Celtics vs. Cavaliers Game 4: Can Boston overcome the odds or will LeBron prevail?
The Celtics will attempt to even the series Tuesday night in Cleveland
Against all odds, the Boston Celtics somehow found a way to escape with a victory in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals Sunday night, shocking the Cleveland Cavaliers with a last-second 3-pointer by Avery Bradley to cut the Cavs' series lead to 2-1.
Still without Isaiah Thomas, the Celtics will try to do the unthinkable Tuesday night: Even the series and take back home-court advantage by winning Game 4. It's of course going to be a quite a difficult task, but as they showed in Game 3, it's not an impossible one.
Here's how to watch Game 4.
- What: Eastern Conference finals Game 4
- Who: Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
- When: 8:30 p.m. ET
- Where: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland
- TV: TNT
- Streaming: Watch TNT app
- Line: Cavaliers -14.5
Here's what to watch for:
Who steps up for the Celtics?
In Game 3 it was Marcus Smart, as he caught fire from outside, going 7 for 10 from 3-point land on his way to 27 points, while also dishing out seven assists and grabbing five rebounds. Jonas Jerebko and Kelly Olynyk were impressive off the bench as well, hitting some big shots down the stretch, and combining for 25 of the Celtics' 32 bench points. Without Isaiah Thomas, the Celtics will once again need someone -- or more likely a few people -- to step up and have big nights if they hope to once again upset the Cavs.
Return of The King:
LeBron James only made four shots in Game 3, his baskets in a playoff game since Game 5 of the 2014 Eastern Conference finals, when he went just 2 for 10 against the Indiana Pacers. His 11 points are his lowest in this postseason, and just the second time in 11 games he failed to put up 30 or more points. The poor performance certainly helped the Celtics in Game 3, but it might cause them some problems Tuesday night if the result is a more focused and determined James. I think it's pretty safe to say he won't be putting up just 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting in Game 4.
The battle for the 3-point line:
Boston -- especially without Isaiah Thomas -- is a far less talented bunch than the Cavaliers. One way the Celtics can counter that is by outshooting the Cavaliers from the 3-point line. That's a tough task given all the shooters Cleveland has on the roster, but it's what Boston did in both of its victories against Cleveland this season, first in the regular season, and then in Game 3, when they went an incredible 18 of 40 from downtown. Whether it's Smart staying hot or Jae Crowder and Avery Bradley connecting time and again, the Celtics are going to need to make a bunch of 3s if they want any hope of evening the series up Tuesday night.
















