Constant Ball Movement has C’s Offense Cruising in Round 1

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Constant Ball Movement has C’s Offense Cruising in Round 1



By Taylor Snow |  @taylorcsnow
Celtics.com



April 19, 2018



WALTHAM, Mass. – The Boston Celtics’ offense has torched the Milwaukee Bucks’ defense to the tune of 116.5 points per game through the first two contests of their Eastern Conference Quarterfinals matchup.

The key to the explosive effort thus far? Ball movement. And lots of it.

Boston has found that by constantly moving the rock and not getting stuck in many isolation situations, it has been able to catch Milwaukee’s defense off guard. The strategy has generated plenty of wide open buckets for the Celtics, and that’s one of the many reasons why they’re off to a 2-0 lead in the series.

“They’re going to have good defensive possessions, especially when we take quick shots,” C’s point guard Terry Rozier said of the Bucks ahead of Thursday afternoon’s practice session. “But, when we get the ball going side-to-side…”

That’s when Boston has taken advantage.

“I think that’s with any team,” added Rozier. “When you move the ball a lot they can get lazy. So, that’s been our emphasis – just moving the ball side-to-side and getting great shots.”

As the floor general, Rozier has had a great hand in this strategy. He leads all NBA players with 85.0 passes per game during the postseason, while remarkably not committing a single turnover along the way.

Rozier has also received a league-high 91.0 passes per game so far in the Playoffs, proving that his teammates have taken on the sharing mindset, as well.

As a unit, the Celtics have dished out a league-leading 351.0 passes per game, which is nearly 100 more passes per game than the Bucks (255.0) have tallied.

Celtics coach Brad Stevens said Boston’s ball movement was “much better Tuesday than it was Sunday”, which is one of the reasons why Game 2 resulted in a blowout, compared to the tightly-contested overtime battle in Game 1.

“Sometimes it’s about getting the ball side-to-side,” said Stevens. “Sometimes it’s just about making one hard cut to get yourself open, getting into the paint and then making the right read and play. Our guys were very, very aggressive the other night, but also, I thought, shared the ball really well. So, I think that we have to balance that appropriately, we need to continue to move it appropriately, and then make the right reads once we get into the paint.”

In order to continue this strategy successfully, Stevens knows that his squad will have to turn it up a notch heading into a hostile environment for Games 3 and 4 in Milwaukee.

The Bucks have shown during the first two games of the series that they can play with great intensity in spurts, so the Celtics need to put their best foot forward, expecting the best out of Milwaukee on its home court.

“I thought the way that they played out of the gate in Game 2, you could see that they were really coming at us,” said Stevens. “And that’s no doubt going to be the same in Game 3, especially in their building. So, we’re going to have to play great. We’re going to have to play our best game yet to have a chance to win.”

Rozier is confident that as long as the Celtics keep moving the ball, their offense will only get better as the series goes on.

“That’s what’s been effective for us, and the scary thing is that we can even play better,” said Rozier. “We all know that.”



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