Does Indiana Stand a Chance Versus Rested Boston?
NBA Eastern Conference Finals Preview: Truckloads of Points
The Boston Celtics have had it pretty easy throughout the NBA Playoffs. They began the postseason with a Miami Heat team without Jimmy Butler. Then they finished the Cavaliers in the second round without Jarrett Allen for the entire series. The Cavaliers also eventually lost Donovan Mitchell for the final two games.
Now, Boston takes on the Indiana Pacers, who are healthy minus Bennedict Mathurin. However, the Pacers are the No. 6 seed, so realistically, the Celtics could get into the finals with no obstacles.
That said, the Pacers will still be Boston’s toughest challenge yet despite coming into the playoffs as the sixth seed in the NBA Eastern Conference standings. That’s solely because the Pacers can stay offensively with the Celtics and have the depth to compete.
Game 1 of the series will begin on Tuesday. However, with Boston at home, the Celtics are currently -10, with a total of 222. On the other hand, the series price favors the Celtics at -900 odds, while the Pacers are just +600 to win this series.
Most people believe the Celtics will be the NBA Finals winners.
You can expect some high totals for this series, given that both teams were the top offensive teams in the NBA this year.
Below, we’ll provide our NBA Eastern Conference Finals preview between the Celtics and Pacers.
Pacers vs Celtics
Records: Indiana Pacers (55-41), Boston Celtics (72-20)
Location: TD Garden, Boston, MA (Game 1)
Day/Time: Tuesday, May 20, 8:00 PM ET
Streaming: ESPN
NBA Eastern Conference Finals Preview
The Boston Celtics beat the Indiana Pacers in three of five games during the regular season. In all five games, one team scored at least 118 points. A team also had 122+ points in four of the five games and at least one scored 129+ in three of the five games.
You’d expect a good defensive performance from both teams in the playoffs. However, the Pacers rank No. 1 in points per 100 possessions. They’ve also shot the highest effective field goal percentage in the NBA while turning the ball over the least.
Meanwhile, the Celtics are second in points per 100 possessions and effective field goal percentage. Don’t be surprised when there’s plenty of offense in this series per our NBA Eastern Conference Finals preview.
Indiana’s Record-Setting Game 7
The Pacers had only won one game on the road in the postseason and struggled tremendously on the road. However, against the Knicks, the Pacers put together one of the best offensive performances in Game 7 history.
The Pacers shot 67.1% from the field, which was ultimately the highest field goal percentage in a playoff game in NBA history. While the Pacers shot lights out, the Knicks were horrible defensively. New York looked fatigued physically and mentally, making bad mistakes throughout the game.
Between the Pacers making shots and the Knicks playing poor defense, the Pacers were able to dominate Game 7 to get into the Eastern Conference Finals.
Is Kristaps Porzingis Ready For ECF?
The answer is no.
Kristaps Porzingis has already been ruled out from Games 1 and 2 at Boston with a right soleus injury. Porzingis was injured against the Heat in the playoffs’ first round and hasn’t returned since.
The good news is that he’s getting closer. This will help some decide to bet the Boston Celtics NBAÂ Championship odds heading into the final four.
Boston Will Likely Return To The NBA Championship!
While the Pacers are electric offensively, the Celtics have looked terrific defensively for most of the year.
Indiana has scored 125.9 points per 100 possessions, which is first in the NBA. The Pacers are also leading in effective field goal percentage and turnover percentage.
However, the Celtics have allowed just 108.7 points per 100 possessions defensively. At the same time, the Celtics aren’t as good at forcing turnovers. Boston leads the NBA in defensive rebounding and free throw rate.
The Celtics have only allowed 18.2% of offensive rebounds per game this season. They’ve also given up a free throw rate of 11, which is the best defensive rate in the NBA.
In addition, Boston has limited teams to a 52.8% effective field goal percentage, which is the seventh-best in the NBA.
Therefore, the Celtics won’t force turnovers, but they’ll limit the Pacers on the glass and force tough shots from the field. A bad shooting night for the Pacers would ruin them.
On the other hand, the Celtics aren’t far from the Pacers offensively. Boston has scored 120.4 points per 100 possessions and has shot an effective field goal percentage of 57.2%. These rates aren’t as good as Indiana’s. However, the Celtics are facing a Pacers defense that has only performed at an average rate.
The Pacers rank no better than 12% in all key statistics. They have allowed 119.4 points per 100 possessions and an effective field goal percentage of nearly 54%. Indiana also doesn’t add a ton of turnovers and has allowed more than 30% of offensive rebounds with a 20.7 free throw rate.
That’s why, even without Porzingis, the Celtics have the advantage defensively. The defense for the Celtics will win them this series and push them into the NBA Finals.
