Both games last night were a perfect example of why that is.
All it takes is one game.
Whatever happened in the regular season no longer matters.
Who the better team might be no longer matters.
What doesn’t matter is reputation.
This could not be more true when talking Hawks/Heat.
Nobody, and I mean nobody gave the Hawks a chance.
Because people get a hard on for Playoff Butler and the Heat this time of year.
They were willing to ignore the 82 game sample we had of them just not being good.
A 17-0 final tally?
So now we know.
Here’s what I don’t think anyone should do.
Do not look ahead.
Do not assume anything when it comes to this first round.
That does not mean you shouldn’t have confidence heading into this series against the Hawks.
In the playoffs, the only thing that matters is matchups.
This is no longer regular season or even Play In caliber basketball.
This is the big boy stuff, where things slow down and weaknesses get exploited.
In the three meetings this season, the Celts put up 126, 134, and 120 points.
This is where the matchup issues come into play.
If you want to beat the Celtics, you have to be able to contain their wings.
If you might’t stop the Jays, nothing else really matters.
The issue here is the Hawks don’t exactly have the wing defenders you need.
De’Andre Hunter has good size on the wing, but after that?
Everything offensively for the Celts is connected.
The Hawks allow the 8th most opponent 3PM in the league and are 28th in opponents points.
If the Jays are going to have the ball, we already know what Joe is going to do.
He’s going to target Trae Young/guard off screens and get his shooters wide open looks.
They can match the Hawks size which we saw last night be a huge reason why MIA struggled.
Trae Young is a fantastic offensive player who can kill you through shooting and playmaking.
He deserves his respect in that regard.
This is not Kyle Lowry/Gabe Vincent.
This is Marcus Smart/Derrick White/Malcolm Brogdon.
There’s no let up for him.
He goes from Smart, to White, to Brogdon.
With Dejounte Murray, we’ve seen how he kills the Celts before.
You have to limit his midrange/paint FGA.
We all remember these performances right?
In 2 games this year on the Hawks, Murray put up 16.5/3.5/4.5 on 45/16%.
We’ve seen it.
Trae, Murray, Collins, they all can’t resist.
The one area where I would say could be potentially worrisome is the offensive glass.
Conversely, the Hawks ended the year 29th in the league in opponents' points in the paint.
Why do we think that is?
Because their perimeter defense stinks.
The Hawks were #1 in the NBA in P&R frequency this season.
Maybe they were saving it for when it matters, well that time has arrived.
On the other end, run this team off screens.
The Hawks can’t defend it.
They finished 22nd in the league in halfcourt defense.
That’s always going to be the wild card with this team though.
That’s what the Heat did last night and look at how that worked out for them.
