Olynyk’s outside shooting is critical, as is his ability to make plays off the dribble and impact the boards as much as he possibly can.
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During the regular season, the Hawks were fourth in the National Basketball Association with 5.9 blocks per game. Thomas’ second 3-pointer of the quarter trimmed the deficit to six, 62-56.
But the difference between the regular season and the crucible of the playoffs is that teams get the opportunity to focus on the same team for two weeks.
The only positive news was that backup point guard Marcus Smart, who suffered bruised ribs in Game 2, will likely be able to practice on Thursday.
With the offensive flowing early and the defence working in concert (the Hawks recorded a playoff franchise-record 15 blocks), they had no trouble turning back the short-handed Celtics, who played without Avery Bradley (hamstring) and Kelly Olynyk (shoulder).
The results were predictable.
Bradley suffered the injury in Boston’s Game 1 loss and was in a considerable amount of pain after the game.
Boston at least made a few in Game 1, going 11-for-35.
The third quarter consisted of the Hawks nursing their lead as Boston slowly increased theirs.
Korver, who went 1-for-10 in the series opener, scored 12 first-quarter points and finished 6-9 from the floor. Not having him out there forced Stevens to play Tyler Zeller 14 minutes in Game 2, a disastrous experiment. They built a 19-point lead in the first half of Game 1, before fending off a Celtics rally in a one-point win.
If Game 5 is necessary in the Cleveland-Detroit and Atlanta-Boston series but not necessary in the San Antonio-Memphis series, Pacers-Raptors begins at 7 p.m. on NBA TV. It should have been worse.
But the best shot blocker in the building Tuesday night was former Hawks finger-waving Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo, who waived that finger for the TNT cameras several times to the roaring approval of the crowd.
Isaiah Thomas looks to make a shot to increase the Celtics’ lead.
The 68 points were Memphis’ lowest offensive output of the season, supplanting the 74 points the Grizzlies scored Sunday in a 106-74 defeat in Game 1 of the series. Stevens was willing to try anything in Game 2, including throwing rookies R.J. Hunter and Terry Rozier onto the court for extended periods in both halves.
“I think he will make some kind of change, knowing Brad and watching tons of film”, Thomas said.
It’s hard to argue with that assessment. “We have a lot of good players in this room that have done a lot of good things throughout the year, and we’re going to need everybody that’s available to be playing at their best this weekend to give ourselves a chance in this”. It’s the 10th 2-0 lead overall in Hawks playoff history; they’ve never lost a series in which they’ve taken the first two games.
But even if he does, will that be enough to rectify Boston’s issues? They believe the Celtics’ deficiencies at the top end of their roster – and coaching staff – are getting exposed against a better, more experienced team. But with almost every key player struggling with injury or simply faltering in Jared Sullinger’s case, flawless execution may be the only medicine still in the cabinet.
That is the beauty of a seven-game playoff series. There’s just no real coming back from that, is there?
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“So far, we just did our job by winning our two games at home”, Spurs guard Tony Parker said.
