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So, Game 4 between the Boston Celtics and the Cleveland Cavaliers was the most competitive game of the Conference Finals - a 9-point win for the Cavs.
Cleveland led for the majority of the game by double digits but unlike Game 3, the Celtics never game up and kept hanging around. They kept the lead around 10 and put themselves in a position to make a comeback late with one good run. Unfortunately, in trying to keep it around 10 constantly, the Celtics, a team that has the second-most double-digit comebacks in the 2017-18 regular season, didn't have that run in them.
It was a slightly weird game for LeBron James. He didn't record more than 5 assists or 5 rebounds, but it doesn't matter as he still put up 44 points and led his team to a crucial Game 4 win. This evens up the series as it shifts back to Boston for Game 5.
Through these Conference Finals, in our Player Ratings, we have ripped into teams that have lost. The Celtics halt this trend today because their margin of defeat was just 9, while the average margin of loss through the first six games of Eastern and Western Conference Finals was 24.
So without further ado, here are the Player Ratings for the C's:
Terry Rozier - 8/10
Stat line: 16 points, 11 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 6-15 FG's and +3
Individually, it was the Terry Rozier's best game of the Conference Finals. He did a little bit of everything and shot his best percentage from 3-point range. More importantly, he was one of only two Boston players to have a positive +/- despite playing over 38 minutes.
He was aggressive and was pushing the pace in transition, exactly like the C's need him to do. Offensively, he was arguably Boston's best player but it was on the other end of the floor where, to no fault of his, he got picked on with mismatches. A lot of those mismatches forced him to guard LeBron, against whom he is quite obviously diminutive.
To win this series, the Celtics will have to do it by committee and can't afford any of their key players having an off-night. He will have to step up and be consistent like he has been for must of these Playoffs (except these Conf. Finals). Scoring more than 16 points would help their cause immensely.
Al Horford - 7.5/10
Stat line: 15 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, 42 minutes and +2
Al Horford was the second of two Celtics' players who had a positive +/-.
He took 13 shots in this game - far more than his 4 attempts in Game 3 - but he only made 5 of them. That needs to be better given the fact that 10 of his 13 attempts in Game 4 were inside the arc. Either way, the Cavs' improved tactical defense on him has been a huge factor other than the Celtics slightly struggling on offense.
Cleveland has made a few tactical tweaks in their defense on Horford [playing Thompson on him almost full-time], which has quite clearly put him out of rhythm. For 42 minutes of action, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block is far too less contribution for a player of Horford's caliber.
He is a veteran, though, and when we combine that with Brad Stevens' ability to introduce few changes, expect Horford to bounce back and play better over the next two games or even more.
Jaylen Brown - 7/10
Stat line: 25 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 10-23 FG's
Game 4 was a tale of two halves for Brown.
It was a miserable first half for the sophomore, who finished with just 8 points including plenty of misses from the field. A couple of these were uncontested dunks and he had 3 shots blocked, all by 37-year-old Kyle Korver. The Celtics, who are known for their execution and discipline, could be seen making plenty of mental errors in the first half, a lot of those committed by Brown in his miserable first quarter.
In the second half, his 17 points were a huge reason why the Celtics kept the game interesting right up until it was too late in the game. He got killed while defending LeBron James, but really, who doesn't?
Marcus Morris - 6.5/10
Stat line: 10 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 24 minutes, 4-8 FG's
Given the fact that he only played half of the game, Morris had an okay outing. It's difficult to rate a player when he was forced to play defense this conservatively.
He started the game well, scoring 4 of the team's first 6 points but from then on, he had to rein in his aggression on every move because of foul trouble. He picked up two fouls within the first seven minutes of the game and picked up his 3rd with just 2:23 left in the first quarter. He was then called for a debatable offensive foul early in the third quarter on a three-point shot attempt, which basically forced him to spend a majority of the second half on the bench as well.
This wasn't exactly why Boston lost the game but it certainly forced Brad Stevens to play Semi Ojeleye [9 minutes] a lot more than maybe he expected.
Jayson Tatum - 6/10
Stat line: 17 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist
Although Jayson Tatum also had a couple of missed dunks over the course of the game, he was the only one that seemed to be making the right plays and decisions in the team's horrid first quarter. He scored 17 but it came only on 5-of-13 shooting (0-of-1 on 3s), which has obviously got to be better.
To his credit, this was his first game of the series that he shot below 40%. In fairness, he is still a rookie but that can't be pulled up as an excuse whenever he has an off-game (which has been rare in this postseason). He has raised the expectations so high, sub-par games do deserve their fair among of critiquing.
He has to stay unfazed in the face of the brand of physical defense that the Cavs have played on him in the last 2 games.
Marcus Smart - 6/10
Stat line: 8 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 5 turnovers, 31 minutes, 2-8 FG's
ALL EFFORT!
In the good and bad that Marcus Smart did in this game, one thing was consistent - his effort. He can certainly do better than 5 turnovers and 2-of-8 shooting but on the other hand, he was the team's second-best all-round player after Rozier and his box score is proof of that.
The Celtics weren't tentative on offense like they were in Game 3, but still their offense depends on scoring by committee - everybody has got to step up. 5 of Smart's 8 points came really late in the game when it was pretty much certain which team was taking this game home.
Smart has been shooting abysmally from the field this postseason, and he has to turn it up at least to league-average efficiency to be a marked positive in games when he's not able to play the pick-and-roll offense.
Aron Baynes & Semi Ojeleye - Not Rated
Stat line [Baynes]: 8 points, 7 rebounds, 1 block.
Aron Baynes probably played as many minutes as Brad Stevens had planned to give him, but Semi Ojeleye's 9 minutes were something he might not have wanted if it wasn't for Morris' foul trouble. Ojeleye was a -14 in his time on the court with just one rebound and two personal fouls to show for it.
Baynes, in certain schemes, can be used effectively in this series but his 16 minutes weren't probably as impactful as many expected. He did have 5 offensive boards, however, which is just the kind of hustle all the Celtics need to display in terms of rebounding.
Guess the Lakers players!
