2024 NBA Playoffs: Celtics RACE BACK to take COMMANDING 3-0 lead over Pacers | CBS Sports

2024 NBA Playoffs: Celtics RACE BACK to take COMMANDING 3-0 lead over Pacers | CBS Sports

[Music] this just in what a dramatic finish between Boston Indie Aaron neith for the tie short off the rim and Boston comes back from 18 points down to stun the Pacers in their own Building without Tyrese Alberton Jason Tatum perhaps his best game of the post season 36 points 10 boards Jaylen Brown also hits some big shots with 24 and Al Horford the man had 23 points on eight of 14 shooting and was 7 to 12 from Deep Andrew NIMH hard was the engine for this team scoring wise with 32 points and almost a double double with assist TJ McConnell almost had a double double as well 239 and six Pasco seak but down the stretch Indiana did not make the necessary plays in Boston they showed veteran experience in leadership when it mattered the most time now to bring in CBS Sports NBA Insider Bill Ryder and CBS Sports NBA analyst John Gonzalez and John at halftime you said hey look I don’t think Andrew Nimar going for a 30 piece he got 32 but it still did didn’t matter for the Pacers because down the stretch again like we saw in game one they were not careful with the basketball and the Celtics showed why they were the best team All Season what do you make of what we witnessed especially down those final couple minutes where you thought maybe the Pacers were going to eek out a win and then Boston said uhuh we done we coming yeah if you’re the Pacers this is a second game out of three where you’re like man we really should have had that one they they get one of those games now all of a sudden you’re thinking okay we could get into this series but the Celtics closed game one and then they closed game three tonight and we talked at the half about what would the Celtics have to do and one of my keys was and this isn’t surprising considering how hot the Pacers were shooting the ball in the first half but play better defense right and Drew holiday who did not have a great night shooting the ball came up huge again just like he did at the end of game one at the end of game three tonight makes a big bucket through contact and then a huge steal uh late in late in the fourth quarter to really cement the game to Salt it away for the Celtics and this is a game that the Pacers could have won should have won didn’t win because the Celtics played really good defense in that fourth quarter to close it out and man if you’re the Pacers you got to be kicking yourself wondering how you get a game off these guys yeah I’m not sure that you could have a more heartbreaking Series in the Eastern or Western Conference finals and be down three 0 because as John noted there’s a world where the Pacers they just take care of business and take care of the leads that they earn are up 2-1 in this series and this one at least for me was about two things that in retrospect were pretty obvious were going to happen or at least likely to happen the Pacers are probably going to regress to the mean they did shot what almost 64% in the first half markedly worse in the second half that that’s GNA happen and that Celtics defense which was extraordinary in the regular season it’s been extraordinary in this postseason it’s not like they’ve been really challenged but still they are a great defensive team you put those together and the fact that it was just a 12-point game at half and not the 18 that it could have been or more it always felt like Boston was going to be able to get this to a close game get it to single digits and Chris you you said it their experience their ability their time and postseason play over the last few years really came out and let’s give let’s give Tatum all the love and Credit in the world Jaylen Brown was great too and look he had some big shots he was great the behind the moment when I knew it was over for the Pacers this game this season is when is when Tatum had that behind the back pass with his right hand to Horford in the corner and it was just because he could have gone up and maybe draw some contact or and it was just like okay now they’re playing with instead of playing with their food in a bad way they’re just toying with these guys because they know they’re who’s the lon and who’s the mouse what a performance by Tatum what a comeback by the Celtics and what a heartbreaker for that Pacers team and organization I want to go back to that play though bill because Al Horford the man is 50 years old right he looks like a guy who’s going to be washed up at the cookout can’t hang with the youngs and then he’s still lighting your behind up seven of 12 from Deep how impressed are you with the way Al Horford came to show up for his team offensively in a game that many expected the Pacers a win based on how the first half uh in the third quarter went yeah old man time of the NBA getting it done amazing performance and I think it was JJ reck who said it on on the broadcast it might have been Doris but it’s a great point this guy’s been through the wars before he’s been through so many playoff games this is just standard you get an open shot you take it you’re calm and you drain it and I think the way that he played well by the way tat Brown were great too but just the way Horford played and the fact that he was a big part of beating the Pacers it just reinforc is how demoralizing it must be to try to scheme against this team because everybody can beat you that there’s no porzingis but there probably will be he’ll be back at some point in the certainly in the finals Drew holiday can take over games just you can you can go down the roster of guys that get minutes and on top of brown and Tatum and as we discuss pregame sometimes even if Tatum’s struggling or or if