Major key for Boston – Improve shooting efficiency
While the Boston Celtics managed to get multiple positive offensive contributions from across their depleted roster on Sunday, outside of Al Horford and Shane Larkin, they all came in the form of players who shot less than 50 percent from the field.
Jaylen Brown (9-of-19) and Jayson Tatum (8-of-18) weren’t far below that mark, but both players had their periods of sustained struggle, with Khris Middleton playing a key role in limiting both young players.
Although Terry Rozier came up with a host of body blows late in the game, he also struggled to finish for large portions of the game, finishing with a line of 7-of-17 from the field.
All combined, the Celtics managed to shoot just 41.5 percent from the field, in spite of a stellar 42.3 percent three-point shooting mark from deep.
If the Celtics can continue to shoot so efficiently from distance, perhaps they could also continue to overcome any deficiencies from inside the arc. Heading into Game 2, there’s no doubt that Brad Stevens will instead be stressing the need for his team to be less wasteful with their shots, though.