The second-ranked Boston Celtics and the seventh-ranked Atlanta Hawks of the Eastern Conference meet in the first round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs. Boston won the teams last playoff meeting in the first round in 2016.
More NBA Round 1 playoff previews from Yahoo Sports:
(3) Philadelphia 76ers vs. (6) Brooklyn Nets
(4) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (5) New York Knicks
(2) Memphis Grizzlies vs. (7) Los Angeles Lakers
(3) Sacramento Kings vs. (6) Golden State Warriors
(4) Phoenix Suns vs. (5) Los Angeles Clippers
How they got here
Boston Celtics (57-25)
Just before training camp began, Celtics head coach Ime suspended Udoka over an improper relationship within the organization and replaced him with 34-year-old assistant Joe Mazzulla. Udoka’s dogged approach sparked a remarkable turnaround last season, his first at the helm. He commanded the respect of his players, especially the stars, and they delivered Boston’s first Finals bid since 2010.
The shocking news threatened to keep their vendetta for the championship from coming to the fore, but the Celtics rallied around Mazzulla, starting 21-5 and reminding the East it runs through Boston. Jayson Tatum was the early league MVP pick, and Jaylen Brown wasn’t far behind. All around them was a bevy of 3-pointers including Malcolm Brogdon, Grant Williams, Al Horford, Sam Hauser and Derrick White, all shooting well over 40% from 3-point range, and the offense was moving at a historic pace.
The goal masked the slip on defense, but Boston expected all-defensive center Robert Williams III to return from injury before Christmas and a juggernaut loomed. Then, amid a six-game road trip, came a Finals rematch with the Golden State Warriors, and a double-digit loss roused the demons that had cost the Celtics a title. Tatum withered. Brown couldn’t hold his grip. Nobody could hit the broad side of a barn.
Boston lost five of its next six games, corrected course in a statement win over the Milwaukee Bucks at Christmas, and spent the rest of the season going back and forth between answering and asking questions. Does Mazzulla convey enough urgency in and between games? Can Tatum maintain its brilliance? How invested is Brown? Does Marcus Smart’s style take a physical toll? Can Rob Williams stay sane for any distance?
The story goes on
The bottom line was 57 wins, more than any other Celtics team since 2009, the NBA’s second-best scoring at both ends of the floor, the league’s highest winning margin (6.7 points per 100 possessions), and a 5-2 record against the two serious threats to their Eastern Conference throne, the Bucks and the Philadelphia 76ers.
Atlanta Hawks (41-41)
The Hawks are, as always, perfectly average. They spent 37 straight games within a .500 game this season, deciding at 41-41 and posting a .1 net rating. They have top 10 offense and bottom 10 defense.
Two years before reaching the Conference Finals, Atlanta responded to last season’s first-round elimination by trading the rights to four first-round draft picks for the defensive-minded 2022 All-Star point guard Dejounte Murray with a notoriously big deal Use to pair 2022 All-NBA point guard Trae Young in backcourt.
Whether you agreed to the deal or not, don’t worry: the Hawks went about their usual dysfunction. By December, tensions between Young and his head coach, which included an unexcused absence, led Nate McMillan to consider leaving his post, The Athletic reported. General manager Travis Schlenk resigned, leaving the job to Landry Fields amid reports that the team owner’s 27-year-old son was pulling the strings.
Meanwhile, the Hawks continued to probe the trade market for John Collins and Bogdan Bogdanović, to no avail. Dealing with Kevin Huerter over the summer hasn’t done her shooting efficiency any favors and failed to uncork a bottleneck of frontcourt players who have either just been paid or will be paid soon. De’Andre Hunter could oust Collins in the fours. Onyeka Okongwu is the center behind Clint Capela. Saddiq Bey’s takeover seemed to spell the end for Bogdanović in Atlanta, only the Hawks gave him a four-year extension.
They eventually fired McMillan over the All-Star break in favor of former Utah Jazz head coach Quin Snyder, and he was quickly unable to make sense of the roster — until Tuesday’s play-in game. Amid reports that Atlanta’s front office had given the “green light” to trade Young in the summer, the team wreaked havoc in the Heat and broke a seven-game losing streak in Miami. Young and Murray totaled 43 points and 13 assists. Capela and Okongwu combined for 25 rebounds and 6 blocks. Five other Hawks achieved double-digit results.
