3 reasons why Boston Celtics will take down Brooklyn Nets in first round

3 reasons why Boston Celtics will take down Brooklyn Nets in first round: 3. Favorable matchups

From the opening tip, the Boston Celtics should feel confident about matching up with the Nets on both sides of the ball. In Game 1, that was evident outside of the offensive outburst from Kyrie Irving.

Defensively, the Celtics just have to focus on containing Irving and Durant. Nobody else on Brooklyn’s roster isn’t much of a threat on their own offensively, besides maybe Seth Curry, but extra attention doesn’t need to be directed toward him. While Kyrie was unbelievable on Sunday, Durant struggled from the field, scoring 23 points on 9-of-24 shots.

Boston struggled for the most part in the first half defensively, but picked it up in the second half, especially in the third quarter when they held the Nets to 24 points. Jayson Tatum was terrific on Durant, and you’d have to think that Marcus Smart will be more aggressive on Irving moving forward.

Kyrie can’t be expected to drop 39 points in each game of this series and even when he did during Game 1, the Nets still lost. You could also say that Durant shouldn’t be expected to have a poor shooting night each game, but the fact of the matter is that the Celtics have the pieces and system to make him uncomfortable, and it starts with Tatum and Smart.

The Celtics just have an efficient personnel group to annoy opponents and while Marcus Smart and Jayson Tatum stand out the most, the others such as Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Daniel Theis, Grant Williams, and Derrick White all maximize their role as well. There’s a good reason why they’re so effective at switching and defending screens. It’s a complete, versatile, swarming group of gritty defenders.

Offensively, Boston’s strong duo of Tatum and Brown should continue to cause the Nets problems. Both can hunt mismatches off screens whether it’s Irving, Curry, Andre Drummond, Goran Dragic, or Patty Mills on the floor. Brooklyn lacks depth and may need Ben Simmons, who hasn’t played all season, to give them that needed defensive boost.

All in all, the Boston Celtics should rally to win this series and claim revenge against the Nets in this first-round matchup if they showcase its top-rated defense, earn consistent, efficient production from Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, and take advantage of the matchups on the court.