CLEVELAND -- As any NBA coach in the postseason will tell you, the playoffs are in large part about having the ability to make adjustments.
But the one Boston has to make right now -- replacing Isaiah Thomas in the starting lineup -- is one that they'd rather not have to make.
The Celtics don’t have a choice after the re-aggravated hip injury of Thomas kept him out of the second half of Boston’s Game 2 loss and ended his season.
Brad Stevens said on Sunday that Thomas will take the next few days to talk with hip specialists before determining the best course of action.
Without Thomas, the Celtics will turn over the keys to Marcus Smart.
The third-year veteran made 24 regular season starts in 2016-17, averaging 11.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.
“Marcus Smart has done a great job of filling his void (Thomas’) when he’s absent,” said Jae Crowder. “We have to make up for it by playing good team ball and playing the right way and getting whatever shot we want on the offensive end we want. And defensively, the matchups are a little better for us to slow them down a little bit. But at the same time, it’s a team effort at both ends of the court.”
Said Smart: “Everybody has to step up once again. This is an opportunity for everybody to make a bigger impact on the game. It’s devastating not to have Isaiah. Not just because of his scoring ability, but just because he’s a big part of our team. He’s one of our brothers and he’s down. We understand it. We respect everything that he’s done. But now is the time for everybody else to step up.”
Of course that’s a lot easier said than done, especially against a Cavaliers team that’s motivated to not just beat them, but do it in spectacularly dominant fashion with the first two games won by an average of 29.0 points each.
“It’s gonna take a whole team effort to get back into this thing,” Smart said. “As coach (Brad Stevens) likes to say, hit singles not home runs.”
The Celtics’ season has not been any bleaker than it is right now. The mantra now among the players is to simply do what you do, but better.
“We don’t need any one player to become Isaiah from a scoring standpoint, overnight,” said Stevens. “We all just need to play better in our role and make up for his points otherwise.”
It also affords some of the bench players like Terry Rozier who grew up on Youngstown, Ohio, an opportunity to see more time and do so in front of family and friends.
“That’ll be cool,” Rozier told CSNNE.com recently. “But my main focus is to help this team win, score, rebound, cheer from the bench, I’m all about doing whatever it takes for us to have a chance to beat a really good Cavaliers team.”
And while the chances of Boston winning a game let alone this series remains slim, they are motivated in part by the beatdowns in Boston to at least go down swinging.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to go there and prove that we’re going to play hard no matter what,” said Boston’s Avery Bradley. “And give ourselves a chance to win.”
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