It was enough to make you wonder if Snyder could mold all that talent into a unit in time to make noise again in the playoffs. Then remember how they snuffed out every other bright spot throughout the season.
Reigning Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart and returning All-NBA guard Trae Young engaged in a heated exchange of blows at the end of the second meeting between their Boston Celtics and the Atlanta Hawks this season. (Brett Davis/USA Today Sports)
head to head
Boston won its regular season series with Atlanta 3-0.
The under-manned Celtics defeated the Hawks in their first two meetings and then gave them another loss in the regular-season finals when most key players rested. Boston shot a total of 41 of 88 from long range (46.6%) in wins on November 16 and March 11, both without Robert Williams. Neither Smart nor Brogdon played in the first meeting, and yet a 25-point win revealed the difference between the two teams: the Celtics are built around two massive wings, and the Hawks are built behind two wiry guards. A basic tenet of basketball is that it’s much easier to get stops with the size on your side.
close lineups
Boston Celtics
Boston’s most-used starting lineup — Smart, White, Brown, Tatum and Horford — has also completed many games, outperforming opponents by 12.2 points per 100 possessions in the season. Sixth Man of the Year nominee Brogdon is a luxury who can spell Smart or White if either is struggling. White has displayed Boston’s best guards all season, and he should get the one spot alongside Tatum and Brown if the Celtics return to the monstrous lineup that made them a defensive threat last season. Swap Robert Williams for Smart alongside Horford and this five-man team is an amazing +64 in 69 minutes.
Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta also has options. The Hawks wrapped up Tuesday’s play-in win with Young, Murray, Bey, Collins and Capela — a lineup previously beaten by 24 points in 134 minutes in the regular season. Then again, their four most-used lineups in the fourth quarter were all dramatically overplayed in the fourth quarter, leaving Snyder still looking for his best closing group. Young and Murray are the only bans. Bogdanović, Hunter and/or Okongwu could replace Bey, Collins and/or Capela depending on sentiment.
duel to watch
The Hawks bought Murray to ease Young’s offensive load, and yet the two-time, 6ft 1, 164lb All-Star finished in the top 10 in terms of utilization rate with the worst effective field goal percentage this season (48.5%). by anyone attempting at least 19 shots per game. He’s the head of their snake, for better or worse, and no team has more defensive weapons to fend him off than Boston. There’s Smart and White and Brogdon and Brown and Tatum, all of whom can also target Young on offense with the ball in hand.
Young averaged an admirable 31-4-11 on 44/33/92 splits in his two games against the Celtics this season, a significant improvement from last year’s 25-4-8 on 38/24/96 splits. He’s done quite well in minutes against his two most likely defenders, totaling 26 points on 17 shots and 11 assists against a single turnover in less than a quarter of the time against White and Smart, according to NBA tracking data. That didn’t give the Hawks a puncher chance in either encounter, but it’s their only hope.
The bigger problem is what to do with Young on defense. There’s nowhere to hide. He spent most of his time against Boston that season defending White, which earned him 14 points in 6-of-9 shooting in the matchup. The Celtics have averaged 126.7 points per 100 possessions with Young on the court this season – too many for the strongest offenses to overcome – and it’s not getting any easier for him in a playoff series.
The Celtics will develop a game plan to hunt down Young’s defense and keep improving his offense. How much he trusts his teammates and how well his playmaking can support them will determine whether or not this series will ever be interesting – and maybe even if this is the last we see him in Atlanta.
Boston Celtics (-1000)
Atlanta Hawks (+650)
Series schedule (all times Eastern)
Game 1: Atlanta in Boston on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ESPN)
Game 2: Atlanta at Boston on Tuesday (7 p.m., NBA TV)
Game 3: Boston in Atlanta on Friday, April 21 (7 p.m. ESPN)
Game 4: Boston in Atlanta on Sunday, April 23 (7 p.m. TNT)
*Game 5: Atlanta in Boston on Tuesday, April 25 (TBD)
*Game 6: Boston in Atlanta on Thursday, April 27 (TBD)
*Game 7: Atlanta in Boston on Saturday April 29 (TBD)
*if necessary
forecast
Celtics in five.