Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from Game 6 vs. Cavaliers

3. Celtics’ defense struggles

In the Cleveland Cavaliers’ three home wins this series, they’ve averaged 112 points, while in their three road losses, they’ve scored just 86 per game. Twice the Celtics have held Cleveland to 83 points, which the Cavs had by the third quarter on Friday night.

Yes, LeBron was was a force of nature, particularly from deep, where he went 5-of-7. The Celtics will live with James 3-pointers all night long. What they can’t live with is everything else. Of LeBron’s other 12 made field goals, nine came from 10 feet or less. Two of his close misses also led to Larry Nance Jr. put-back dunks.

It’s the simple truth that has existed for James’ opponents throughout his career: When he gets into the paint, bad things happen.

The Celtics don’t appear likely to defer from their strategy of single-covering James, which should be fine as long as everyone else stays contained. That wasn’t the case on Friday night, as George Hill had 20 points on only 12 shots and Jeff Green — who replaced an injured Kevin Love five minutes into the game — scored 14 points on 10 attempts. Throw in Nance’s 5-for-5 night and Cleveland got just enough from its supporting cast to make the difference.