Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from Game 1 vs. Pacers

By Joe Hagen | Apr 15, 2019

BOSTON, MA - APRIL 14: Terry Rozier #12 of the Boston Celtics reacts after making a shot as time expires in ethics's third quarter during Game One of the first round of the 2019 NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs against the Indiana Pacers at TD Garden on April 14, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

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(Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images) /

3. Watch the turnovers

Game 1 between Boston and Indiana was truly a game of two halves. In the first, the Celtics played awful. The offense felt disoriented, perhaps due to first game jitters with some overpassing and serious hesitation with the ball.

This overpassing and unsure offensive attack led to way too many first half turnovers. Through the first 24 minutes of the game, Boston gave the ball up nine times compared to Indy’s five turnovers. Both teams came into this game knowing their opponent had stifling defenses, but Boston has to watch for lazy offensive play and limit easy transition buckets for the Pacers.

The Celtics have 10 turnovers, which have led to 7 Pacers points. Not-so-coincidentally, Indiana leads by 7.
— Tom Westerholm (@Tom_NBA) April 14, 2019

While they cleaned up their act slightly in the second half, the Celts still finished with 17 total turnovers, significantly higher than their season average of 12.8 turnovers per game. Lucky for Boston, Indiana got sloppy with the ball in the second half too, also turning it over eight times.

This is going to be a grueling series for Boston, even if it can manage to win in a relatively short span of games. The Indiana Pacers play a tough, physical brand of basketball and if the Celtics continue to reward them with easy transition baskets and free possessions, they’re going to be battling for more games than they’d like.

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