The key matchup in the Celtics-Hawks series

[Prof. Clutch]

Hey all,
Here's a video I filmed/edited with Paul Flannery and Michael Holley discussing the key matchup of our first round series against the Hawks.  I'm hoping to do more of these videos as the playoffs go along.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6c_bff0VmKs&feature=youtu.be
(You can listen to the full podcast here: http://audio.weei.com/a/55695788/talking-hoops-ep-10-flannery-and-holley-preview-the-celtics-hawks-playoffs-series.htm)

Do you guys agree with Bradley vs. Johnson being the key matchup?  One thing they failed to mention is that Bradley has been defending the other teams point guard most of the time so I'm not sure how much he'll be defending Joe Johnson directly.  However that leaves open the potential problem with having Rondo trying to guard Joe Johnson. 

I think there are a few interesting and important match-ups in this series.  Rondo vs. Teague will be very important as will Bass vs. Smith and Pierce vs. Williams.  But personally I'm keeping my eye on Garnett vs. Collins only because I think Kevin needs to dominate that matchup thoroughly.  I also think our bench has a distinct talent advantage over theirs.

So which matchup do you guys think is crucial to the C's taking the first round?

[CelticG1]

Don't agree at all. It will be Heinrich and teague and bradley/rondo.

Why wouldn't Pierce be guarding JJ for the majority of the game?

I think its j. Smith vs KG/Bass. I think smith can definitely be a matchups problem for both those guys when he's on and if Smith plays well they can be very dangerous. I think the key will be not letting him get comfortable. He will be a problem on the boards no matter what though

[Fafnir]

I'm not sure this is true, especially given that Joe Johnson has been playing a lot of minutes at the SF position.

They had Joe Johnson guard Bradley a lot our last game together though, but that was because Sasha/Dooling were far easier cover for their other guards.

[Prof. Clutch]

Don't agree at all. It will be Heinrich and teague and bradley/rondo.

Why wouldn't Pierce be guarding JJ for the majority of the game?

I think its j. Smith vs KG/Bass. I think smith can definitely be a matchups problem for both those guys when he's on and if Smith plays well they can be very dangerous. I think the key will be not letting him get comfortable. He will be a problem on the boards no matter what though

I agree, it will most likely be Teague/Heinrich vs. Rondo/Bradley with Paul going head to head against Johnson. 

Also think you are correct on the importance of the Josh Smith matchup.  Josh Smith has been the Hawks best player this season.  The Celtics have done pretty well against him in their games against the Hawks this season.  I think one of the keys is to force him into playing one on one ball which he likes to do even though he's not every efficient at it.

[Prof. Clutch]

I'm not sure this is true, especially given that Joe Johnson has been playing a lot of minutes at the SF position.

They had Joe Johnson guard Bradley a lot our last game together though, but that was because Sasha/Dooling were far easier cover for their other guards.

Good point.  I think the JJ/PP matchup will be a really fun one to watch all series.  Also, Larry Drew tried out a Williams/Smith combo at PF/C against the Knicks a few games ago.  They didn't win the game but I wonder if he'll give that another try if Garnett starts to scorch Collins.

I think the fact that Hortford and Pachulia are injured is a huge advantage to the C's in this series.

[snively]

I'm not sure this is true, especially given that Joe Johnson has been playing a lot of minutes at the SF position.

They had Joe Johnson guard Bradley a lot our last game together though, but that was because Sasha/Dooling were far easier cover for their other guards.

If the Hawks are smart they will boot Hinrich out of the starting line-up and line up Joe at the 2-spot in this series. 

In prior games they were able to get Bradley matched up on JJ as soon as they subbed Marvin Williams into the game at the 3. 

If I'm Doc I'm jumping for joy if Hinrich is the starting 2 guard.  As soon as Hinrich goes to the bench, I bring in Pietrus for Bradley. 

If JJ gets the start at 2, it poses much more of a problem.

[dtrader]

This series could either validate or reverse my outlook on bradley. The main reason I don't support him, is his lack of a position. He doesn't have the ball handling/passing to run point, and he doesn't have thr size/strength to guard the 2.

If he can successfully contend with JJ on a consistent basis, I'll start to respect him. Its not impossible, since JJ doesn't have a developed post up game or slash as much as some other elite SGs, but it'll at least show Bradley is able to deal with the size difference he's going to face playing consistently as our SG. That + his shot staying how it's been thr last month will get me on the AB wagon.

[RyNye]

This series could either validate or reverse my outlook on bradley. The main reason I don't support him, is his lack of a position. He doesn't have the ball handling/passing to run point, and he doesn't have thr size/strength to guard the 2.

If he can successfully contend with JJ on a consistent basis, I'll start to respect him. Its not impossible, since JJ doesn't have a developed post up game or slash as much as some other elite SGs, but it'll at least show Bradley is able to deal with the size difference he's going to face playing consistently as our SG. That + his shot staying how it's been thr last month will get me on the AB wagon.

So Bradley successfully defending Dwyane Wade doesn't count?

[Fafnir]

This series could either validate or reverse my outlook on bradley. The main reason I don't support him, is his lack of a position. He doesn't have the ball handling/passing to run point, and he doesn't have thr size/strength to guard the 2.

If he can successfully contend with JJ on a consistent basis, I'll start to respect him. Its not impossible, since JJ doesn't have a developed post up game or slash as much as some other elite SGs, but it'll at least show Bradley is able to deal with the size difference he's going to face playing consistently as our SG. That + his shot staying how it's been thr last month will get me on the AB wagon.

So Bradley successfully defending Dwyane Wade doesn't count?

