With 11 games left in the regular season, the Boston Celtics have secured the top seed in the Eastern Conference. With an offensive rating of 122.5, they presently lead the league after dominating on both sides of the court the whole season.
The core of the Celtics’ offensive strategy is 3-point shooting. They shoot better than any team in the league (42.7 shots per game), make better (16.7), and make more shots (39.1%) than any other team in the league.
Nevertheless, the Celtics’ post play has been a little-discussed secret to their traditionally successful offense.
Level of Player
Kristaps Porzingis’s arrival opened up a lot of offensive options for the Celtics, including the ability to create mismatches in the post.
Porzingis has scored 203 points in 155 post-up possessions in 49 games this season, or 1.31 points per possession (PPP). When the NBA started tracking play types in 2015, that was the most productive season for players who post-up at least three times per game in terms of scoring.
Despite developing a stronger post-game during his tenure in Washington, this is by far Porzingis’s most productive scoring season ever.
This year, there are several Celtics who are performing remarkably well in the post besides the 7′ 2″ unicorn. With three players that post up at least twice a game, the Celtics are the only team in the league. More significantly, the Celtics have three players—Porzingis, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown—in the top 10 in PPP among players who post twice or more per game.
Tatum produced 1.22 PPP on such players last season, showing off his amazing efficiency. But he only made one post every 1.4 games. Despite averaging just 2.5 possessions per game this season, he is tied for fifth in the league among players who have at least two possessions per game with an exceptionally effective 1.12 PPP.
With two post-ups per game, Brown, on the other hand, is averaging 1.08 PPP, which is a career-high for him among players.
Group Level
The Boston Celtics are second in the NBA in terms of team scoring, only behind the Denver Nuggets. With eight possessions per game and a post-up frequency of 7.3%, they rank second in the NBA.
The Celtics’ effectiveness on those plays, rather than their quantity of post-ups, is what really sticks out. The Celtics lead the league with 1.13 PPP, more than any other club with four or more post-ups per contest. With 9.1 points earned on post-ups, they are second in the league.
The growth is remarkable when those figures are contrasted with those from the prior season. The Celtics scored one point per possession (PPP) on 24 out of 30 post-up plays during the previous season.
The Celtics’ formula for success is, as was already mentioned, perimeter shooting. And it will continue to be so come playoff time. However, having three players who can get you a bucket in the paint is important in games where shots aren’t falling and players lose their cool.
