I also wanted to mess around with the stats for 3-point attempts, to test Joe Mazzulla's unconventional theory that 3PA are the biggest factor contributing to winning. The two teams in the finals rank 8th (MIA at 34.0 3PA/gm) and 13th (DEN at 30.9 3PA/gm) out of the 16 playoff teams, based on playoff stats. BOS for reference is 4th at 38.7 3PA/gm.
There does not appear to be any correlation between playoff success and 3PA rate. The final 4 teams ranked 4th (BOS), 8th (MIA), 13th (DEN), and 15th (LAL) in playoff 3PA attempt rate. If anything, it is weighted more towards the lower end with 3 of 4 being average or below average. Making 3s is statistically far more impactful to success (not surprising).
Regular season, GSW, BOS, DAL, and MIL were the top 4 in 3PA. The bottom 4 were ORL, ATL, NOP, and CHI. DEN was 25th. So the two top regular season records were in the top 4 of 3PA but the 3rd best team was 25th. The bottom 4 in 3PA were all average or bad teams. You could argue that DEN has Jokic which may lead to more inside shots, skewing this some, I don't know.
The bottom line is that I don't think there is any statistical basis for the theory that 3PA is the biggest factor to winning. There was more correlation in the regular season over the playoffs but nothing determinative from what I can see. It may be a bigger factor for the Celtics than the league at large, I don't know, but I have my doubts. Meaning based on the Celtic's personnel, 3PA may be more important to them than a league average team.
I say let's get a big who can score and that will diversify our offense. It the Celtics need to jack up 3s to win, based on personnel, maybe the team is not versatile enough. Over reliance on live by the 3 die by the 3 appears to lead to an overly inconsistent team.
I had posted this in another thread. I see offensive scheme as progressive. You should push the ball every defensive rebound or steal or even after a made basket. Probe and see if you can get any early offense. If not, fine, run a set but you should be trying to push every possession.
Then once you are in a "set" I think what is missing from the Celtic's offense is off ball movement and screening. The on ball pick is the most basic thing, predictable. And if everyone else is standing around, it is easy to defend. There should be the treat of a 3 with every set. And it is fine if a "set" is designed to get an open 3, but there needs to be more to it than that. Good looks at 3s don't just happen, it requires scheme and execution.
I think for the last 2 seasons anyway, our offensive schemes have been too primitive, too predictable. The stats show that it pretty much doesn't matter how many 3s you take. That is not a determining factor in being a good team. Because the Celtics are guard/wing heavy (in terms of scoring talent) over big heavy, maybe the Celtics do need to take more than the league average for 3PA. That is fine. But that does not mean we need to be one-dimensional and predictable.