{"numbering":"no_numbering","slides":[{"title":"INTRO","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/VanVleet_F_Brown_J_USATSI_14713943.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379448,"caption":"

In a league where top-end talent is considered vital to postseason success, we’ve found it a fun exercise to power rank the most impactful players in a series. While acknowledging that rankings are largely subjective, it’s still interesting to plot a perceived spread of talent.

Sometimes having the so-called “best" player isn’t enough to swing a series (right, Joel Embiid and the Sixers?). And sometimes it accentuates the benefits of depth (the Celtics almost certainly had the four or five best players after Embiid during that sweep of Philadelphia). As we wait for the first-ever Celtics-Raptors playoff battle, here’s one man’s guess at the Top 10 most impactful players in the series. One note here: These rankings are based heavily on how these players are performing at the moment, and also takes into consideration injury concerns.

For instance, Gordon Hayward does not appear on this list because he’s unlikely to appear in the series, while Kyle Lowry might be a little lower than usual because of the uncertainty with his left ankle sprain.

"},{"title":"10. OG Anunoby","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Anunoby_OG_USATSI_14216898.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379502,"caption":"

Anunoby’s stat line doesn’t leap off the page but the 6-foot-7 wing will be a huge part of how the Raptors defend Boston’s scorers.

In Round 1, Anunoby spent the majority of his matchup time defending Caris LeVert (limiting him to 11 points on 5-of-13 shooting over nearly 14 minutes of matchup time). Without Gordon Hayward, the Raptors could think about deploying Anunoby on a smaller player like Kemba Walker to make his life difficult. In four regular-season matchups, Anunoby held Walker to 4 points on 1-of-5 shooting over a limited amount (2:35, 11.9 possessions) of matchup time.

"},{"title":"9. Marcus Smart","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Smart_M_USATSI_14148215.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379504,"caption":"

In typical Marcus Smart fashion, his shot has defied him (33.3 percent shooting overall, 13.3 percent beyond the 3-point arc). And yet Smart still has a knack for key plays and his defensive efforts are vital to Boston’s success.

Smart is key to matching Toronto’s physicality and toughness on the perimeter. And the Celtics will likely deploy him on a number of different defensive assignments throughout the series.

"},{"title":"8. Norman Powell","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Powell_N_USATSI_14142592.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports phooto","published":1598379507,"caption":"

Powell deserves a lot of credit for Toronto’s second-unit success as well. He averaged 17.5 points while shooting 60.5 percent from the floor and 45.5 percent beyond the 3-point arc.

The Raptors are a playoff-best plus-62 in Powell’s 96 minutes of court time (Ibaka is right behind him at plus-61). If Kyle Lowry is healthy enough to play, keeping Powell and Serge Ibaka as a 1-2 punch off the bench is an extreme luxury for the Raptors, especially against a Boston team thin on experienced depth.

"},{"title":"7. Serge Ibaka","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Ibaka_S_USATSI_14701268.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379510,"caption":"

Forget the 19.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game; Ibaka’s presence on the back line will put an incredible amount of stress on Boston’s shooters to make shots. An Ibaka/Marc Gasol combo will make it tough for Boston to consistently finish at the rim.

Toronto’s defensive rating was an absurdly low 94.2 during Ibaka’s floor time and he had a team-best net rating of plus-30.2. The Raptors’ defensive rating spikes by 14.8 points during Ibaka’s time on the bench.

"},{"title":"6. Kyle Lowry","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Lowry_K_USATSI_14216879.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379513,"caption":"

Normally, Lowry would be higher up here. Depending on the severity of his left ankle sprain, he might drop lower if it compromises his availability during the series.

Lowry has typically been a pain in Boston’s backside, including a 30-point night at TD Garden when Toronto posted a 16-point triumph. It’d be a bit of a letdown if we didn’t get to see a Lowry-Walker showdown at the point guard spot but the Raptors do have the luxury of sliding Norm Powell into that spot if Lowry can’t go.

"},{"title":"5. Fred VanVleet","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/VanVleet_F_USATSI_14754946.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379518,"caption":"

VanVleet was absurd in Round 1 while averaging 21.3 points and shooting a sizzling 55.9 percent beyond the 3-point arc on a staggering 8.5 attempts per game. In Game 3 against the Nets, he threw in a heave from 10 feet behind the midcourt stripe.

