown, Szczerbiak or Pavlovic is going to have to step up nightly or Cleveland will be in trouble.
If I haven’t stressed it enough already the Celts *must* rebound as a team since the Cavs have more active big bodies up front. Given that Cleveland can’t shoot straight a big part of their offense comes off second chance opportunities. So if Boston can limit those, close out on shooters and keep Bron under 50 they should be fine.
I’m really excited for LBJ versus the Celts, and not just because it’s the most hyped player going up against the most hyped team in the NBA either. These games should actually be low scoring and pretty boring until about the last four minutes. That’s when they’ll really get interesting though. Can James handle another round of hard fouls? Can Garnett finally step up and carry his club when the chips are down? I don’t know, but I’m willing to bet it makes for some great theater.
Prediction: Lots of close games decided at crunch time. LeBron can win one or two by himself, but in the end he won’t have enough help. Boston in 6.
posted by D$ at 8:41 PM
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