The Heat’s zone was firmly in place when Jayson Tatum laid down a semblance of a screen to free Al Horford from the baseline. The Celtics winger then presented himself at the heart of the racket before sanctioning with a “jumper”, in front of Bam Adebayo, from the free throw line.
Jayson Tatum scored his first basket in the game in the fourth quarter since the start of the series.
” Frankly, we had trouble playing against the area in the first matches. It kind of made us sleepy. When I came back in game, (Joe Mazzulla) designed a system that allowed us to generate movement, find free spaces and make the right choice “Reports the hero of the evening.
In the minutes that followed, the latter sanctioned this defense in another way, which still often poses problems in the Great League. Twice, he thus found Marcus Smart thanks to a fixing work: first line of bottom, by attracting several Floridians on him, then behind the line with 3-points.
A 3-point address at half mast
Jaylen Brown has also noticed that this defense has had an impact on the Celtics’ offense so far.
” They try to limit matchups, make sure their best defenders are as high as possible, and protect their weaker defenders. It took us a while to figure it out “, thus notes the second offensive weapon of the team, adding:” We’re not always going to score in a classic way because they don’t defend us in a classic way. »
The Heat are indeed a special team, whose defense is constantly changing. And its 2-3 zone is also special since it starts in 1-1-3 in order to be able to “switch” easily on the initial screen.
A strategy that prevents the attack by the center against weaker defenders, while allowing to “hide” weak defenders, as noted by Jaylen Brown, and in particular Duncan Robinson. Behind the first line of defense, the shooter’s main goal is to help and cut the passing lines.
To score against this defense requires rethinking one’s system of play, so as to exploit the spaces that the zone cannot cover, and in particular the heart of the racket.
By multiplying in particular the fixings – passes. Already opposed to the zone against the Sixers, Joe Mazzulla had explained that the best way to beat her was to “shoot and put the shots”.
The problem is that the Celtics, although very good students in the league over the year, only shoot 32.5% success from afar on the series, against nearly 41% in the first round against the Hawks, and 39% against the Sixers. Blame it on shots that are often rushed, and out of rhythm, in an attempt to take advantage of slightly misleading openings.
Before Game 3, Jayson Tatum was already dropping : “ It’s just a matter of making the right choice. They have a very good defense. I attract a lot of attention. We get good shots. Some did not return or did not send at the same rate as usual. So it’s not necessarily for me to shoot more. It’s about making the right choices. Sometimes for me, sometimes for others. »
An instruction finally applied last night.