The Celtics were fortunate that Philadelphia clanged its way through the first round but VanVleet will make them pay if they give him any space. It will be interesting to see how the Celtics match up with VanVleet, and whether Marcus Smart draws that assignment now that he’s elevated to the starting group in place of the injured Gordon Hayward.

"},{"title":"4. Jaylen Brown","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Brown_J_USATSI_14103636.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379526,"caption":"

Brown didn’t get as much attention as Jayson Tatum and Kemba Walker but he was equally impactful against Philly. The Celtics probably let Game 1 slip away if Brown doesn’t snap Boston out of its scoring funk in the fourth quarter, and they might not steal Game 3 without Brown's momentum-changing, go-ahead, and-1 layup after Marcus Smart’s steal.

For all Brown can do, offensively, it’ll be that matchup with Pascal Siakam that could define how this series plays out. He limited Siakam to 11 points on 5-of-12 shooting while defending him for a team-high seven minutes of matchup time in Boston’s lopsided seeding games victory.

"},{"title":"3. Pascal Siakam","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Siakam_P_AP_20021661684271.jpg","credit":"AP Photo","published":1598379530,"caption":"

After Kawhi Leonard bolted for L.A., Siakam came roaring out of the gates and solidified his status as best player on a still-championship-caliber team. He was voted an All-Star starter, even as he cooled a bit in the winter months.

Still, Siakam’s talent is undeniable, especially when he is creating for others around him. Whenever the Nets sent multiple bodies his way, Siakam was able to generate open looks for teammates (he had five assists to Serge Ibaka alone in Toronto’s closeout game against the Nets).

The Celtics need Jaylen Brown to be a Siakam Slower to be competitive in this series.

"},{"title":"2. Kemba Walker","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Walker_K_AP_19280550374552.jpg","credit":"AP Photo","published":1598379534,"caption":"

There’s a case to be made for Siakam in this spot, particularly given that his stat line was very similar to Jayson Tatum in Toronto’s breezy Round 1 sweep, but while Siakam struggled a bit early in the bubble, Walker has seemingly elevated his game even beyond the All-Star level we saw at the start of the season.

Walker only got better as the series against Philadelphia went on, shredding the Sixers in the pick-and-roll and making them pick their poison in how they defended him. The best part for Boston: His balky left knee wasn’t an issue and they need All-Star-level Kemba against the Raptors.

"},{"title":"1. Jayson Tatum","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Tatum_J_USATSI_13750152.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379893,"caption":"

The true mark of a superstar is being able to impact the game even when shots aren’t falling. That’s what happened for Tatum in Game 3 — the only game against Philadelphia where his shot defied him — where, instead of disappearing into the scenery as he might have at the start of the year, Tatum delivered a couple of key late-game blocks that fueled Boston’s late surge to victory.

The on/off numbers with Tatum continue to emphasize his value, as Boston owned a plus-19 net rating in his 145 minutes on the court with that number plummeting to minus-8.9 during his 47 minutes on the bench (no other Celtics player was in the negative in off-court net rating).

Tatum’s ability to lift up bench units, particularly in the absence of Gordon Hayward, only further accentuates how he’s emerged as a legitimate superstar. The Celtics thrived with Tatum on the court against the Raptors this season and need that trend to continue.

"},{"title":"CONCLUSION","image":"https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/slide/image/Walker_K_VanVleet_F_USATSI_13837219.jpg","credit":"USA TODAY Sports photo","published":1598379917,"caption":"

The natural instinct when a team projects with three of the four best players in a series is to suggest they will roll. That overlooks what makes Toronto so good.

The Raptors are a hard-nosed, gritty team that will make everything difficult. Depth isn’t supposed to be an advantage in the playoffs when rotations tighten, but the Raptors have eight players they can lean heavily on and not see a big dropoff. It’s one of their biggest advantages in this series when Boston is still throwing darts with bench help at times. The injury to Gordon Hayward seemed to swing the odds in favor of the Raptors but if Lowry misses time or is not at full health on the court, it could even things up a bit again.

This series seems to scream seven games on paper.

"}]}

NBA Playoffs: Power ranking the best players in Celtics-Raptors series