How the Celtics Adjusted to New York's Spacing
The Knicks spacing was a problem for the Boston Celtcs in the first half of the April 8 game.
First of all, please accept my apolgies for the delay in getting today's newsletter sent out. I have some family stuff going on today and tomorrow. So, there may be a delay in the Magic coverage too.
Knicks 117, Celtics 119 OT
A big first half from Karl-Anthony Towns, where he fell one rebound shy of a double-double, helped give the New York Knicks a six-point lead heading into half-time.
Jaylen Brown is clearly banged up. The Celtics need to sit him for the final few games of the season.
No Al Horford in this one, either. As he sat the first night of the back-to-back, I would expect Kristaps B to miss the Orlando Magic game.
Defensive rebounding was a problem for the Celtics, giving up 17 offensive boards and allowing 23 second-chance points.
The Celtics were out-rebounded by the Knicks 29-15 in the first half. That can't happen if Joe Mazzulla wants his team to control the tempo of the game.
Porzingis was a flamethrower from deep.
He went 8-of-13 from the perimeter. According to the venerable Dick Lipe, Porzingis is now the "first seven-footer in NBA history with four career games with at least 8 three-pointers, as well as the first to do it twice in a season"
Porzingis is the first seven-footer in NBA history with four career games with at least 8 three-pointers, as well as the first to do it twice in a season.
— Dick Lipe (@DickLipe) April 9, 2025
This absolute DAGGER midway through the third quarter was a 'jump out of your chair' moment. I hope you cleaned up all that popcorn!
“The ball rolled to me, and I said, ‘This is destiny.’ So I just picked it up and let it fly.” – Porzingis during his postgame news conference. What a guy.
New York's biggest run of the game was +10 points, and it came during the opening three or so minutes of the game.
Boston's biggest run was +9, and it happened on two occasions. The first was late in the second quarter. And the second was the opening four or so minutes of the third.
Sloppy passing night from both teams. The Celtics had 15 turnovers, six of them classified as bad passes. The Knicks had 11 turnovers, seven of them being bad decisions.
Jayson Tatum had his way with Mikal Bridges. In the 3:24, Bridges was tasked with guarding the All-NBA forward. Tatum went 5-of-6 from the field, most of those shots coming from the mid-range, too.
I mean...How are you supposed to guard that? And Bridges is a high-level defender, too.
The Celtics are now one win away from making it two consecutive 60-win seasons. The last time that happened was during the Kevin Garnett era - 2007-2008 and 2008-2009
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I'm going to try something different today.
Here's one key thing I noticed...
☘️ The Knicks spacing was a problem for Boston.
The Celtics' defense has been consistent since the All-Star break. You have a defender at the point of attack or near the nail. You then have a wing ready to pinch in and close driving gaps near the elbows. It usually looks something like this:
However, due to the Knicks' floor spacing and the unique threat that Towns poses on the perimeter, the Celtics appeared reluctant to be heavy at the nail. That allowed the Knicks to cut to the paint at will, primarily from the corners or wing on the weak side.
Usually, the Celtics are more compact around the paint. They have bodies near the elbows. They deny cuts like the one Bridges made. And, while Mazzulla doesn't have the Celtics running too much of a shell defense Boston is certainly built on some of those principles.
So, with the Celtics stretched on the floor, the Knicks were able to take advantage.
This was the Knicks' first bucket of the game. Watch how OG Anunoby's cut is designed to clear the gap help. Towns pops to the weakside wing. Anunoby is on the strong-side wing. Bridges is in the strong side corner. The Celtics have to stick with everyone – there isn't a weak shooter on the floor. So, Brunson gets downhill with ease, attacking a dropping Porzingis with a floater.
It's hard for the Celtics to sink in on drives like Brunson's when there isn't a weak shooting link to cheat off of. It's the same issue every team has faced when trying to guard Boston for the past 18 months. It's also the very reason why the Knicks made the moves they did this summer.
Another downside of having your defense stretched thin is that it's often far easier to find gaps or force collapses. If we look at the above clip, we can see the Celtics have cross-matched Holiday onto Mitchell Robinson. The idea behind cross-matching is that when the offensive big sets a screen, Holiday is switched onto the ball-handler.
As Pritchard is at the point of attack to begin this play, the Celtics task Kornet with peel-switching with Pritchard as Mitchell rolls. Yet, as the Knicks move so well without the ball in this possession, three Celtics end up in the paint, but none of them are close enough to the offensive player to impact the shot.
Boston's peel switching has been a valuable defensive weapon over the past two seasons. Yet, when tasked with the Knicks' spacing and movement, too many gaps were available to exploit.
☘️ Things changed after halftime.
The Celtics went back to some of their shell principles. They ensured there was always someone capable of stepping in and helping fill the gap. By leaning back into their usual principals, Boston began to let the Knicks take shots they were comfortable giving up, allowing them to focus on taking away the higher-quality looks in the paint.
I think this play is the perfect example of the point I'm trying to make. First, you have the Kornet + Porzingis pinch at the elbow to kill Anunoby's drive. Then, you have White and Kornet pinch near the low block.
White also does a good job of defending the angles on Hart's drive, moving his feet to cut off where Hart is trying to get to, rather than attempting to be on his hips. This is the sort of defense we're used to seeing from Boston – they dictate the terms of engagement. They let you shoot shots they want you taking, and they take away easy looks.
Here's another example. Kornet and Brown control the space in the corner, allowing K0rnet to contain Anunoby's drive, control the angle and get the block. You also have Tatum and Pritchard as the weakside I, meaning the Celtics are controlling the space across the floor, switching cutters rather than chasing (for the most part) – which in turn limits the success the Knicks were having in the first half.
☘️ Some thoughts
I liked that the Celtics figured out how to rectify their mistakes throughout the game. They struggled to deal with New York's spacing and movement. Mazzulla's team went in at the break, took a long hard look in the reflection of the Larry O'Brien trophy, and came out with renewed belief in their defensive approach.
Having the ability to self-regulate is incredibly valuable during the postseason, especially when you're coming in with injury concerns and the weight of being the reigning champions on your shoulders.
Side note: I would like to see some Torrey Craig in the next few games though – just to keep him fresh in case Brown needs to miss some time.
Game Awards
🏆 Game-Changer: This was a tough one. On the one hand, Tatum deserves the award for his last-gasp shot and for his overall performance. However, it was Porzingis' perimeter barrage that kept the Celtics in the game at times, which is why the Unicorn wins the award today.
Under the Radar: 🥷 I thought Holiday played his role well and had some solid moments on defense.
Something worth noting ✍️: This has to be Brown. This was his worst game since his bone bruise was made public. He was tentative in the open court, lacked his usual burst, and looked limited laterally on defense. I'm starting to get worried about his overall ability during the postseason, which, considering his usual impact, is kinda scary.
Again, my apologies for the delay today. I've also chosen to skip the "Playbook" and "Up Next" sections so I can get this post out. Not my best work today, but, showing up is important to me. Hopefully, we're talking about another Celtics win tomorrow!
Go C's.