D Brown has a has an off game there’s so many people that can step in and for if you’re the Pacers it’s like okay like Al Horford’s the guy that’s going to beat us they are deep this team mov the ball they play great defense and as we’re talking about with Horford it could be somebody else on a different night guys there’s always the possibility someone else else is gonna step up and beat you because you can’t double team two different guys and this is a group that believe in themselves have a lot of talent have a lot of depth and have a lot of guys that can make shots when you need to make and what a what a deep basketball team and Horford just reinforcing that points tonight yeah demoralizing is a good word here for this right I mean because you’d expect all Jaylen Brown’s been really good in the postseason if he beats you you go no problem Jason Tatum he finally got going hasn’t shot the ball well this postseason easily his best postseason game you go okay well he’s he made first team all NBA of course Al Horford as you mentioned Chris getting a little older and doesn’t look quite as agile as he used to if he was ever agile but he is a very good player they don’t want to have to play this guy 34 minutes of doing that because Chris’s poor is out but he reminded you oh yeah I’ve been a good player in this league for a long time and all of a sudden you fall asleep on me well guess what I’m going to nail 7 threes on you and and what bill was saying is absolutely right the depth of this team on a night where you don’t expect Al Horford to shoot the way that he shot he goes off and on a night where Drew holiday wasn’t shooting well and he had two critical plays that end up helping the Celtics win if you’re the Pacers you’re like what direction are the Celtics coming from we can’t pin them down we have no idea how to stop these guys because they come at you in waves and they have so many different ways to beat you right they have so many different ways to beat you and the other thing guys is there were so many moments where you thought the Celtics were going to hit threes that went in and out and to me I was like okay they’re they’re not going to win but the Pacers didn’t take advantage of those opportunities and right now bill it looks like the Celtics baring a collapse are going to sweep the Indiana Pacers so with that comes in mind do you think there’s too much or you think too much rest could be a a problem for them as they shift from the Eastern Conference Finals if they win in four and looking ahead to the NBA finals or do you feel like they’re going to be ready whatsoever and there won’t be a whole lot of rust yeah I think it’s a reasonable concern a reasonable question for for most teams these guys were in the Conference finals last year lost in seven to Miami they were in the NBA Finals a couple years ago lost to the Warriors I think they’ve been there enough they’ve got enough veterans I think you take the rest I think you give porzingis as much time as he can get to heal up and look the Celtics it’s a war of attrition right from a health perspective to win an NBA championship especially in 2024 and porzingis is out but he’ll be back and he’s not the main guy they’ve mostly been healthy compared to most of the teams they’ve played and really most of the teams that have tried to win a championship and competed in the playoffs this year but guys are still banged up it’s still a long season to win an NBA championship is basically two months of an extra season I take the time guys I I you close it out you hope the other series goes as long as possible by the way they’re not going to shift the NBA Finals dates anyways so the alternative is just to keep play in this series and take that risk I take the time off I make sure that I get as healthy as I can be and I think if you’re if you’re Joe moula you know that this team has enough experience they’re going to be fine whether they got a bunch of time off or not yeah the NBA finals are going to start on June 6 regardless so if you’re the Celtics you’re happy to sweep the Pacers I think the rest versus rust question it is reasonable as Bill said it’s something that we’ve talked a lot about with the Celtics but we saw it happened after the first round they had some time off after the second round they had almost a week off before playing the Pacers hasn’t slowed them down any yeah the Pacers could have stolen one of these games but they didn’t and so the Celtics have looked really good I don’t think it’s going to be a problem I think that they’re happy to take that time off because as we mentioned who knows what kind of christs porzingis you’re going to get back he gets a little extra time to cones and old man Al Horford he’s probably thrilled he gets to put his feet up maybe play a little majang a little shuffle board you know at the old folks home he’s gonna take a little uh afternoon Siesta uh the Celtics are happy to take the time yeah def definitely all right Boston Going Up 3 nothing against the Indiana Pacers Bill Ryder John Gonzalez always have fun chopping up with y’all about the NBA and the Pacers they’re not having any type of fun against the Celtics they’ve lost their last seven in a row against the Celtics in the postseason I mean game two that was a blowout game one that was a heartbreaker and this one was probably even more of a heartbreaker because they were up by 18 at one point and then you go back to 2019 they got swept by [Music] Boston and coming up Joe moula speaking to the media after his team rallied back from 18 down to literally steal the game from Indiana Drew holiday and Company super confident

John Gonzalez and Bill Reiter join CBS Sports HQ to break down Celtics-Pacers Game 3.

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