Joe Johnson is a much bigger SG than Wade (Joe Johnson is roughly the same size as Pierce), he's a more difficult match up for Bradley because of the size disadvantage.

[CelticG1]

I'm not sure this is true, especially given that Joe Johnson has been playing a lot of minutes at the SF position.

They had Joe Johnson guard Bradley a lot our last game together though, but that was because Sasha/Dooling were far easier cover for their other guards.

If the Hawks are smart they will boot Hinrich out of the starting line-up and line up Joe at the 2-spot in this series. 

In prior games they were able to get Bradley matched up on JJ as soon as they subbed Marvin Williams into the game at the 3. 

If I'm Doc I'm jumping for joy if Hinrich is the starting 2 guard.  As soon as Hinrich goes to the bench, I bring in Pietrus for Bradley. 

If JJ gets the start at 2, it poses much more of a problem.

Wouldn't we just put Pierce on JJ and Bradley on Williams and just roll with it? Aren't Williams and JJ pretty much the same size? The potential problem with Bradley on JJ is that JJ is a very good offensive player who could really potentially cause a lot of problems for a smaller Bradley. But if you put Williams in you are going to be running plays through him just to attempt to utilize that mismatch and if they do id be more than happy

[Fafnir]

Aren't Williams and JJ pretty much the same size?

Marvin Williams is 6' 9" or 6 10"

A good deal taller than Joe Johnson and he's been thriving on 3s, something that a small guard would have trouble contesting. I wouldn't be shocked if Williams would feel rather comfortable posting Bradley up as well.

[Fafnir]

I'm not sure this is true, especially given that Joe Johnson has been playing a lot of minutes at the SF position.

They had Joe Johnson guard Bradley a lot our last game together though, but that was because Sasha/Dooling were far easier cover for their other guards.

If the Hawks are smart they will boot Hinrich out of the starting line-up and line up Joe at the 2-spot in this series. 

In prior games they were able to get Bradley matched up on JJ as soon as they subbed Marvin Williams into the game at the 3. 

If I'm Doc I'm jumping for joy if Hinrich is the starting 2 guard.  As soon as Hinrich goes to the bench, I bring in Pietrus for Bradley. 

If JJ gets the start at 2, it poses much more of a problem.

I think he'll play Johnson at the 2 for long stretches, but Williams has been a key offensive spark for them off the bench. I wouldn't be surprised if initially they kept the same starting line up they've been using.

[snively]

This series could either validate or reverse my outlook on bradley. The main reason I don't support him, is his lack of a position. He doesn't have the ball handling/passing to run point, and he doesn't have thr size/strength to guard the 2.

If he can successfully contend with JJ on a consistent basis, I'll start to respect him. Its not impossible, since JJ doesn't have a developed post up game or slash as much as some other elite SGs, but it'll at least show Bradley is able to deal with the size difference he's going to face playing consistently as our SG. That + his shot staying how it's been thr last month will get me on the AB wagon.

JJ has one of the best post games of any 2-guard.  He's murder on undersized guards.  His combination of strength, skill and touch on shots in the 5-12 foot range is really difficult to deal with.  A lot like Kobe in this regard.

I don't think AB has much of a chance against JJ.  It's just a rough match-up.

That doesn't mean he's rubbish against all 2-guards though - his quickness/pressure can be bothersome to 2-guards that prefer to break down guys off the dribble like D-Wade.  But yes, his vulnerability to guys with size and skill is a good reason to question his viability as a full-time starting 2 guard.

[CelticG1]

This series could either validate or reverse my outlook on bradley. The main reason I don't support him, is his lack of a position. He doesn't have the ball handling/passing to run point, and he doesn't have thr size/strength to guard the 2.

If he can successfully contend with JJ on a consistent basis, I'll start to respect him. Its not impossible, since JJ doesn't have a developed post up game or slash as much as some other elite SGs, but it'll at least show Bradley is able to deal with the size difference he's going to face playing consistently as our SG. That + his shot staying how it's been thr last month will get me on the AB wagon,

So Bradley successfully defending Dwyane Wade doesn't count?

Joe Johnson is a much bigger SG than Wade (Joe Johnson is roughly the same size as Pierce), he's a more difficult match up for Bradley because of the size disadvantage.

There are only a couple guys in the league with that kinda size at SG though.

If he only has trouble a against a couple of those guys I can live with it. Much like LG having issues with Bynum/Howard when playing the C position. I think the height thing is blown outta proportion. If you have defense like KG/Bradley you still will do better than most guys who have the better height/physical match up

[snively]

I'm not sure this is true, especially given that Joe Johnson has been playing a lot of minutes at the SF position.

They had Joe Johnson guard Bradley a lot our last game together though, but that was because Sasha/Dooling were far easier cover for their other guards.

If the Hawks are smart they will boot Hinrich out of the starting line-up and line up Joe at the 2-spot in this series. 

In prior games they were able to get Bradley matched up on JJ as soon as they subbed Marvin Williams into the game at the 3. 

If I'm Doc I'm jumping for joy if Hinrich is the starting 2 guard.  As soon as Hinrich goes to the bench, I bring in Pietrus for Bradley. 

If JJ gets the start at 2, it poses much more of a problem.

Wouldn't we just put Pierce on JJ and Bradley on Williams and just roll with it? Aren't Williams and JJ pretty much the same size? The potential problem with Bradley on JJ is that JJ is a very good offensive player who could really potentially cause a lot of problems for a smaller Bradley. But if you put Williams in you are going to be running plays through him just to attempt to utilize that mismatch and if they do id be more than happy

Williams is 6'8, IIRC, and powerfully built.  Like Jeff Green, he becomes dangerous offensively as a wing if he matches up a against a smaller player. 

Bradley shouldn't defend him.