Three observations from Celtics’ Game 2 loss to Miami Heat

It made little sense to this writer that Joe Mazzulla substituted Robert Williams III out after Miami opened up a small lead in the early moments of the game. Sure, you’re not going to decide a 48-minute game in the first five minutes of the first quarter. But, you can get a general feel for how desperate the home team down 1-0 is in the first few minutes of the game.

Miami scored a bit too easily coming out of the gate. Boston struggled to find a rhythm in the first few minutes.

That, by itself, is not a concern.

But, Williams III was the only Celtic making plays on defense. He blew up a lob in the paint, he blocked a Butler side-step three, and then forced a rim-out on a Butler midrange jumper. He was the only keeping the Celtics from being in a double-digit hole before they could blink.

Taking Williams III out is fine if that adjustment makes your offense flow easier. There needs to be a pretty immediate response for that to be a worthwhile move. Not just neutralizing the threat, but taking over and zapping the road team’s momentum right where it sits. And it just didn’t pay off in the first quarter. The Celtics only led by one point heading into the second quarter, giving the Heat confidence that they had withstood a first chess move by the home team.

Still, Boston punched back in the early stages of the second quarter. The key for the Celtics to get going typically involves pace in transition, and that was how they went about jumping ahead in the opening two minutes of the second quarter.

First, Grant Williams blocked Adebayo, resulting in a kicked ball turnover. Not a transition opportunity, but Boston had the right pace on what came next. Kyle Lowry blew a pick-and-roll coverage, leaving Williams to make himself available to Tatum out of the short roll. A quick bounce pass from Tatum, a quick pivot and rocket to Derrick White in the corner, easy money on a corner three.

Second, Lowry made a bad pass for a live-ball turnover. Malcolm Brogdon cashed in on a pull-up three in transition.

Third, Gabe Vincent was well off the mark on an early-clock three in Miami’s halfcourt offense. Tatum found the mismatch in transition, scoring a layup after backing his way down to the paint on an isolation.

Turning defense into quick offense is the best way for this Celtics team to score. As Marcus Smart said not so long ago, the Celtics’ offense is random. That means there’s not a lot of structure when the game slows down. Brogdon might be the only real point guard on the team, but Mazzulla only went to him for 26 minutes in this game.

If Boston isn’t going to feature a real point guard to organize that end of the floor, they have to play quickly. Doing so gave them a nine-point lead early in the second frame, forcing Miami into a timeout.

Nice haymaker.