Celtics vs Magic Game 4 Review
The Celtics defeated the Magic 107-98 in game 4 of the NBA playoffs. The game was back and forth the whole way, but the Celtics execution down the stretch is what won them the game. The first quarter was a roller coaster, foreshadowing how the game would play out. The Celtics quickly fell behind 18-10, with a lot of the same problems from game 3 showing up. The lack of ball movement and isolation shots were hurting them, but they got right back on track, going on an 18-3 run and closed the quarter 22-11.
A large problem the Celtics have faced on offense is the others not getting going. Porzingis has struggled mightely in the series so far but managed to get back on track. He missed his first 2 shots trying to do what he has struggled on all series: mismatch hunting. This part of the offense was a key reason the Celtics were so dominant in 2024 but has not translated as well to this series.
Luckily, he was able to figure out other ways to score, getting his next 3 buckets all as a rim runner off the ball for easy points. Great players find ways to impact the game, and that's exactly what he did. Porzingis finished with 19 points on 7/14 shooting, even hitting two threes in the game, and was a huge reason the Celtics managed to pull out the win.
Derrick White and Al Horford also came up huge in this game. Derrick had 18 points on 7/11 shooting and was once again a defensive terror. The best part about this Celtics team is the established roles and that anyone is capable of being the best player on any given night. Especially without Jrue Holiday on the floor, Derrick had a bigger burden offensively and defensively, and he handled it perfectly.
Al Horford. What hasn't been said about him? Great veteran in the locker room and on the floor, always able to impact the game, and tonight was no different. The Celtics racked up 7 steals and 7 blocks for the game, 5 of those blocks came from Horford, 2 of them in the 4th quarter. Al always makes his prescence felt no matter how well he scores it.
Jayson Tatum once again showed how great he is, taking over the game with 37 points. He dominated in the most crucial quarters of the game, the 1st and 4th. When the Celtics struggled early in the first, he managed to weather the storm with 10 points, keeping the team afloat. Then in the 4th quarter, when the team was struggling to buy a basket, he had half the team's made shots and over half the team's points with 16. He was efficient from the floor and kept getting to the line in the final minutes to ice the game.
Now for some of the bad. The Celtics have to get off to better starts. They will only face better offensive teams, and these slow starts will burn them if they are not careful. Turnovers. Everyone knows it, the Celtics can be turnover happy. They have been great at taking care of the ball the past 2 seasons but will occasionally fall into iso ball and this is when the turnovers pile up. The team had 11 in the game, but 8 came in the first half and was a huge reason they could not create any separation.
Luckily, this was cleaned up in the second half, so even though they shot poorly in this half, they were not making life easier for the Magic, and sometimes that's how you have to win in the playoffs, winning ugly. The other big issue plaguing the Celtics is the lack of bench scoring, getting only 6 points from the bench in this one. Once again, the better teams will absolutely take advantage of this. We just saw the Lakers play 5 players in the entire second half, and it cost them. These guys have to be better and make an impact.
Pritchard especially has been a puzzling player, because he has been playing by far the most bench minutes but isn't taking any shots. He played 25 minutes, and shot the ball twice, missing both. Why isn't he getting more shots? Jrue Holiday is out, that only should give Pritchard more shots, but it hasn't. Sam Hauser has been as close to zero as it gets through the first 3 games, playing 35 minutes and not scoring. In this game however, he managed to hit 2 threes in his 18 minutes, making at least a bit of an impact.
Overall, still a great team win. Now the Celtics aim to gentlemen sweep the Magic on Tuesday at home, giving themselves enough rest for the next opponent, which will be either the New York Knicks or the Detroit Pistons.