Boston Celtics: 5 Keys to Winning the Eastern Conference Finals

Take care of business

The Celtics entered the season as heavy-beating favorites to win their 18th championship in franchise history. And throughout the regular season, they’ve done nothing but prove they have the team to do it. In the first two series, Boston won each one with a 4-1 gentleman’s sweep. Nonetheless, the media found every excuse to critique the C’s for losing two games at home on the road to the Eastern Conference Finals.

But now, four wins away from the NBA Finals, the Celtics seemed to be fully locked in winning their last three games against Cleveland. And with nearly a week of rest, the C’s have no excuse not to play some of their best basketball. If the Celtics can take care of business, they’ll have no reason to rush Kristaps Porzingis back from injury.

Control the pace of the game

The Pacers finished the regular season with one of the best offenses in the league. Indiana finished second in the NBA with an offensive rating of 120.5, trailing none other than the Celtics. Indiana found their success mainly due to how quickly their offense gets into their sets and how fast they play. Watching the Pacers, you learn fast that Rick Carlisle’s team wants to push the pace and play with tempo to create shots. And with how young the squad is, it makes perfect sense.

However, throughout the season and in games against Boston, Indiana seemed to struggle when teams didn’t allow them to play at the speed they wanted to. If the Celtics can slow down the pace of the game, find a way to get their defense set, and make each shot challenging for the Pacers, it could be a nightmare matchup for Indy. The tricky part is being able to control the pace and break the Pacers out of their desire to play at such a high tempo, especially when that’s their game plan to win games by tiring opposing defenses out.

Win the rebounding battle

The Pacers finished the regular season third-to-last in rebounds per game at 41.5. Conversely, Boston ended the regular season second with 46.3 rebounds per game. As the postseason has played out, Indiana has lost the rebounding battle during its losses during its series against the Bucks and the Knicks.

For example, in Game 5 against New York, the Knicks outrebounded Indiana 53-29 en route to their dominant win. If Boston can set the tone early and be more physical on the boards, the Celtics will put themselves in a prime position to put a lot of pressure on the Pacers.

Take advantage of the Pacers defense

Indiana has primarily found success this season due to their explosive offense. However, the Pacers have been inconsistent on defense and often look like they have no intent to defend at all. Of course, that was through the regular season, but so far in the postseason, those defensive tendencies have seemed to carry over. Not only were the Celtics a top-ranked defensive team, but the C's finished the regular season as the top-ranked offensive team with an offensive rating of 122.2.

If the Celtics can exploit the Pacers' defense, not only will they be able to create a rhythm for their players on offense, but it will also put Indiana in a position to have a tiny margin for error.

Limit turnovers and improve transition defense

The Celtics have had very few weaknesses during their 64-win season, but if there’s one issue Boston’s struggled with, it’s been turnovers and transition defense. At times, the C’s can be careless with the ball, and in turn, their transition defense has allowed teams to stay in games. With the Pacers thriving in transition and wanting to play at a fast pace, Boston will be doing themselves a favor if they limit their turnovers.

If the Celtics can limit turnovers and take transition points out of the equation for Indiana, they’ll only increase their chance of winning the series.

Take care of business

The Celtics entered the season as heavy-beating favorites to win their 18th championship in franchise history. And throughout the regular season, they’ve done nothing but prove they have the team to do it. In the first two series, Boston won each one with a 4-1 gentleman’s sweep. Nonetheless, the media found every excuse to critique the C’s for losing two games at home on the road to the Eastern Conference Finals.

But now, four wins away from the NBA Finals, the Celtics seemed to be fully locked in winning their last three games against Cleveland. And with nearly a week of rest, the C’s have no excuse not to play some of their best basketball. If the Celtics can take care of business, they’ll have no reason to rush Kristaps Porzingis back from injury.