Tyrese Haliburton pointed out the obvious when asked about Jrue Holiday after Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. “He is the best defender in the NBA,” declared the All-Star point guard. “He has been for a long time.” Haliburton was not far away.
Holiday was named to his sixth all-defensive team on Tuesday. Among active guards, only Chris Paul has been chosen for more. Holiday was the main matchup against Haliburton in Game 1, and while Indiana’s floor general played largely well, Holiday came up with three big steals. With the Pacers trailing by one with just over a minute left in overtime, Holiday’s forced turnover allowed Jayson Tatum to increase the lead to four with a three-pointer and effectively seal the victory. Even now, just weeks away from turning 34, Holiday remains one of the best defenders in the NBA.
But the Celtics have a lot of great defenders, and others like Marcus Smart and Robert Williams III are no longer a part of this team because defense has never been the problem in the postseason. Where things tend to get out of control is on the offensive end. At their worst, the Celtics become an offense that mindlessly shoots 3-pointers and turns the ball over because they can’t generate easier shots. This is where Holiday was so useful against the Pacers in Game 1. While his 4-of-8 three-pointers were obviously critical, it was his ability to create points near the rim against weaker defenders that saved the Celtics the Tuesday.
The word “weaker” here is literal. Holiday was too big and too strong for most of Indiana’s perimeter players. Just look at how easily he seals the position against Haliburton before the ball even arrives.
The next time Haliburton faces Holiday in the post, he has no choice but to foul.
Ben Sheppard was no better.
TJ McConnell is pretty good defensively against most guards, but he’s virtually invisible to Holiday due to his size.
This has been a problem for the Pacers for some time now. Last season, Holiday scored 51 points in a March game against Indiana because Andrew Nembhard was equally helpless against him.
These are cases where Holiday’s defenders did the best they could despite the mismatch. It doesn’t help that Indiana’s defenders aren’t the most disciplined in the league. Watch Holiday wait patiently for Haliburton’s eyes to wander before cutting into two easy spots.
This is the other component of Holiday’s offensive value in this series. His basketball IQ is so high and he is so consistently in the right spots that if Indiana’s defense deviates from scheme or collapses in any way even for a moment, he will turn it into offense.
Does Indiana have potential solutions for Holiday’s offense? Sure. The problem is that they are otherwise busy. Aaron Nesmith is Indiana’s best perimeter defender. He was busy defending Jayson Tatum in Game 1. Pascal Siakam was needed for Jaylen Brown. You can always send help, but the Celtics were the best three-point shooting team in the NBA this season and one of the best of all time. Do you really want to give Derrick White or Al Horford an open look?
This is the problem Boston poses for almost every team in the league. Most lineups have a poor defender. Some have two. Indiana has several. There are several creative ways to hide it. The Knicks hunted Haliburton a lot in the second round. By the end of the series, Indiana had become comfortable guarding and recovering from Jalen Brunson whenever New York tried that. It’s not a perfect solution, but there are ways to mitigate defensive weaknesses most of the time. Most teams have a bad offensive player on the court at all times.
But Boston? Even with Kristaps Porzingis sidelined, there’s simply no hiding place. Tatum and Brown were simply All-Stars. White almost was too. Holiday is no longer that caliber of offensive player. He’s not going to score 28 most nights, and the Bucks struggled offensively in the playoffs when they needed Holiday to serve as a primary creator.
The Celtics never needed Holiday to be the primary creator. They are so good and so deep with top-tier talent that he can afford to pick his spots. The Pacers present a matchup that takes advantage of his literal and figurative strength. He can intimidate these smaller perimeter defenders, and Indiana’s best are so busy with their own assignments that Rick Carlisle doesn’t really have an obvious schematic solution. Even if Holiday’s offense won’t earn him the kind of “best in the league” praise that Haliburton gave his defense, it’s still far beyond what the worst offensive perimeter player on a normal team is capable of. , which offensive-focused opponents like Indiana will simply never have the manpower to counter. Holiday is too strong for the Pacers and there is nothing they can do about it.
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